Expert: Norman Auspitz - 1/29/2010

Question
Hi Mr Auspitz

I have an 11 month old Russian Blue. We brought her home from the breeder when she was 4 months old.   We have two homes and she spends a lot of time with me in one home and is the only cat there.  We do visit our other home frequently where there are other cats and they all get along well.  The only problem is the cats at the other house have aged before our eyes.  The cat that always loved kittens - still looks as good as when he as 8 or 9 years old (his Vet feels the same) but he is going to be 14 this year. He is good with the little Russian but just is not able to play with her like he would have when he was younger.  The oldest cat is 15 - she has always been the "Queen" of the house and still is.  She is not mean to little Russian but if she does not feel good then she will let the Russian know (it only takes one or two hisses) to leave her alone.  The little Russian just walks the other way from her.  Other times we might find the old Queen cat and the little Russian laying on the bed a few feet apart from one another.  We had two other cats that were younger than the 15 and 14 year olds.  One died at 11 years old after a long fight with CRF.  The other died at 10 from a rare lung disease called Bronchietasis (diagnosed at MSU Vet School/Hospital).  These two cats died two months apart in late Fall of 2008.  So the two younger ones are gone and the two older ones remain.
 
We are considering getting another Russian that will spend most of its time with me and our current Russian at the house where there are no other cats.  It will be a neutered male kitten. We have a spayed female.  She does not have anyone to play with (run, play + wrestle).  
Would it be better for her mental health to have a 'buddy"?  There are times she walks around crying (quietly) perhaps she is "talking" to me but I did not think Russians were really vocal.  I pay a lot of attention to her and she sleeps in my bed.  There are times she wants to play badly like she would with another feline.  She does not hurt me but she does try to get a bit rough with me which I won't allow.  I just walk away from her.  She has more toys than some children do.  I play with her with interactive toys and she will play on her own.  She also can get into mischief and trouble. Nothing too bad but I do wonder after being raised in a cattery with lots of others to play with could it be that she needs or wants another young feline?
I really would appreciate your thoughts on our situation.
Thank You
Debbie  

Answer
Debbie,

It probably would not hurt to have a companion for your female kitten.  The one caveat ios, even if they get along, there is no guarantee they would get along with the older cats at the other house.

If you do decide to get a companion, they should be introduced carefully.  Here is a protocol for introduction we suggest:

Start out your new kitten 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 kitten will not be overwhelmed by its new surroundings and get "lost", and thusly will have no problem finding the litter pan (often kittens have been confined and are somewhat daunted by wide open spaces!). You will feed the new kitten in this room and keep the established cat out. It allows the new kitten 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 kitten and the established cat to sniff each other under the door and get familiar with each others' scents.

After 3-5 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 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, they will get along! Do not interfere in their "discussions" as they need to sort it out amongst themselves!

It does not hurt to give the established cat treats and extra attention after the new kitten 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.

Please let me know how it goes.

Best regards... Norm.