Help introducing new cat to 6 other cats

[Sasha Y.]

Hi all,

I really need advice in introducing my SV to the rest of my cat family members.

I have 6 other cats who have been with us for several years now, and almost 8 months ago I was given a male F2 who was about 2 years old then. Since adopting him, we have neutered him and he's been living happily in one of the spare bedrooms.

My husband and I live in a fairly large house with his parents, and our other cats have the freedom to roam outside and come indoors as they please. Our SV is mostly confined to his room, or our library and bedroom whenever we at home and can watch him and there are no other cats around (at least 4-5 hours a day).

I have not introduced him to the other cats as he is fairly aggressive - on 2 separate occasions where he managed to escape (the door wasn't shut properly/ he snuck behind me before I could close the door), he lunged and attacked 2 cats (one each time). Because he's quite a bit more muscular than them, and pretty strong for a cat, I'm scared I won't be able to control his behaviour if i were to introduce him to any of the other cats (I've unfortunately experienced his bite strength many times in the past).

If there's anyone who has had experience introducing an adult SV to multiple cats, would love to hear from you - help will be much appreciated.

x
Sasha

 

[admin]

Hi all,

I really need advice in introducing my SV to the rest of my cat family members.

I have 6 other cats who have been with us for several years now, and almost 8 months ago I was given a male F2 who was about 2 years old then. Since adopting him, we have neutered him and he's been living happily in one of the spare bedrooms.

My husband and I live in a fairly large house with his parents, and our other cats have the freedom to roam outside and come indoors as they please. Our SV is mostly confined to his room, or our library and bedroom whenever we at home and can watch him and there are no other cats around (at least 4-5 hours a day).

I have not introduced him to the other cats as he is fairly aggressive - on 2 separate occasions where he managed to escape (the door wasn't shut properly/ he snuck behind me before I could close the door), he lunged and attacked 2 cats (one each time). Because he's quite a bit more muscular than them, and pretty strong for a cat, I'm scared I won't be able to control his behaviour if i were to introduce him to any of the other cats (I've unfortunately experienced his bite strength many times in the past).

If there's anyone who has had experience introducing an adult SV to multiple cats, would love to hear from you - help will be much appreciated.

x
Sasha

Hi Sasha - welcome!

Slow introductions are what is needed, but how many of the cats are indoors and how many out, or do they all go in and out. * months is a long time for him to be copped up in a room...

Here is a great post: http://www.savannahcatchat.com/threads/introducing-a-new-cat-into-the-family.4746/

Also if you type introducing my cat to others in the search box on the top right, you will come to a bunch of posts on the subject.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

Wow, that sounds like quite a challenge. It's not as much because of your new cat being a Savannah, but that the dynamics of a large cat household (six is a LOT, and now you are adding a 7th!) can be a constant balancing act.

I have recently heard very good things about the Feliway MULTICAT diffuser, which is new and not the same formula as the original Feliway diffuser. The issue though is that these are expensive and you may need more than one to cover the area of your house.

As mentioned by Paige, there is already a lot of info on this forum to search for... and it really will need to be a slow process. Steps using feeding on either side of the door can be useful, but whatever you do it is going to take time and require some work.

I do foresee an issue with your other cats being indoor/outdoor and your Savannah. Savannahs simply are not great candidates for that lifestyle, their energy and curiosity can lead to them being found miles from home (when indeed they are found). And of course that is beyond the risks of allowing cats outside.

Even if you decided your SV should be indoors only, how would you then manage this? A Savannah seeing other cats let out would be very upset and wish to follow. Either you would have undesirable behavior when they are thwarted or you will find out how determined and sneaky they can be to get what they want.

In terms of wanting more control when you allow your SV to meet the others because of his size and strength, you could work on acclimating him to a harness/walking jacket so that you can leash him when he meets the others. It is not always ideal as it does change the dynamics of the interaction but if it reduces your anxiety it is a good idea. Remember when you are stressed and anxious (over introductions) that transfers to your cats...you need to exude calmness when doing all this so that they do not imagine there is something to freak out about. Cats are very sensitive to our moods!

 

[Patti]

I agree with what the other have said. Slow introductions are essential. Sometimes the best way to keep everyone safe it to put your SV (name?) in a crate and bring him out into a large room for everyone to meet. These visits should initially be quite short (just a few minutes) and you can increase the time based on the responses/reactions of everyone.

An alternative to expensive Feliway diffusers that I have heard has worked is to put a drop of vanilla extract on each cat's nose - this masks the 'new cat smell' and makes it easier for the current residents to accept the new family member, and vice versa.

As with Brigitte, I am also quite concerned about the indoor-outdoor lifestyle of your cat clan. An outdoor cat has an average lifespan of ~5yrs (compared to an indoor cat that typically lives to be 12yrs or longer). A SV in particular will be driven by his curiosity to go out and explore, and that may be the last time you ever see him. Perhaps you would consider building an outdoor enclosure attached to your home - then all of your cats can safely enjoy the outdoors...

 

[Sasha Y.]

Hi Sasha - welcome!

Slow introductions are what is needed, but how many of the cats are indoors and how many out, or do they all go in and out. * months is a long time for him to be copped up in a room...

