JoJo Might Be Getting a Siamese Sibling

[elizabethann]

Thanks for the advice folks. Olivia hasn't eaten, drank or used the potty since I brought her home last night. I'll check everything tonight when I get home from work.

Fenway is having some adjustments this week - first a new kitten and now my sister just got a puppy. I'll be bringing Fenway over to her house tonight to meet the new puppy (named Murray). He's going to say, "what is going on here? Who are these new critters?"

I like the advice of leaving the kitten alone.

Basically, I'll let her come out of her shell, when she is good and ready.

[kb2yjx]

I think I would forgo taking Fenway to meet the puppy. He is already stressed out with the new kitten. Go meet the puppy, and come home and tell Fenway about it!!!

[Vermontcat]

How old is the kitten? If she is really tiny, you might want to isolate her in a room by herself like the bathroom where the other pets can't get to her while you are at work. Make sure she has food, water and a litterbox in there so you can keep track of what she is doing in there. The kitten will be shy at first and want someplace safe to hide.
When I brought home my two Siamese cats last month they hid under furniture for the first day or two then explored more as they got used to their new home.
When you are home make sure you give Fenway and Jojo plenty of attention but also give the kitten some time with you in a separate room. As the kitten feels more secure in your home then try introducing them while you supervise them.
Try catnip or a toy that both cats will be interested in, they may end up playing with each other instead of the toy. Good luck, don't rush things, they may surprise you and get along rather quickly once they get used to each other.

[Taz_Zoee]

I recently brought a new kitten into my house with my 13 year old cat who has ALWAYS been an only cat (with the exception of a few months when I lived with a boyfriend). Like others said (and my vet agreed with this too) I put Paizly in her own room, mainly because she hadn't had her shots too. But then even after her shots I kept her in her room and Zoee met her within the first week. But Taz was able to come by the room and sniff under the door. Paizly did hide a little at first too. But we would just go into the room and lay on the floor. She eventually would come out to investigate us. We'd play with her and talk to her. We let her come to us when she was ready.
Eventually we let her out into the rest of the house under close supervision. Taz hated her! Hiss, growled and swatted at her constantly!! Then about a week later they were actually playing together. Even now, especially with Taz not feeling good, he still hisses and growls at her quite a bit. But I never interrupt, I only watch to make sure it doesn't get out of hand. The thing is, Paizly has no fear! She'll just keep coming back for more. LOL

I felt horrible that I had turned Taz's world upside down by bringing home a little monster (his words LOL). But they are all fine now. And Zoee gives Paizly baths all the time too. Basically you just need to give them all time. I honestly felt like there would never be harmony in my house again. But experienced PTers put my mind at ease and of course they were right!!

I'm looking forward to seeing pictures of Olivia. And I'm also looking forward to hearing about how well they are all doing in about a month.

[jazzcat]

Has Olivia been checked by a vet? I would keep her and JoJo apart until she's been checked out and then I would give them a few days to get adjusted to the smell of each other under the door before letting them see each other. One thing that might help would be to give each kitty a towel or blanket to sleep on and then once they've gotten their scent on it swap the blankets and let them "smell" each other. That helped with my guys.

If Fenway hasn't really been around a little kitten you may want to be very cautious with him. Kittens bounce around differently from cats and it might kick in his prey drive. Has he gone after a ferret before? This little kitten might definitely look the same to him. You might want to keep him on a leash when you introduce them so you have control of him just in case.

How old is the kitten? She sounds like she may have been taken from her mom too soon if she is crying that much.

[elizabethann]

She is 9 weeks old. Is that too young to be taken away from the Mother? I thought it was 8 weeks so that is why I took her. I will feel AWFUL if that was too soon.

Fenway is a terrier mutt. He's killed critters before - mice, moles, fox, etc. He is very good with JoJo and was good with Cosmo & Maxie (they died last year).

When I go home I will do the towel idea. I have an appointment on Monday with the vet for a wellness checkup. I can't remember how old a cat has to be before they are "fixed".

I will try to post a picture tonight. Believe me when I say she is just gorgeous. I've never had a cat/kitten that was so beautiful. She has blue eyes and is just breathtaking.

Maybe I'll go to the store and pick up a magazine on Siamese cats.

[jazzcat]

No 9 weeks is not too young. I just wondered since she was crying so much.

Please be careful with Fenway. My sister had a wire hair terrier and when she kept her daughter's young cat for a weekend he saw Rugby, the cat, run across the basement and got excited and attacked. He almost killed Rugby. It was a surprise to them because my sister had two cats of her own but her terrier hadn't been around younger cats or kittens before.