New cat introductions

[hazelrunpack]

An update on the general introductions of Dusty to the rest of the critters...

JD is showing some gastrointestinal distress--soft stool and some barfed water this morning--so we backed off. He didn't want to go up to the shed on his walk to see Dusty today, so I let him have his way. He's cuddly, still eating well, and poopin' and peein' on schedule, so it's nothing major, and we have time, so we'll go slower on that end.

Lili did want to see Dusty this morning, so we visited. Dusty never even got up today--she rolled right over on her back and batted at Lili's nose, which was being pushed brazenly against the bars of the kennel. They had a little bit of play before Lili left to practice her agility moves. I still find it so odd that both cats seem more comfortable with the dogs (one of whom is a goofy, bratty, rambunctious teenager ) than they are with each other!!



This afternoon, I brought Dusty into the family room. I thought long and hard about it because I don't want JD to be stressed even more, but in the end, I decided for it. She enjoyed her time inside--she explored, used the litter box, played with a furry-feathery wand, and sat on my lap for a little while before her kitten squirminess got her up and moving around again!

JD was up later and didn't seem upset that she'd been there, so that was a relief. I wondered later if I should have left the potty in the box so he could smell her, but I'd cleaned the box up right away. Should I have left it? Or is there strong enough scent left over after scooping that he should be able to get her smell even if his nose is a little blind?

And, finally, here a few shots of Dusty--one of her sweet little face and the other showing her interesting coat color. Not sure what you'd classify that as other than muted--calico? tortoiseshell? funky tabby?

[Reg]

Dusty sure is a nice looking little cat. Our Mrg is almost a dead wringer for markings. And we're still trying to figure out what Mrg is.... kind of cotton to the "funky tabby" description.

Glad to hear things seem to be working out okay........that's a plus........just taking time will be the pay off. Even Lili did her bit by nosing her through the cage.......JD probably picked up on her being in the litter box, even with his sniffer ....."blind nose".

[growler~GateKeeper]

That pic with Dusty & Lili is super cute

Dusty is a Dilute Torbie = dilute tortoiseshell tabby, her torti colours & tabby stripes are both muted in tone. (As a reference Lilly is a Torbie w/white = her torti colours & tabby stripes are more pronounced sharper colours plus she has a lot of white.)

[hazelrunpack]

A Dilute Torbie! That sounds friendly! It's a very pretty coat color, I have to say.

I remember admiring Lilly's coat when you introduced her a few years ago.

[hazelrunpack]

Originally Posted by Reg

Our Mrg is almost a dead wringer for markings. And we're still trying to figure out what Mrg is.... kind of cotton to the "funky tabby" description.

Have you ever posted pics of the kitties? I can't remember if I've ever seen any or not. But my memory is so bad...it never was what it used to be...that's how bad it is.

Originally Posted by Reg

....just taking time will be the pay off.

We're hopin'! I realized this morning that, although JD had some gastro-intestinal issues yesterday (which seem to have resolved already today), he did not have a snotty-sneeze episode or goopy eyes, which would be his usual response to stress! So today we'll take another little trip up to the shed and see how it goes

[hazelrunpack]

Well, they've met face-to-face now, with no bloodshed.

JD walked up to the shed and went in willingly, then touched noses with Dusty through the bars, so I tossed caution to the wind and opened the kennel door. They touched noses again, and then JD tried to move closer. Dusty is no pushover, though. She hissed a bit and he backed off, avoiding eye contact. She seemed pretty nonchalant about everything except when he got too close, and then all she did was hiss. He ended up following her around the porch, occasionally trying to sniff her, and playing an odd, slow sort of circling hide-and-seek around furniture and other obstacles. She'd tell him off if he made her uncomfortable, and he'd subside into his alert meatloaf position, averting his eyes. I think they were together about 5 minutes in all.

So is the hissing sort of normal for a first face-to-face meeting? What sorts of things should I watch for that might indicate there's all-out aggression brewing?

It seemed pretty positive to me--no cat fights, no bloodshed... I could have been misinterpreting a whole lot of feline signaling, but I got the impression that she might actually be the more dominant personality. Unfortunately, I also got the impression that JD might still try to be the Boss, even though he's backed down every time so far.

