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Questions about adopting a cat
Hi! I'm not a regular poster but I am having a few concerns regarding adopting a third cat. I was hoping you guys would have some realistic expectations and advice for me.
We have a two year old son who is incredibly gentle with our cats. He is awesome and loves them to pieces. We also have two tabbies -- a 7 year old girl and a 6 year old boy. When we brought home the boy, it took our girl a few weeks to adjust, but now she loves him a ton. They snuggle all the time, play, etc. etc. They do bicker sometimes because the boy can be too affectionate, but my girl can hold her own.
For a few different reasons, we've been thinking about getting a third cat. Our only reservation is how our other two cats will react. They aren't young (but not old either) and it's only been the two of them apart from a few fish. I worry about causing behavioral issues or stress.
I REALLY want to bring home another one, but I'm worried that it will be too much for my current cats to handle.
In my heart, I really want to add another to our family. But in my head, I feel like this could be a negative thing for the two kitties we already have.
Is this doable or am I just asking for trouble?
Thank you!
Re: Questions about adopting a cat
Of course it is doable!
That said, there will be stress. It is highly unlikely that they will all be pals from the get go. Be prepared for some grumbling going into it, do a slow introduction and it will be fine. I have four cats. The two boys were mine and the two girls were my husbands and we introduced them when we moved in together. I was actually surprised at how smoothly it went. Sometimes they like each other and sometimes they don't. The two boys argue more often than the girls, but the younger male also bullies the females at times. Then other days they all sit around and have a big groom fest. I usually let them sort it out as long as they aren't killing each other or battling too close to the baby!
I don't think sex matters, but I would get a younger cat, though probably not a kitten. I'd never get another kitten. BTDT. LOL!
Good luck and have fun!
I agree, especially the bolded. We just added 2, for a total of three and the Cat vs. Cat book was a huge help. It's been about a month and Lily (the original) is still not too impressed with them, but they are out together 24 hours a day now and it's going OK.
I really wanted to try the foster situation first to see how she would react, and then if it was awful, the cat wouldn't be staying forever, but no rescues got back to me.
So I adopted from the shelter.
Definitely get one that has been around children already. Even if your LO is super gentle (mine is too), the cat can be freaked out by a toddler. I've seen this when I bring LO to volunteer with me at the shelter. Some cats love him, some are completely freaked out by the mini human.
I think you should go for it
)
I'm going to check out that book.
Thank you so much!!