Expert: Ali - 4/29/2009

Question
QUESTION: Hi,
I have an indoor girl cat she is 2 years old, and am thinking of bring another cat so they can pllay together. my cat is very playfull but she is uninhabited with cats at all,she gots scared when she heared a cat voice... so do you recommend to bring a new cat or not and if yes how old must the new cat be ...
thanks alot

ANSWER: Rawd,

I see no problem introducing a new cat to your household provided that you do it properly. In a case like yours experience has shown me that a kitten around 12 weeks old or so would be more easily accepted into your home since you already have an adult cat in residence. It's wise to have your older cat spayed if she hasn't been done already, this will reduce the likelihood of certain behavioral and medical problems and ensure that your cat lives the longest, healthiest and happiest life possible.

There's a serious pet overpopulation problem affecting shelters and rescue organizations worldwide and all too often shelters are forced to euthanize healthy, adoptable animals because they run out of time, space and resources to devote to each animal. Spaying and neutering pets has many medical and behavioral benefits aside from the obvious benefit of population control. Spaying and neutering cats prevents uterine, ovarian and testicular cancers. The earlier in life a cat is sterilized the lower their risk is of developing prostate or breast cancer.

Unspayed female cats are at risk of developing a potentially life threatening uterine infection called pyometra which causes the womb to fill with pus - if the uterus ruptures and infection spreads throughout the abdomen the cat's chances of survival aren't good. The only treatment for pyometra is to spay the cat although doing so while she has such a serious infection increases the risks during surgery, the financial cost is higher because the surgery takes longer and is more complicated.

In North American cats the leading cause of death is euthanasia secondary to behavioral problems. Spaying and neutering cats prevents serious behavioral issues such as using urine/feces to mark territory inside and outside of the house, fighting with other cats (which can result in some pretty expensive vet bills to treat abscesses and other infections), wandering away from home in search of other intact cats to mate with, caterwauling to decide which male gets the right to breed with specific females in season, howling to advertise their availability to mate and sterilizing cats also reduces the likelihood that they'll develop aggression towards people. Spaying and neutering saves countless lives every year, it's a responsible and ethical choice that could very well save your own cat's life.

Questions about new cat/kitten introductions are very common and I have answered countless questions on this subject so I will give you the short version of how to properly introduce a new cat/kitten to your resident cat. You are free to fill in the details by checking out my previous answers on this subject. Cats are very territorial and they tend not to appreciate change so it's important to be sensitive to that fact when adding a new cat or kitten to the family. When introducing a new cat/kitten into a home with one or more resident cats it's important to isolate the new family member in a room behind a closed door with all of the usual kitty amenities and regular attention for a minimum of 2-3 weeks. This initial period of confinement serves a few purposes, firstly it allows the new kitty to be quarantined and avoids the possible spread of viral or bacterial infections to resident cats. By isolating the new kitty you also have the opportunity to get to know your new family member as well as what is normal in terms of appetite, litter box habits and personality. Once the two cats have been successfully introduced to each other and they're comfortable around each other it's important to make sure that you have at least one litter box per cat plus one in order to reduce the risks of problems with house soiling developing.

If after isolating the new kitty for 2-3 weeks your cat still shows some aggression towards the new family member you could try a homeopathic remedy called Bach's Rescue Remedy which is a blend of flower essences designed to calm and reassure. Rescue Remedy can be found in health food stores, naturopathic pharmacies, in some mainstream pharmacies in the section with the vitamins and other nutritional supplements and I believe that you can also purchase this remedy online. I'm not entirely sure how much you know about your older cat's history, she may have fears related to previous bad experiences or she may just be a really submissive cat, although most cats will defend their territory fairly aggressively. Do be careful when handling this kitty to avoid injury because the behavior is odd enough that the cat may become unpredictable and scratch or bite someone who upsets her. If you opt to use Rescue Remedy I would recommend adding 5-7 drops to a fresh bowl of water each morning and if anxiety or previous trauma are the issues you should start to see fairly rapid improvement in this cat's demeanor and behavior. Rescue Remedy is very safe so it won't harm humans, other pets or even young children.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks Ali for your reply ... but still need to know if it's better for my cat to adopt new cat so she can play with or it's not preferable since for the mean while she is so afraid of cats, or any person that she doesn't know.
she is a feral and don't know if this behavior has any thing to do with her type

thanks a lot Ali

Answer
Rawd,

I wasn't aware that your cat has issues with anxiety around people. It's not unusual for a cat to react to the sight, sound or smell of other animals, they need gentle, gradual socialization with any new animal coming into your home, including any new cat you would consider adopting. Often times a companion in the form of another cat can help increase a timid cat's confidence provided that you ensure your new friend is gentle and kind. I would aim to get a submissive, calm male kitten around 12 weeks of age, just be sure to spay your resident cat if she hasn't already been sterilized in order to prevent unwanted litters of kittens from being born. Once the new kitten comes of age you'll need to neuter him to prevent certain behavioral and medical problems from happening later in life. I don't see any problem introducing a new cat provided that you do it properly. For information about new cat introductions you can check out my previous answers on this subject.

As for your cat's fear of unknown people it may be a result of not being properly socialized with people of different ages and genders when she was younger. You can work through this with your cat if you take time and patience and you're ready to make a commitment to this kitty's overall comfort levels with new people. You can help your cat by asking people who visit your home not to talk to, touch or make eye contact with the cat and provide them with favorite treats to give your kitty if she comes out of hiding. You can use the homeopathic remedy I recommended in my original answer, it's great for helping calm and reassure anxious, fearful cats, I've used it for many years when trying to help abused, traumatized anxious cats and it's quite effective. You can also use treats to reward her for coming out of hiding when people visit your home. If there are people she's comfortable with expand on it by slowing introducing other kind, gentle people to her. Fearful cats can take lots of time to work with, but patience pays off. Your veterinarian may be able to refer you to a behaviorist specializing in cat behavior and s/he may have other tips beyond using positive reinforcement in the form of treats to reward behaviors that you want to see from your cat. Since it sounds like your cat is submissive, but fearful you can try little tricks like petting her by approaching from under her head rather than over her head and body, this will help to build the cat's confidence.