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F3 kitten does not like resident F6 kitten

Livlee

Savannah Kitten
Goodmorning! So I picked up my F3 (3 month old) kitten Anilla around the beginning of the week and she has been quarantined in my room all week. We have let resident kitten F6 Freud (5.5 months old) have run of the rest of the house.
We have had a couple supervised interactions between the two. To begin with Freud was very excited purring and wanted to play with Anilla. Anilla hisses and growls lots at Freud. On second and third interaction Freud is less purry but still wants to play and is very intrigued.
Anilla is very affectionate already sleeps with whoever is in bed with her and purrs in the mornings, loves all the toys we have played with her. If you pick her up she allows it and she will sit with you if you grab her. She is still a little bit timid and growing accostome to her new surroundings but I think her relationship with myself and my partner have been going pretty smooth so far.
As far as Freud goes she is very affraid of him. Hisses and grows him constantly when he comes to say hi. He is being very gentle and only trying to play or say hi. Any advice on how to get new kitten to warm up to him. Ive tried playing with both of them with all the toys but it just ends up being Anilla playing Freud standing back because she wont allow him to play.
Anyone else have a new kitten who doesnt like the other cats?
 

Ninja-n-Bear

Site Supporter
That sounds like a normal reaction, I'd bet that it's less that she dislikes Freud, and more that she's in a new place with new sounds and smells, away from all the kitties she knew. You may want to keep them completely separated until she feels more comfortable in her new home, then reintroduce them slowly.

Please post a pic of Anilla if you can!
 

WitchyWoman

Admin
Staff member
The recommended quarantine time for a new kitten is 2 weeks. During that time the stressors on the kitten of a new house, missing its siblings/mom are reduced and gives the kitten time to get used to sights, sounds, smells of the new house. It is also the primary bonding time with its new humans. Introducing a resident animal before that time adds stress to an already stressed cat. She may be purring and cuddling with you but she is still getting used to her new surroundings. My advice is to begin again with a 2 week quarantine and follow the rest of the suggestions below: 1523723502079.png
 

Livlee

Savannah Kitten
Thanks for the advice. We have been quarantining her we’ve just allowed them to be around eachother a couple times for short periods. I will stop that for the next week though if that is not progressive towards them creating a bond.
It just hard to leave the kitten by herself when we are in the kitchen with Freud. I guess my partner and I need to spend the next two weeks in the seperate rooms with the two cats when we can.
 

Patti

Admin
Staff member
I agree that the new kitten needs a minimum of two weeks in quarantine interacting only with the humans in the household. During that time she will grow accustomed to Freud's scent and sounds. You can help this process along by switching out bedding occasionally, switching their own scent for the other. Once she has settled in well then you can consider introducing her to Freud face to face. If she is still hissy you might want to start with letting them meet through a screen door (easy to install or you can use sequential pet gates on top of each other to block the doorway) so that they can see each other but not reach/harm each other. You can also use a crate, or leash both of them when in the same room, this will accomplish the same thing. Some cats take longer than others to warm up, and girls tend to be more persnickety about it, so you will have to play it by ear to see how they do and see how much longer thye need to get to know each other.
 

Tracy-J

Site Supporter
I followed all the above advice when we introduced Milo into the house. The breeder also recommended using a pheromone plug in to help calm the atmosphere. Within minutes of plugging in they were both calmer in each other’s company and not hiding away and within 24 hrs they were snuggled up. I think it helped but obviously I don’t know what they’d have been like without it but they are best buddies now! Good luck!
 
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