Introducing my Cats to other pets

1. 68

   melbelposted 15 years ago

   Well, my husband and I got two kittens at a shelter last year and they are my babies.
   
   Anyway, they only know each other and no other pets.
   
   I am in the middle of a divorce and moved back in at my parents with the cats. I am going to be in this situation for a few months while I save up enough money to get an apartment.
   
   The cats are confined to this room and they are already getting bored. The thing is that my mother has two high energy dogs (miniature pinschers) and five cats of her own. It's a large house so there is plenty of space so that the pets aren't always in each other's way, but I don't want my cats to freak out.
   
   How should I go about introducing my cats to their pets?

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2. 73

   Stacie Lposted 15 years ago

   cats and dogs should be introduced to each other slowly and one at a time....

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3. 67

   B.Z. Alixandreposted 15 years ago

   find a quiet empty (of other people, pets, and toys...not necessarily stuff) room when the pets are both pretty quiet, after a long day of playing or similar.  One at a time, introduce them.  Don't plop them down next to eachother and make them be friends; let them find eachother, sniff eachother, then let them get a little rough eachother, only intervene if one of them is getting hurt, so that they understand their boundaries.  I've always had dogs and cats together and once they've been introduced they do great.  For introducing cats to cats, I'm not really sure, but I imagine it would be similar.

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4. 59

   Ron Montgomeryposted 15 years ago

   I highly recommend a product clled Feliway.  It is a calming synthetic pheremone that keeps cats from stressing and marking.

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5. 83

   Whitney05posted 15 years ago

   Because your cats are new to the home, it's best to put them in a room together, with something of each of the other pets, generally a blanket or toy that has their smell.
   
   You want to introduce slowly, as first impressions are the most important.
   
   I have a hub about introducing dogs to other pets, you can apply some of those tips to the cats. http://hubpages.com/hub/Bring-Home-A-New-Dog
   
   I'd suggest introducing the cats to one of the other pets at a time, so as not to overwhelm them.

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