# Need advice on fostering and integrating a new cat



## tarah44 (Jul 18, 2011)

A friend of mine is teaching English overseas. Her 10 year old persian male named Gizmo was left in her mothers care but her mother moved to Mexico and they choose to leave the cat in the same home it was used to. The tenant agreed to care for the pet till Christmas but is now wanting out of the commitment so my friend has asked me if I can take Gizmo, possibly for a year. If she decides to stay longer, then I may end up with the cat for 2 years. 

I don't feel ready for another cat in my home, especially an older male. I'm still mourning the loss of Mr man but I do want to help my friend. I would never back out of a foster commitment unless it was a terrible situation between my cat and the foster so I have to give this some serious thought. 

I have never introduced an older cat to my 6 year old female Angel so I want to make sure I introduce properly. Angel is very territorial but Gizmo has been integrated with other cats successfully. I'm looking for advice and ideas. 

I live in a 2 bedroom two storey townhouse with undeveloped basement. I do not have a spare bedroom to isolate the cat which is why I have not jumped into fostering already. It will have to be in one of our bedrooms or I could make a large enclosure in the basement. 

Any advice people?


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

Read cat to cat introductions in the library of Little Big Cat website. Im on my phone and dont know how to cut and paste urls from the phone yet. If you cant find it maybe one of the other members could post the url for me. I give this article in my adoption packets. Its one of the better ones Ive come across with good info.


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## catloverami (Jul 5, 2010)

Here's a U.S. Humane Society info on cat introductions:

Introducing a New Cat to Other Pets : The Humane Society of the United States


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

Mitts & Tess said:


> Read cat to cat introductions in the library of Little Big Cat website. Im on my phone and dont know how to cut and paste urls from the phone yet. If you cant find it maybe one of the other members could post the url for me. I give this article in my adoption packets. Its one of the better ones Ive come across with good info.


This one?
Cat-to-Cat Introductions | Little Big Cat


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## tarah44 (Jul 18, 2011)

It's been a while since I posted. Life sure gets busy sometimes. 

Well Gizmo finally made it to my house. He ended up at another ladies house who's good friends with the owners grandmothers but she is moving to Manitoba now. I stepped up and decided to foster. I was planning on fostering through a rescue anyway so why not help a friend and put this whole integration thing to the test. My poor friend is so frustrated with everyone backing out on her and her poor cat has been moved around so much. So far he seems pretty adaptable. He's playful and affectionate right off the bat. Pretty darn cute Persian I might add. I'm not one for squished faces but he is adorable but then again I love all cats. 

and that brings me back here....I thought I'd jump back on this forum, update myself on the proper introduction links already provided and post our progress. This is a first for me and I may end up with this cat for a year so I want to make sure I do this right and Angel warms up to him. If so then I can move forward with fostering some more. 

We had Angel locked up with my daughter for the first few hours while we let him explore the house, now he's in with Skye and while Angel creeps around sniffing and hissing at his stuff....lol. She seems like she is just waiting for him to bolt out at her, she acting very cautious. I expect that is normal. 

Poor Angel...lol! I'm gonna have to watch her closely. She has a habit of doing her business on our personal stuff when she's pissed!


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

Angel's behavior sounds normal. Read the links posted and follow those recommendations. Given the age of your two cats, I'd take things slowly. You might also want to look into a product called "Feliway". It's a natural product that has a calming effect on cats, and can also help ward off inappropriate litter box habits. It doesn't work on all cats, but it's worth a shot to see if it might help Angel feel a little more relaxed about the new arrival. Good luck!


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## jusjim (Jun 30, 2009)

My brother promised to look after a cat for two years for a diplomat friend who'd been posted abroad. Twelve years later he had to have the cat PTS as it was dying of cancer (not eating etc.).

He never regretted giving the cat a home.


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## tarah44 (Jul 18, 2011)

So far so good, I keep alternating who's locked in a room and who wanders the house. Angel has stopped hissing at his scent. He is very curious about her but she just hisses at him through the door. Neither of them have touched their soft food while on each side of the door. The first two days I had their food dishes 2 feet away from the door but they were more interested in each other. Today I moved the dishes closer but they won't eat if the other is close. I did make a big blooper today though. I woke up to Gizmo heaving a pretty pile of watery goo on my bed. I got up cleaned it up, laid towels all over my bed but must must not have shut the door tight. I woke up a few hours later and my door was open. I shot right out of bed ran to my daughters room, Angel wasn't there, nor was Gizmo....oh oh! I ran downstairs and they were two feet apart staring at each other. Neither were tensed up, Angel was in her ready to take off position but she wasn't all "hackled" up as I call it. I started to approach them a which startled Gizmo and his movement made Angel bolt into the kitchen, both Gizmo and I followed her, but then she moved again and I was able to pick her up and take her to her safe room. That is a really good sign already. I have no idea how much time they were alone together but they didn't jump straight into fighting which is good. Angel usually beelines for another cat to get rid of it. I was surprised that I didn't wake up to a cat fight...thank god. I gotta be more careful. I made sure Angel was rewarded with praise and her favourite snappy tom. I'll keep them separated till next weekend with a few open door visits and see how that goes.


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