Our older cat really doesn’t cope well when we go away - he cries all the time and cries for days afterwards too. Our lovely cat sitter said she thought he would benefit from cat company. A friend had rescued three kittens (found by the side of the road - their mother had been run over and killed) and asked us if we would like one. We said yes - we previously had a kitten, and he loved her (unfortunately the love was unrequited and we rehomed her after four years as she just wanted to be left alone and not washed and cuddled all the time, which is what he wanted to do).
It’s been a week now, and he has started hissing and growling at me when she’s not around. He hasn’t attacked her, but hisses and growls at her when he sees her. We had an uneasy truce last night when they were both on the bed together, but it’s got worse again this morning. When she’s not around, he’s his usual cuddly lovable self, but when she’s around he is aggressive to me as well as her.
A friend of mine had the kitten’s sister, and would take our kitten too. Are they never going to get on, or should I give it longer? And if I give it longer, how much longer? I just want to cuddle him, but he’s having none of it.
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The litter tray
Older cat hates new kitten (and me). How long should I give it?
MrsSchadenfreude · 04/09/2020 06:14
We’ve now gone backwards. 
I was away for a week due to having to have an operation and a few days of self isolation. During this time, the older cat had a flare up of his wee problem, and was obviously uncomfy and started to hiss at the kitten. He’s also on medication for high blood pressure. We’ve separated them, so the kitten stays with me in the study when I am wfh, and when the big cat has his nap, we give her the run of the house for a few hours. She gets shut in the study at night when we go to bed (big cat sleeps on my head).
Until the big cat got ill, there was toleration and they were sharing the same space with no/minimal hissing. Last night he was hissing and throwing himself at the study door. Then he came to bed with us and was his normal purry self.
I can’t rehome the kitten with her sister as my friend has had to move to a smaller apartment (she feels that there is barely enough room for the one kitten), and has also found out that she is pregnant.
I just want to get back to where we were before!
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