Here is a great post: http://www.savannahcatchat.com/threads/introducing-a-new-cat-into-the-family.4746/

Also if you type introducing my cat to others in the search box on the top right, you will come to a bunch of posts on the subject.

Hi! Thanks so much - will read up on introducing the cats to each other!

All 6 of the other cats go in and out of the house freely, except for my SV. I'm sure he longs to go out and I occasionally take him out on the leash but he gets too excited and quite hard to control when he sees any of the other cats or birds or squirrels.

Don't worry, he isn't confined to the room all of the time, only when we are not around (since he gets up to a lot of mischief).

x

 

[Sasha Y.]

I agree with what the other have said. Slow introductions are essential. Sometimes the best way to keep everyone safe it to put your SV (name?) in a crate and bring him out into a large room for everyone to meet. These visits should initially be quite short (just a few minutes) and you can increase the time based on the responses/reactions of everyone.

An alternative to expensive Feliway diffusers that I have heard has worked is to put a drop of vanilla extract on each cat's nose - this masks the 'new cat smell' and makes it easier for the current residents to accept the new family member, and vice versa.

As with Brigitte, I am also quite concerned about the indoor-outdoor lifestyle of your cat clan. An outdoor cat has an average lifespan of ~5yrs (compared to an indoor cat that typically lives to be 12yrs or longer). A SV in particular will be driven by his curiosity to go out and explore, and that may be the last time you ever see him. Perhaps you would consider building an outdoor enclosure attached to your home - then all of your cats can safely enjoy the outdoors...

Hi Patti,

Thanks, will definitely try the crate thing - now that I think of it, I remember that a friend also recommended it to me a while back. Will also try the vanilla extract tip!

Unfortunately for now I live with my in laws (while waiting for our own place to be ready mid 2017), and they're not cat lovers - but they tolerate it since the cats are mostly outdoors. They're all vaccinated and stay close to home, and are all between 3 to 7 years old. I really do wish I could build an outdoor enclosure but it's quite difficult since the place isn't ours. I'm getting quite anxious thinking about it, honestly and sometimes wonder if I bit off more than I can chew with Obi (my SV). His previous owners no longer wanted him as he had severe problems with marking and aggression, both of which he no longer does since he's been neutered about 4 months ago.

xx

 

[Sasha Y.]

Wow, that sounds like quite a challenge. It's not as much because of your new cat being a Savannah, but that the dynamics of a large cat household (six is a LOT, and now you are adding a 7th!) can be a constant balancing act.

I have recently heard very good things about the Feliway MULTICAT diffuser, which is new and not the same formula as the original Feliway diffuser. The issue though is that these are expensive and you may need more than one to cover the area of your house.

As mentioned by Paige, there is already a lot of info on this forum to search for... and it really will need to be a slow process. Steps using feeding on either side of the door can be useful, but whatever you do it is going to take time and require some work.

I do foresee an issue with your other cats being indoor/outdoor and your Savannah. Savannahs simply are not great candidates for that lifestyle, their energy and curiosity can lead to them being found miles from home (when indeed they are found). And of course that is beyond the risks of allowing cats outside.

Even if you decided your SV should be indoors only, how would you then manage this? A Savannah seeing other cats let out would be very upset and wish to follow. Either you would have undesirable behavior when they are thwarted or you will find out how determined and sneaky they can be to get what they want.

In terms of wanting more control when you allow your SV to meet the others because of his size and strength, you could work on acclimating him to a harness/walking jacket so that you can leash him when he meets the others. It is not always ideal as it does change the dynamics of the interaction but if it reduces your anxiety it is a good idea. Remember when you are stressed and anxious (over introductions) that transfers to your cats...you need to exude calmness when doing all this so that they do not imagine there is something to freak out about. Cats are very sensitive to our moods!

Hi Brigitte,

I know, my life is overrun by cats! We started off with only 1 cat that was rescued, then added another one and then another, then a stray cat gave birth in the store room and soon after abandoned her kittens, and then came another stray kitten who came and never left. My SV, Obi was no longer wanted by his previous owners because he was marking everywhere and everything. They bought 2 SVs but when Obi developed problem with marking, they couldn't get rid of Obi fast enough. I was more worried that he wasn't getting the attention and love he needed so decided to take him in.

I currently live with my in laws who are not too keen on cats but don't mind them since the other 6 are mostly outdoors. But now there's talk of renovating the spare bedroom that's currently being used as "Obi's room", I really need to figure out how to keep him. So not only am I worried about introducing him to the other cats, i'm also having mild anxiety attacks thinking of how I can house him safely so he still has access to sufficient space.

I'm even considering asking if the previous owners would want him back if we can't find a solution to his housing situation.

How often should I put him on a leash and try to introduce him to the others? Will try that after I try the crate tip...

x

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

I don't know, the crate tip wasn't mine. I think that you need to have a plan and follow it but I do not advise trying everything that anyone suggests at once. Maybe try one tactic at a time and see how it pans out?

I know that Obi had a troubled past, but I do think that neutering him should have resolved that. Do you know how many other cats he was used to living with?

I'm amazed that in laws that are not keen on cats are okay with so many cats even if mainly outdoors. That's great but I can understand how the stress is there that if things go badly with Obi with the other cats it will be hard. I'm unclear though, does that mean you wish to transition Obi to be mainly outdoors like the others?