How long does it take to determine cat compatibility?

[Geila]

A few days ago a scrawny looking stray tabby cat came around crying plaintively and looking for food. He's a very sweet and affectionate cat and must have been a pet at some point. I took him to the vet but no chip. I've been feeding him and seeing if he might get along with the other pets. I'm willing to keep him if it works out. The dogs are fine with him and he's ok with them, he likes the poodle. But our female cat is hostile with him. She hisses, growls and vocalizes at him to leave. So far he has been submissive and retreats but a couple of times he has done little hisses back at her.

This is a new situation for me. How long should I give the two cats to get acquainted and determine if they will get along? I'd rather not take him to the animal shelter, but if the two fight then I will have to do that or try to find him a home by posting on Nextdoor. My cat is an indoor/outdoor cat and the new one would be too if he stays.

[sweetana3]

Had cats for 40+ years. Females are often called Princess for a reason. They can be total Divas. Usually not much fighting just dont throw them together too fast. Keep them apart for a quarantine period and let them smell each other. Feed separately.

It does sound pretty typical. Can take some time and it may never be that they will be "best friends" but will coexist. Critical that they are neutered!!

My two girls still think they are the queens of the households and the boys are dirty serfs. Just life in our household.

[Geila]

Last night he slept in the garage and she was in the house and they both seemed happy with that arrangement. I'll give it a few more days and see how it goes. He's such a lovely cat, I wonder if he would be better off with a family where he can just relax and be in the house. He follows me everywhere, comes when I call him, and wants to be petted and talked to. My girl is usually in the house during the day so I don't know how that would work out. My girl is spayed and the boy looks like he's neutered.

And yes, my cat is the boss of the household here too. And she's quite the snob!

[iris lilies]

Thanks so much for taking in this cat. He is not better off with anyone else! There justare not other homes for stray cats.

Let your princess diva be the diva, so what. A focus on him will fill her days and give her something to do, even if it is ragey behavior. Haha. The main problem cmes if they start peeing in inappropriate places out of pique, that is untenable. But just some hissy fits--not a big deal.

We had to give up our foster dog, who we really wanted to keep, because she beat up on our dog. Actual physical fights, every chance she got to him. We had to keep them separated and that was not a way we could live forever.

[Geila]

Yes, I'm worried about the peeing and destructive behavior possibility. The batch of pets I have right now is the least destructive one I've ever had. A boxer girl, a poodle and a cat and very minimal destruction. Probably because I'm home with them.

Ok, I'll give it a week and see how they do. Give the boy a chance to work his charm on the princess! :)

[Float On]

I don't have an answer. The only cats I've ever had wandered into my life of their own decision and have remained outdoor cats. Current cat, KuboCat, and I went round and round yesterday about trying a flea collar. I won this morning.

[rosarugosa]

It's not an exact science. Quite some time ago, we introduced a new cat to one of our most difficult cats ever, and they were fast friends within 3 days (DH had no patience with the slow introduction process and just opened the door). With our current cats, it took Silvio 2 years before fully settling in and reaching the point where he and Ogden are good buddies, although they had certainly settled into an uneasy truce long before that.

[gmpg54]

I brought Buddy home September 1,2016,he showed up at my friends house in PA,couldn't stay because of allergies.
My queen diva Bella boo Radley has been with me since January 2012 she might be a little spoiled, lol.
They had a couple of turf related skirmishes but settled in less than a month.
They are now the mischief partners,she was rapidly becoming a couch potato,she needed him:)
I have separate feed stations and 2 litter boxes,they swap.They don't sleep together but Buddy, aka Mr.B.
is very inquisitive and occasionally takes a powder,either upstairs or down the outside hall,she waits patiently for him.
She is spayed and declawed, he is neutered.
Give them
This is a small apartment too

[Geila]

The cats are getting along a bit better. My diva is setting boundaries with the stray but not attacking him.

Question about health: How quickly and how thoroughly do I need to have him checked out?