Dusty also had time in the family room again. She loves it there because it's really the only time she really gets to play. She's a hoot to watch with the cat wand--her eyes get so big and round right before she pounces on it!

How long do you think we should wait before letting both cats in the family room at the same time? (I'm assuming that the first time, at least, should involve Dusty being in the kennel and JD roaming the room?)

[growler~GateKeeper]

Originally Posted by hazelrunpack

So is the hissing sort of normal for a first face-to-face meeting? What sorts of things should I watch for that might indicate there's all-out aggression brewing?

Sounds like things went quite well.

Hissing definitely normal for a first meet. Even for the first couple meets. Dusty's telling JD to back off & watch himself

You want to watch for the ears flat back & staying there, eyes wide, non stop growling, a really loud growly yeowl (really scary sounding), all fur puffed up tail gets at least twice the normal size.

Lilly & Pixi's first face to face meeting - Lilly's ears were forward, she was growing & stomping her front foot, she then charged forward about 3 feet but stopped and turned around and walked away - that was when I knew the girls would be ok with each other.

Originally Posted by hazelrunpack

How long do you think we should wait before letting both cats in the family room at the same time? (I'm assuming that the first time, at least, should involve Dusty being in the kennel and JD roaming the room?)

I would do at least a one more meet & greets like today.

When you have the two in a larger room, you want to make sure one is not cornering/trapping the other in a corner or under furniture without an escape route ie around or up onto furniture/window sill etc. If you can have one person playing with one cat & another person playing with the other several feet away from each other they associate fun w/each other.

[hazelrunpack]

Originally Posted by Reg

If you have a small cat carrier I think I'd be using it in the family room while one or the other is out exploring the area. Then just reverse the kitties.

Better yet, to protect the upstairs litter box, I put it in a large wire dog crate. It's plenty big to use as a swapping room--in fact, that's where JD was when he first met all the dogs.

Originally Posted by Reg

If you have a lazer toy... in case there is a sign of aggression. I would be pointing the beam on the floor between them. It causes a moment of distraction which can be enough to stop aggression

We have multiple lazer toys--one for every room that JD frequents (he's not spoiled, no, not at all )--so we're good there, too!

Originally Posted by Reg

Funny thing is that I was going through the exact same posting of my introduction from 2012 and about half an hour afterwards, I logged into the web site, and lo and behold, there was my introduction that I was looking at about an hour earlier.

I'm tricksy! Or maybe it's just your magic touch! Well, and great minds think alike, don't ya know?

Originally Posted by Reg

We've noticed that female cats we've had tend to become the dominant cat.

So maybe we're just following the natural course of things. She does seem quite confident. We had her out of the crate in the shed porch this morning with Grace. She went right up to Grace and rubbed on her legs and rubbed faces. Grace actually seemed charmed!

[hazelrunpack]

I finally managed to search out the pics, Reg! I remember now how beautiful your crew is!

[Reg]

If you are not getting the "hydro pole type tail", "the fluffing of the fur", and "the laying back of ears", it would appear as though everything is coming along quite well.

If you have a small cat carrier I think I'd be using it in the family room while one or the other is out exploring the area. Then just reverse the kitties.

If you have a lazer toy, I would be having it in my hand if the 2 of them are out together, in case there is a sign of aggression. I would be pointing the beam on the floor between them. It causes a moment of distraction which can be enough to stop aggression and saves using the old water bottle trick - which really isn't a good idea.

Funny thing is that I was going through the exact same posting of my introduction from 2012 and about half an hour afterwards, I logged into the web site, and lo and behold, there was my introduction that I was looking at about an hour earlier.

It raised a real raft of questions........what did I do wrong? how come it's there? Then I looked up in the upper left corner and saw the date and time that you posted.........and I've been chuckling about it ever since.

We've noticed that female cats we've had tend to become the dominant cat. Missy was hard pressed to be an 8 pound cat and she'd rule all the cats - especially the 3 males - we fostered a cat for someone who was moving and couldn't take him with her - and he was about 18 pounds.