New Adopted Pet Introductions 101

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| Print | By | October 16, 2008 5:27 AM

Back in June I wrote about my friend Yasmine Galenorn’s cat Luna and the tortoiseshell’s brush with death. Although Luna rallied for a short time, she wasn’t able to recover from the surgery. Even more tragically, Yasmine lost a second cat (Keeter) not long after Luna died, reducing her cat family from four to two felines. Yasmine said she’d know when the time was right to adopt another needy cat. But she wasn’t in any hurry.

According to surveys, about 60 percent of owners in the US share their lives with more than one pet. That’s a lot of furry love! But when you bring a new cat or dog into your home, how do you keep the resident pets from getting their tails in a twist?

Although there are exceptions, a good rule of paw is to choose a pet that’s of the opposite gender and younger than resident pets. That’s less intimidating to your existing pet family. A youngster won’t challenge social status quite as much as a pet of the same age. You’ll still need to supervise interactions. And in most cases, careful introductions work best rather than just throwing the animals together.

For dog-to-dog introductions, the resident pet more easily accepts the newcomer if they first meet on neutral territory. When on his own turf, dogs feel defensive. So schedule a trip to a local park, for example, or the neighbor’s yard down the street. A first meeting through a fence is ideal, so they can sniff safely but be easily separated. Only then should they be moved to your home territory.

When not under your watchful eyes, the new cat or dog should be segregated in a safe area with a baby gate or behind a solid door. That tells your resident pet that only part of his territory has been invaded.

Indoor only cats, of course, can’t safely be introduced in an outdoor area. Instead confine your new kitty in a safe room. Stock it with toys, bed, litter box, food bowls and all the essentials, and shut the door. Meanwhile the resident felines still get to run around the rest of the house. The pets meet via paw-pats under the door, and get used to each other gradually…smells and sounds first, before a nose-to-nose intro. You can make them feel good about each others’ presence by feeding them on opposite sides of this closed door.

A new cat or kitten won’t feel inclined to meet any new critter (dog or cat) until she feels comfortable with her territory. So after several days or—more likely—a week or more of meeting under the door, swap out the critters. Let the resident pets sniff around the safe-room while the new kitten/cat gets to cheek rub and explore the rest of the house and find all the good hiding spots. Only then should the door be opened for the cats to meet face to face.

It can be love at first sight, or tolerance that grows into affection. Or not. Some pets simply won’t like each other—it happens with both humans and pets.

Expect some hisses, or even swats, and supervise to interrupt any dangerous interactions.
Meanwhile, make sure that ALL your cats and dogs have enough territory (cat trees), toys, and food bowls/litter boxes to go around, to reduce the chance of arguments. Start them off on the right paw and your newly adopted shelter pet will bring joy for years to come.

Yasmine feels she was led to find her newly adopted kitten—a dark tortie similar to Luna. In fact, she had a premonition, a vision of an adult tortie walking through her house over a week before, but dismissed it. Before long, she was drawn to look at the petfinder site, which posts pictures and information about adoptable shelter pets.

“And there I saw a girl who instantly won my heart with the look in her eyes,” says Yasmine. “I knew it was the tortie girl I’d seen in the hallway, only she was a baby.” She quickly called the shelter, and visited the kitten. “It was that gut feeling of You need to come home with me.”

10-16 Yasmine's Calypso.jpg
Calypso

So meet Calypso, the newest member of Yasmine’s cat family. The little kitten seems determined to buddy up with Tara and follows the older cat whenever allowed out of her safe crate confinement. Meerclar, the third Galenorn feline, isn’t yet convinced about the newcomer’s intentions. But if Calypso has anything to do with it, the three cats will be purring buddies in no time.