Kitty Owners

[Appytaz]

I have a question for kitty owners:

Here is my situation:

I have had Maggie (Siamese) for 10 yrs. We found her when she was a few weeks old. She has always had another cat with her. We lost her companion a few months ago. Maggie has always been very standoffish with people. She has a very few select people who can pet her or get near her. Up until about a year ago she was what we called the "Closet Cat". I had 2 large walk in closets and I used one and she lived in the other. The closet had a nice big window she sat in during the day. She would come out and sit about 1/2 down the stairs and "people watch". Well, 2 yrs ago we moved to a new house with a few acres and she found the delights of playing outside. She has a kitty door and comes and goes as she wishes. She spends most of her time outside during the day and she sleeps in the bed or on the window sill at night. We lost her best buddy a few months ago and while it has been nice that she is turning to people for affection. She is much more friendly , even with strangers, but it is as if she is starving for affection. I am wanting to get another buddy for her.

OK - Here is my question:

Would she be better with a male or female? Our other cat was a male. I know females dogs can have issues, is it the same with cats? I have been offered one of each by 2 different people.

I really look forward to hearing what you guys have to say!!

Thanks, Kellee & Maggie

 

[Appytaz]

BTT

 

[Imp]

It might be tough getting a 10 yo cat to accept any other cat. I have found that they are pretty set in their ways. That being said- There's nothing wrong with trying. I don't think it matters if it a male or female, more depends on the personality of the individual. Recently I have had the females getting long better with each other, but I think that's because they don't like the big fat nasty smelly young male pouncing on them. lol who would?
I vote for taking both cats, so if Maggie isn't friendly they will have each other to play with.

Good luck.

Imp-And they will all get along better if they are neutered or spayed.

 

[Appytaz]

Thanks Imp - Maggie is fixed and I know the other female is - I will have to check into the male.

Thank you!

 

[Imp]

Now if you take those 2 you'll need to start looking for 4 more to catch up with me.

After all whoever ends up with the most cats wins!

Imp-steals neighbors cats

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

existing cat is female, right? as long as its a YOUNGER and fixed cat you should be ok. be prepared however for a lot of growling and snarling and the newcomer will have to take his/her lumps.

or here's something... get two new ones - preferably siblings. that way they can play with each other and the existing kitty can decide if she wants to be part of the group or not. and she wont be lonely. she'll probably act annoyed at 'those stupid kittens' but when you arent looking she's probably pal around with them.

one of the easiest ways to introduce cats is thru/under a door. for instance put the new kitty(s) in the bathroom and let your existing kitty start nosing around. that way the new ones arent in peril and they can bat at each other under the door. make sure everyone has their own box and their own space. and let them be together for short periods of time and work up to full time.

we've been very successful at introducing newcomers and our Insane Cat Posse has everyone from 19 months to 19 years old!

wait whoever has the most cats.. honey if you only have 4 you've got a ways to go!

 

[patandchickens]

In your situation it's kind of a judgement call whether you think she'd be happier and less stressed alone or with some new cat. Some really paranoid cats are, IMO, probably best off finishing their older years in peace. OTOH if she is not *overly* paranoid, you might get lucky with the right companion and it'd be good for her. Hard to tell, but knowing the cat you can at least make an educated guess.

IME it is harder to have introductions go well when it's to just *one* resident cat, than when it's in a long-term multicat situation.

If you do decide to get another cat now, your best odds are probably with a young but calm-ish male cat; or a small, laid-back neutered male old enough for the sillies to have worn off (prolly at least 2-3 yrs). But you know, cats are enough individuals that it there are a lot of exceptions, in both directions.

The idea of getting 2 new cats does have merit, if yours is not overly paranoid about life. Personally I'd try to get 2 smaller males at least 3 yrs old so they are less likely to bug her excessively, if you wanted to try that. It does have the potential to be more stressful to her if she just doesn't like the presence of other cats period, though.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[thebritt]

I'd get a neutered male because one of my females (spayed) SPRAYS IN THE HOUSE when she gets annoyed with one of my other female cats, but not so much with the males (neutered, of course) we have. Maybe that's just her thing. She's 10 yrs old as well.

 

[staciakb]

Cats do well with either sex as long as they are spayed/neutered, it really is the personalities that need to mesh like said above.

In my experience with introducing new cats and working in animal sheltering placing many kitties, do the introduction SLOW, people rush it and expect within a "couple of days" the kitties will be great friends. It takes time, let them live in seperate spaces for at least two weeks before slow supervised interactions. Be prepared you may need to keep them seperate for longer (months) and keep doing supervised visits.

Also, be prepared, they may never like each other and learn to co-exist and avoid one another or have to live seperately. Are you prepared to keep the new kitty if resident kitty doesn't like it? I don't mean to sound negative I think its great you want another kitty but sooooo many people just dump the new cat and say they don't get alond. Co-existence is nice!

An adult mellow male about 2-5 years old would probably compliment your girl well. Best of luck!

 

[Appytaz]

Thanks for all of the advice. We are taking it slow on deciding what is right for Maggie. We are completely prepared for it to take a while for them to adjust. We are getting everything lined up before taking in a new family member. Maggie does not come into the entire house - she prefers the outside and the bedroom - her "entrance" is the bedroom window, so we are prepared for the new cat to have run of the house and do slow short intros. I do not think she will be overly aggressive. We had a houseguest in our back apartment (for 5 months) that had 2 cats and she was ok with them. Also, the new cat will definately have a forever home. I have only rehomed 2 animals in my life. One cat is still at the barn of a friend and a cocker we rescued at the spca is living the high live with a hair dresser. So, it is no problems with taking on an additional critter