Want to get a new boy kitten - will 3yo male cat cope??

[BotBotticelli]

Has anyone done this? Brought a new kitten into the home and the existing cat accepted it?

I’ve read all the info online about keeping the kitten in a separate room for the first week and swapping blankets to get used to each other’s smell, introducing gradually in a safe way....

But do people actually do this and it works?! Would hate to try it and it not work out....what would I do then? I can hardly tel the kids we need to send the kitten back to the shelter....

In case it’s relevant kitten will be 10 weeks when we bring it home. Existing cat is 3, and has been castrated. Both males.

Hi yes we have done this - be prepared for it to take weeks at least though before your older cat accepts the kitten, it took us about 6 weeks and thought we had made a mistake but wouldn’t have returned the younger cat. Give them space to eat separately and sleep apart but able to see each other , will be a few little scraps it’s establishing who’s the boss ( obviously being a kitten you will need to step in if looks like could be hurt) try to let them sort it out you won’t be able to force it but should be ok in time. Make lots of fuss of your older cat too so doesn’t feel new cat is more important. Good luck - I’m sure all will be fine, mine had good friends now x

We're actually in the process of doing this at the moment. It's still very early days (kitten has been with us for a week and a half) but I am cautiously optimistic about how it's going. We did the separating/scent swapping but they met face to face after about 3 days, which I know some will say is too early but others also advised to just let them get on with it.

I'm supervising their interactions as much as possible still as big cat is so much bigger than the kitten, but she seems very capable of letting him know not to get too close. Kitten growls at him a lot and they're both quite vigilant when the other one is around but seem to slowly be getting used to each other. We try to just distract them as much as possible by playing with them individually when they're in the same room. Big cat has been staring a lot but i just sit in his line of sight and block the kitten which seems to work as he loses interest then.

We're also using the feliway friends plug in - no idea if this is helping but could well be as big cat is definitely been more relaxed about it than i thought he would be. Just hoping that i don't have to carry on using it forever as it's expensive!

Big cat has been getting lots of extra cuddles and treats - i think he is a bit unsettled by the interloper but hoping he'll relax more as time goes on.

We live in quite a small flat so if your house is a bit bigger I expect it will be even easier for you. I'd say go for it, having a kitten is brilliant, I forgot how much fun they are, but just do all the prep which it looks like you are anyway, and be prepared to be patient!

I did this over several months, swapping stuff over, then putting them in each others' part of the house without the other cat. Then I would let them mingle for an hour, separate them, repeat it later in the day. It took months before I was confident to leave them all together when I went out. They never had a fight, but there was some tension in the early weeks. They all get on well now and seem to enjoy each others'company.

I did. It depends on the temperament of your boy. It took a week and the kitten was cuddling up to big cat. I still didn't leave them alone for a few months but they used to have great fun play fighting. Kitten has moved out with my daughter and now I have to play a lot more with big beastie as he misses her.

Kitten moved in early September - this was my home office yesterday . Biggun is 5yo neutered male.
It’s probably taken this much time and patience to get them to this point, but seems to be going well so far. Definitely important that biggun was relatively laid back and friendly, and kitten was adventurous and confident insane

Good luck!

Four months later and our mature lady still attacks the kitten at every opportunity. We did everything very slowly yet still have to keep them apart. Have tried Feliway plug ins and spray, separate areas, lots of attention. But we still live in hope! The kitten still tries to be friends and is very resilient! We’re hoping once she’s spayed she won’t pose as such a threat. We’re not giving the kitten away so the older cat will have to give in eventually! There’s never a dull moment.