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Introducing a New Kitten to Your Household Cat

On Father’s Day of this year I decided to get my husband a new kitten for our home. We already had a cat but, she favors me. I wanted to get a kitten for my husband to bond with. I thought this was a great idea! Until, I realized how territorial my cat had become. Really, it wasn’t until we were heading home from the shelter with our new kitten, that it hit me, “How was I going to keep my cat from attacking our new kitten?”

Meet Squirrel. We named her Squirrel because when she plays, she curls her tail up like a squirrel. Don’t let that innocent face fool you! She is a bit of a jokester. I can be sitting relaxed on my couch, she will sneak up behind me, HIT me on the back of my head and run away! She thinks it is hilarious! I swear she even does a little laughing noise as she runs away!

Meet Soul. She is my older sweeter cat, who we have had about five years now. She has never had a playful attitude and really only favors me in our home.

After doing quite a bit of research here are a few tricks and tips I learned on how to introduce a new kitten to your household cat. This is how we got them to get along with each other.

Do Not Introduce Them at First

• When you arrive home with your new kitten, make sure to place them in isolation in a room with their own litter box, bed, food, and water. You do not want to just throw them together in hopes of it working out. It won’t! You can allow the cats to smell each other under the door.

Scent Familiarization

• Once they are aware of each other you could switch out scent items, such as towels on cat beds.

Room Swapping

• I wanted the new kitten to bond with each family member so, I switched the kitten between rooms. This also helps the original cat to become familiar with the new kitten’s scent throughout your home. Remember to not allow them to see each other yet.

Visual Familiarization

• Next, you can allow them to see each other without physical contact. I liked to crack open the door to allow them to see each other, only about two inches. You could move to a glass door or baby gate between the two. Start to develop positive associations with no physical contact, such as feeding the cats on opposite sides of a door when cracked opened and when it is shut.

Short Supervised Visits

• When you feel they may be ready, you can allow a short supervised visit. However, make sure to separate them as soon as you see a sign of hostility or fear. You know your kitten’s and cat’s body language by now, make sure they are comfortable. You may need to do this several times before moving forward.

Longer, Carefully Supervised Visits

• Once they feel comfortable allow mingling under very careful supervision for up to a few hours. Adjust the length of time depending upon whether there are any signs of hostilities or stress. Even if things are going great, do not allow free mingling just yet. You need to allow them to rest without fear.

Free Mingling Full Time

• Once the cats start sleeping in close parameters of each other without any issues, they are ready to free mingle all the time. If any issues arise make sure to return to longer carefully supervised visits again.

After taking these steps to get my two cats to get along with each other, I realized it was not my older cat that was the dominate cat. It was actually Squirrel that has turned out to be the dominate cat (and the jokester). She won’t leave Soul alone! Soul just wants to be a lazy cat and sleep all day. Squirrel is young and wants to play! She has Soul on high alert most of the time but, I believe she secretly enjoys the attention.

With two active cats like mine, I get stains on my carpet all the time! Whether they grab a piece of food off the table and run with it or knock over my coffee, I am always finding stains. Squirrel even caused me to spill my coffee one morning! She is very happy everyone is awake in the mornings and loves to play. However, I am not as awake as she is in the mornings!

STAINMASTER® Carpet Pet Stain Remover removes stubborn pet stains, I always make sure to pick it up at Target. With STAINMASTER® Carpet Pet Stain Remover, ODOR REMOVE™ Technology that cleans and protects I get the benefit of removing pet stains, eliminates odors and repelling dirt all in one product!

I bought mine at my local Target Store in Daphne, Alabama but click HERE to find STAINMASTER® Carpet Pet Stain Remover at a Target store near you, or have it shipped for free, to your local Target store. Stainmaster Carpet Pet Stain Remover is not available in all Target stores but is available online.

STAINMASTER™ Carpet Pet Stain Remover comes in handy to keep my carpets clean! Plus, leaves behind an invisible shield to repel dirt to protect against re-soiling, making it easier to clean next time. And trust me, there will be a next time!

It is super easy to use:

• SPRAY: Spray product liberally and directly on affected areas.
• WAIT: Wait 3-5 minutes to allow solution to penetrate the stain.
• BLOT: Dampen the spot with water and blot with a clean, colorfast paper towel or cloth. Repeat as necessary to remove the stain. For best results treat stain immediately.

Done!

I have found with other stain removers a sticky residue can be left that can attract dirt over time, but with STAINMASTER’s breakthrough technology it is designed to quickly clean on contact and repel dirt without a sticky residue.

Before you head out to purchase STAINMASTER® Carpet Pet Stain Remover make sure to check out the Target Cartwheel offer!!