Expert: Norman Auspitz - 10/28/2009

Question
Hi, I have always gotten Siamese cats in pairs as kittens but now have an opportunity to adopt a 6-7 yr old male Siamese mix at a local shelter. I have a 21 yr old female whose brother passed away 3 yrs ago, and we added 2 Siamese kittens(1 boy 1 girl) which are now 3. Having never brought an adult into my home I wonder what to expect. Is this a good idea, bad idea? He is declawed and hisses at the other cats in the shelter.They have him on hold for me until I decide....

Answer
Donna,

Given the population you have ay home, it is impossible to tell how it would work out.  Bringing home an adult into the mix can turn everyone's relationships upside down and, possibly, make things worse for everyone.  Were it me, I would rather try to integrate a kitten into the mix, or just leave it alone.

However, if you insist, here is a way to try to integrate the adult into your population, but no gaurantees that things would not end up in a real mess:

Start out your new cat in one room with a litter pan and water dish. Ideally, the one room should be a bedroom with yourself or another human resident. This accomplishes a couple of things. Your new cat will not be overwhelmed by its new surroundings and get "lost", and thusly will
have no problem finding the litter pan (often rescue cats have been confined and are somewhat daunted by wide open spaces!). You will feed the new cat in this room and keep the established cats out. It allows the new cat to bond with you or another human being and also build up some self assurance in its new surroundings since it will not have to compete for food or attention right away. Finally, it allows the new cat and the established cats to sniff each other under the door and get familiar with each others' scents.

After 5-7 days of being in its one room, it is time to let them meet each other. Be prepared for some posturing, some spitting and hissing, and the like. IGNORE IT! After a while, they (hopefully) should begin chasing each other about and still have the occasional hiss or spit as they get accustomed to each other. Cats tend to make a whole lot of noise and even loosen up
some fur. Rarely will two cats hurt each other.

Once they are introduced, there are a couple of things you must remember. Do not separate them again, hopefully, they will get along! Do not interfere in their "discussions" as they need to sort it out amongst themselves! Human intervention will only make things worse!!!!!

It does not hurt to give the established cats treats and extra attention after the new cat is introduced (yes, cats do get jealous!).

A couple of things you may have to do are to feed them on separate dishes. Provide more than one litter pan in different areas of the household (as cats can be very territorial about litter pans).

All, in all, this method seems to have had great success in the past and makes for a fairly smooth introduction. Please remember that they may make up immediately, or it may take a few weeks, or, in the worst case, they may all never get along!!!!!

Best regards.... Norm.