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Kittehs! And the fostering thereof.
Richard_Dastardly
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
My wife and I are fostering 3 kittens. The mamma cat and one other kitten have already been adopted, and we were giving the others time to acclimate themselves to our home in an effort to decide whether or not to adopt one or two ourselves.
The problem? We have two adult cats. They have a great relationship, but the kittens have caused a bit of turmoil in the cat social structure. Beanie, who's almost two years old, has been the dominant cat while Momo, maybe a year and a half old, was his second in command.
We've had the kittens for a couple of weeks now, and Mo is totally comfortable with them. Bean, on the other hand, just can't come to accept them. We're not quite sure what to do, since he's even become surly to Mo and spends most of his time upstairs.
Any tips on how to help Beanie accept the kittens until such a time comes that we find good homes for them?
Edit: For the first week we kept the kittens in the basement. But, it's getting cold and I didn't feel like leaving the furnace on while we worked, so they've been wandering around the first floor.
Beanie will generally growl and hiss at the kittens, but they don't seem at all intimidated by him and just go on with their business. It's usually Beanie who leaves the room when they have a confrontation.
The problem? We have two adult cats. They have a great relationship, but the kittens have caused a bit of turmoil in the cat social structure. Beanie, who's almost two years old, has been the dominant cat while Momo, maybe a year and a half old, was his second in command.
We've had the kittens for a couple of weeks now, and Mo is totally comfortable with them. Bean, on the other hand, just can't come to accept them. We're not quite sure what to do, since he's even become surly to Mo and spends most of his time upstairs.
Any tips on how to help Beanie accept the kittens until such a time comes that we find good homes for them?
Edit: For the first week we kept the kittens in the basement. But, it's getting cold and I didn't feel like leaving the furnace on while we worked, so they've been wandering around the first floor.
Beanie will generally growl and hiss at the kittens, but they don't seem at all intimidated by him and just go on with their business. It's usually Beanie who leaves the room when they have a confrontation.
Richard_Dastardly on
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My one bit of advice is be sure to let him have AT LEAST one place where he is dominant, and even you or you wife can't take it away from him. that way he always has a place to go where its his rules or GTFO.
What I find so strange is that him and Momo became near buttbuddies within a day of being introduced. Plus, he's been around other cats for nearly his whole life. So, I thought he'd be more accepting of the kittens.
I know that it is harder for cats who are 2-4 years to accept kittens than it is for a cat that 8 or 9, or another kitten. Just think of a two year old cat like a 16 year old. They hate other little kids, because they "cramp their style"
Good rule is for the first few weeks only have the kittens interacting with the older cats when you're there and have the kittens a little place set up (like a spare bedroom or basement) where they have their own food and litter box. Our older cat keeps trying to break into the kitten's room to eat the kitten chow - because she's a fatass cat.
Critical Failures - Havenhold Campaign • August St. Cloud (Human Ranger)