# Older Cat and Kitten?



## Pheebs (Jun 8, 2011)

This cat below has been at the shelter we got our kitten from for a good three months:

Lucky - Cats Rehoming - Rehoming a Cat - Wood Green, The Animals Charity

When I met her she was traumatised and didn't want to come out of her carrier. She did let me stroke her and she had the loveliest soft fur.

I keep thinking about her and wondered if any of you had ever adopted an older cat when your only other cat was a kitten?

PS: she has a heart murmur so perhaps a home with a rampaging kitten wouldn't be a good idea?


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## salkei (Apr 15, 2011)

i dont thnk t matters, from my perspective, i have an 8 year old, a 5 year old and have just rescued a kittie that the vet tells me is about a year old. they all get along fine, no different to my 3 kids really! there is an age gap there of 7 years between my oldest and youngest daughters!


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## Pixel (May 13, 2011)

I would have a word with the shelter first and see if they would consider her suitable for a home with a kitten and take it from there.


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## Pheebs (Jun 8, 2011)

Pixel said:


> I would have a word with the shelter first and see if they would consider her suitable for a home with a kitten and take it from there.


Yes, thanks. I'm going to think about it for a while, see if any one takes her, if not I may have a word.


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## Sadie SU (May 15, 2011)

It's easier to introduce a tiny, submissive kitten to a resident adult cat because there's no question of the kitten threatening the cat's position in the pecking order. The kitten may well end up being in charge once it's grown up, but that'll happen as a gradual process over the course of many wrestling matches, rather than a big showdown at the outset.

If your kitten is still young and not yet convinced that he's ruler of the universe, then it may be possible to introduce an adult cat into the house without too much bloodshed. Even if the kitten is uber-confident, then provided the adult cat is inclined to be submissive then it could still work. Problems arise when you have a resident cat/kitten with megalomaniac tendencies, and introduce another cat/kitten with a similar mind set. 

In this case, could you take the cat for a trial period of a couple of weeks, and see how she integrated with your kitten? And be ready to send her back to wait for a more suitable home if it didn't work.....


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## Pheebs (Jun 8, 2011)

Do rescues let you take cats on a trial basis? 

Sadie, my kitten is VERY confident.

But I have a feeling she might be friendly towards other cats. There is a cat who visits our garden a lot and they sit on either side of the back door, which is frosted glass, but they can see each other through it. Today they were doing this and my kitten started rolling on her back when he was on the other side of the door (I think it's a he, not sure. Hope that doesn't mean she's in season! She's only just 17 weeks!)


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## Sadie SU (May 15, 2011)

Pheebs said:


> Do rescues let you take cats on a trial basis?


Well, we certainly took Popeye on a trial basis from the RSPCA - none of us were sure whether Sophie would tolerate another cat or not, and I refused to take on a kitten to live in a state of constant warfare. Not fair on the kitten or on Sophie, or indeed on us. Sophie had chased the fosterer's other cats quite aggressively while she was there, but she was either pregnant or had recently aborted her kittens at the time, so we weren't sure if that had an effect on her behaviour. We were advised to go for a young kitten, though, rather than a second young adult cat, to have the best chance of success.


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