Cat Introductions
 

Over a month ago, our indoor cat escaped and has not been seen since. After weeks of walking the woods and streets and checking the shelter we've decided to open our home back up to cats.

We'd like to take one from some family members who have a few too many cats. She's a lovely cat and greatly enjoys the other cats (more so, I think, then they enjoy her). We're worried she'd be bored without other cats to keep her company, so we'd also look into adopting a homeless from the shelter. This would also help make us feel less guilty.

Our initial plan had been to take the cat from the family members, let her get used to our place and then adopt a cat from the shelter in a few months time.

The alternative idea has been that maybe bringing two cats in together might be best, since our place would be neutral ground and there may not be territorial issues.

Any ideas which might be best?

I am so sorry you lost your cat. It is very heartbreaking. :grouphug: Thank you for wanting to bring in other kitties. You will be thanked many many times over.
What ages of cats are you looking to adopt? Is your girl you are getting from relatives just overly affectionate with the other kitties or is she aggressive with them? Not necessarily a bad aggression but rather she is so aggressive in playing that the other kitties get irritated easily by her?
If she is play aggressive it would be wise to adopt a kitty with the same personality. It would not do to adopt a kitty that is older, quieter, and has no interest in play as this would lead to a lot of stress on everyone's side.
My suggestion, and I know others will have differing ones, is to bring them both in at the same time but, and this is a big but, put them in separate rooms that are close together. This way they can sniff each other out, they are aware there is another cat around but they can't hurt each other. The absolute worse thing you can do is to put two cats together from the get go and expect them to get along. It very rarely works out.
You can keep one in a room separate, the other allowed free run of the house for a day or so. Then switch. Allow them to get used to each others' smells and sounds before introducing them face to face. Seeing as one comes from a multi cat household and another one will be coming from a shelter environment they will both be used to having other cats around. This should only help to smooth over the introductions.
My favourite site for introducing cats is:
[url]http://www.squidoo.com/multi-cat-management[/url]

Good luck and ummm....... we like pics here. :D:thumbs up

One more thing. You may want to give your house a total cleaning to rid it of your lost kitty's smell before bringing home the other kitties. It will only lead to confusion. They will be looking for a kitty who isn't around. :( Please don't be surprised if your original one does eventually surface.

I could tell you about my introduction experiences but I checked that link in the past and it's pretty good.
Sometimes is really easy, sometimes it takes longer and more work and patience, depending on the cats.
Try not to let them lose face each other since day one, but keep them in separate areas and let them be curious about each other and getting used to each other smell.

I'm so sorry about your kitty :( I can relate
Well now you'll be saving a life and changing a kitty's world from the shelter <3