Many cat lovers who would like to get their furry pet a companion or companioness, are stopped by the fear that the animals will not get along with each other. Purrs are really not always ready to get along. But in fact, there are several ways to make friends with cats.

Adopt Don't Stop, a charity project for rescuing homeless animals, tells us about them. All you'll need is a little time and patience.

Don't try to force things

If you simply bring a new cat into the house and confront the old cat with the fact that he is not alone in the family from now on, it is very likely to end in conflict. The new cat may start to behave aggressively out of fear, and the old cat may start to defend his territory. Therefore, in any case do not try to force events. The worst option in such a case is to lock the cats in one room so that they find out their own relations. This may end up with the emergence of irreconcilable enmity between the animals rather than friendship.

Also, you can not bring animals to each other. Even if you are 100% sure that so they will sniff and calm down faster. In fact, this is not the case.

Separate the space

Moving to a new place is stressful for the cat in any case, so it's better to separate it from the competition for territory first. Separate the cats into different rooms right away. The animal that has already lived with you, let it be in a larger room, and the new one - in a smaller room. It will not be too cramped. On the contrary, the limited space, especially if there is a shelter, will give him a sense of security. A cat carrier can serve as a shelter for a while - don't force him out of it, he will come out when he is ready or when he really needs something (food, water, toilet).

Your experienced pet, on the other hand, don't let him feel very restricted in his movement. This is his territory, he should know that for sure. The cat will definitely feel the presence of the newcomer, but let him get used to it gradually and without direct contact, so that he has no desire to compete for living space.

When both sniff in their rooms, and it will take a few days, you can briefly change their places. Let them get acquainted with the smell of the new neighbor. Such "relocations" can be done every 2-3 days.

Provide each animal with personal belongings

Each cat in the house should have its own things - bowls, litter box, toys, scratching post. In this case, they will have less reason to compete with each other. They will decide for themselves whether they want to share their property and when it's time to do it.

Lifehack with stroking

If you want the cats to get used to each other's scent faster, you can actually help them do it in a fairly safe way. Take a clean glove, sock or handkerchief, put it on your hand and stroke the newcomer with that hand. Pay special attention to the cheeks, forehead and chin - here are the glands through which animals release odor. The cat will be happy to get a little attention and caress.

After that, take the thing with which you stroked him and take it to the old-timer. Do not poke it directly into his nose, but just put it somewhere near - the animal itself will feel the new smell and will be interested in it. When the old cat will familiarize himself with the "letter", stroke it the same way with some clean thing and take it to the newcomer. Such an exchange of "messages" can be made several times a day. For each approach to the fragrant message you can give the cat something tasty, so he will have a positive reinforcement of the new smell and will get used to it sooner. Negative reactions (aggression, attempting to beat the fabric) should simply be ignored. When both cats start to react completely calmly to such handkerchiefs or socks, you can move on to the next stage.

Establish eye contact

In the next step, remove the wall between the cats, but still don't allow them to make direct contact. Let them see each other and smell each other, but that's it. You can ensure this by putting a mesh or grate between them. Even some fabric will do.

Do not forget to play with the animals. Pay attention to the old-timer, but within the usual limits, amuse the newcomer. Let them feel safe. And gradually begin to create the prerequisites for contact. Several times simultaneously feed both fluffies at the barrier. This way they will see that there is enough food for everyone and there is no need to fight over it. This will also make them feel that they are not a danger to each other.

Face-to-face introductions

When the cats begin to behave calmly with a permeable barrier, it is finally time to try to bring them together. Remove the barrier between the animals and observe how they behave.

Have a sprayer with water available. If the cats try to fight, sprinkle it on them - this will cool them down a bit and get them to break up. You should not manually separate the fighters, because in this case you can get hurt too.

For the first time will be enough for 10-15 minutes of such acquaintance. Then you should return the barrier. If cats calmly tolerate personal meetings, you can increase their duration. You can consolidate success by feeding and playing together. Only give the animals the same amount of food and use a separate toy for each of them.

Reinforce with goodies any behavior that you approve of. One cat walks past another without showing aggression - give him something. If they try to figure things out, distract them from it with games. Successfully completed this stage can be considered if the cats during a week of such meetings did not quarrel and were calm. In this case, they can be left alone - they will get along.

What to do if you have introduced the cats incorrectly?

If you have already tried to make the animals friends and were unsuccessful, start from scratch using the suggested pattern. The process will be more difficult than if you were introducing them from scratch and the steps may take longer, but eventually the cats should find a common language.

Previously, OBOZREVATEL told why cats can be very noisy at night and how to respond to it properly.

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