[apesusi]

Back story:
We had 1 cat we rescued from a shelter when he was 2 years old. Einstein.

We then got a kitten (Thai), who grew up, and the two cats have now lived together for 2 years and are best buds. Both boys.

We brought home a kitten for my mom a month or so ago and had her for about a week before she went to my moms house. Einstein was the first to warm up to the kitten, but Thai was ok with her after a couple days.


After having the kitten, we decided we wanted another cat. But the cat we fell in love with was an adult cat, not a kitten. She is 2 years old and a female. Our first cat, Einstein, has come around to her and they are fine together. However, our other cat, Thai, attacks her.
The new cat hides most of the time, but when she does come out she will run and hide again the second she sees Thai because he chases her and fights with her. He has cornered her a couple times and they have gotten into a nasty cat fight. So I think the new cat is scared of him. He stalks her, just to fight with her.


So my question is, what can I do to help him get used to the new cat? We've gotten the Feliway plug ins and that hasn't helped. I guess I just wonder how in the world they get all the cats used to each other in a rescue?! Is there some medication I can give my cat for a while to calm him down until they get used to each other?
Or do some cat just not ever get used to other adult cats? Would starting with a kitten be better, since he did get used to the kitten we had for a while?


I want the new cat to be happy and I hate that my other one is being so mean to her.
Thank you!
We've had her for 9 days now.


Is there anything we can do to stop Thai from attacking her?

ETA: Oh, we did keep the new cat separate for 4 days before letting her out. We have a really open floor plan, so we don't have any doors to keep they all in a room together or anything like that.

 

[Straysmommy]

Prince has stopped attacking Princess when she's in the bedroom, but still attacks her sometimes when she comes out, so she (being a very scaredy cat by nature) won't come out of the bedroom. It's been 10 months. I'm optimistic that time will only improve things. A prominent behaviorist in my country told me, in a nutshell, to keep calm and reassure Prince.

 

[catloverami]

Well that's the BIG question, isn't it? It depends on you and how calm and serene you like your environment. I find cat fights very upsetting and it frays my nerves. I like a calm household. Both my 7 y.o. Devons get into little tiffs now and then, but have never had a vicious fight. A kitten would have been a better choice than an adult cat, and now that Thai has a hate-on for this second cat, I doubt that he will change his mind about her, because she won't stand up for herself. This is a lot of stress on her being attacked, and no way for her to live, so if I were in your position I would seriously consider finding her another home or sending her back to a shelter/rescue if you got her there before she becomes a mental basket case. Because you have such an open floor plan, it could be that 3 cats is Thai's limit of tolerance.