Adopting Two Cats at Once

[CrazyCat]

I have some more cat behaviour questions. I have had cats before, but never two at the same time. I've also never had a kitten, just adult cats.

In October, my boyfriend and I have decided to pick up two cats. We're thinking ideally an older cat and a kitten.

I'm just wondering, if we get the cat and a kitten, or if we get two adult cats, when we leave for work should we separate them? We don't have any other pets and I know problems can occur when you already have a pet and you introduce a new one. But when they're both new, could there be problems? We will definitely make sure whichever cats we choose will be friendly towards other cats. I just don't know if there are any precautions we should take before they get use to each other.

[Freedom]

OK first thing, an older cat is NOT going to appreciate live with a kitten -- all the baby energy! And the kitten is going to want a play mate, so you are setting them both up for failure.

If you must have a kitten, I think the oldest the 2d cat could be is about 4 years.

Shelters and rescues have plenty of older kitties who would LOVE to have a home. You could get 2 between ages 5 and 9 for example, and that would be great.

When you first introduce 2 cats, you don't leave them alone together. Keep them in separate rooms, one can roam the house the other in a room, then switch off who is where. Put towels in their beds, switch the towels daily so they get the scent of the other cat. When you are home and have time, let both out. Have a water squirt bottle close by to break up any fights. Expect some hissing, even a swat if one gets too close before the other is ready. It can take 5 days to 3 weeks to have them living in harmony.

Keep your goals reasonable: you can expect them to live in peace. You can not make them best friends, who play together and sleep together, that they must decide for themselves.

[Karen]

Another thing to consider is adopting two already bonded kitties! Often shelters have cats that don't want to be separated - so you would be the perfect adoptee!

[Freedom]

Good point, Karen!

[krazyaboutkatz]

Yes, I agree with both Freedom's and Karen's posts. Some adult cats are very high energy so they love playing even as they get older. My RB Sunny was like this and my current 10 year old cat Sky is now enjoying being able to play with some of his younger brothers. When adopting a kitten, I say that two is better than one because then they'll always have a playmate around the same age and they should also get along well with each other. I adopted 3 kittens and none of them are related. Two of them came from the same adoption center and they were adopted the same day the third one was actually adopted the next day. I was a bit worried at first about introductions but they took to each other right away.

Since I currently have 10 cats, I'll tell you their ages and how they get along with the others.

1. Sky is the oldest and he's 10 and he gets along with all of the cats.
2. Pearl is 7 years old and she hates her younger brothers. She only gets along with Sky and Ziggy and even with them she'll still fight with them some times.
3. Ziggy is 6 years old and she also hates her younger brothers but she'll some times still want to hang out in the same room with them. Alani & Blaze make her upset though. She gets along best with Sky and Pearl but will also some times fight with them.
4. Alani & Blaze are 2 years old and they're littermates. They had to be adopted together because they're very bonded. They get along well with all of my male cats. My female cats hate them. I adopted them as kittens and my female cats have never accepted them.
5. Colby & Finnegan are 1 year old. They aren't related but they're very good friends and they get along well with all of the male cats. Pearl & Colby don't like each other and they'll fight. Ziggy will just hiss and growl at them if they get too close to her.
6. Radar, Reece, & Rory are a little over 5 months old. They get along well with all of my male cats. They really don't know Pearl because she's decided to live in my bedroom since she doesn't get along well with her younger brothers. Ziggy will growl & hiss at them if they get too close to her.

There's no guarantee that cats will ever get along but if I were you I'd try to adopt 2 kittens that are either already bonded to each other or who are in the same foster home and know each other well. If you want to adopt adult cats instead, then I'd look for 2 that are either bonded with each other or 2 that love other cats. You don't want two alpha cats so you need to make sure that if one is dominant then the other must be very mellow. For some reason male orangies seem to have the best laid back, mellow, and goofy personalities. This is why I now have so many of them. From my experience in multiple cat households, female cats seem to be more territorial and they don't do as well and this is another reason why I have so many males. I hope that you'll be able to find the perfect match. Good luck.