We've allowed him in the house a few times and last night I applied flea meds on him (Frontline Plus). He's dirty so I'll need to clean him down with wet wipes. I've never attempted bathing a cat. I also want to have him vaccinated to make sure he doesn't spread any diseases he might have and to keep him healthy. He's eating dry kibble really well and he used the litter box last night.

What do you guys recommend?

My wonderful vet retired at the end of July so I'll be trying out a new vet. I'm also wondering if I should take him to the animal shelter and have them do all the exams, vaccinations, microchip, etc. If I do that, the adoption fee is $80 if he's under 6, and $35 if over 6. But it includes everything that they do to make a pet ready for adoption, including the annual license fee. At the vet I would be looking at close to $300 for the same services. The only downside is that the shelter might pose some health hazards due to the volume of animals they service.

[Mary B.]

I would go with my regular vet. Did someone else take over your old vet's practice? I have had my regular vet give me a bit of a deal when I am rescuing someone.

[Tybee]

Geila, will the shelter neuter him, too? How much would that cost? I would go that route, as it is so much cheaper, and then take your time and look for a good new vet. You might not like the new one and you would be out a lot of money.

My old vet told me when my kitty had fleas to wash her in the tub each day til they were gone. She hated it but it is much more effective than the wet wipes, and I only had to do it twice, with the medicine.

[Geila]

My vet closed his business down completely, no one took over, and he did not give referrals because he said vets charge too much now.

The shelter does the neutering as part of the adoption package but the vet said he is already neutered. My concern with the shelter is that they have a 72 hold for all intakes to provide owners a chance to claim their pets. They post a photo of the pet online and make it available for i.d. purposes. During this time they are kept in cages/kennels in a room full of animals. They are provided with all the essentials, food, water, litter box. But they are not given any personal attention, play time, or the full medical workup. Totally understandable, as they have a limited staff and they get a lot of animals brought in as strays. But that means that this kitty would be caged for 72 hours before receiving his full workup and such.

The shelter had info about a traveling vet clinic that comes to my local pet store every weekend and offers all the vaccinations at a reduced price. I can take him in today to get them. But they do not offer an exam or a full blood work up. They do offer the Feline Leukemia and FIV/FeLV test at $60 for both.

Would that be enough?

Here is what they offer: (it says they offer cat/dog packages but does not give the details)

Rabies - $6
FVRCP - $15
Feline Leukemia - $15
FIV test - $25
FeLV test - $35
Fecal - $40

Total for all = $136

What this does not include, and the shelter does, is treating anything that shows up in the testing. At the shelter, anything that comes up in the full exam is treated and resolved before they are put up for adoption and it is disclosed during the viewing and adoption process. If something contagious comes up, the animal is quarantined during the treatment process.

I've gotten all of my pets from this shelter and they do a great job. The adoption cost is a tiny fraction of their processing cost. The issue I'm having is taking the cat in and knowing that the next week or so will be pretty stressful for him as he is undergoing the process. He is such a sweetheart. My heart hurts thinking about leaving him there, all scared and alone.

[rosarugosa]

Geila: I would not go the shelter route unless my finances dictated that I had no other option. It does sound like it would be stressful for him, and will potentially expose him to diseases before he has been vaccinated.

[Teacher Terry]

i wold absolutely not take him to the shelter. They could decide for some reason to euthanize him, he could become even more traumatized from the experience, etc. when I rescue a dog I take it to my vet.

[Geila]

It's official: our family has a new cat!

I took him to the traveling vet clinic this morning. And they were awesome by the way. They said he looks really good, no need for fecal test. Gave him all his shots and microchip for $90. They also said he is a wonderful kitty, which of course I knew. He was such a good boy the whole time. He only got spooked when he had to come out of his carrier for the second time and next to him was a giant uneutered Great Dane! He was like, no way, I'm staying in here. Took 3 of us to get him out. I got him some goodies at the store - bed, collar, toy, wet wipes. He was not a fan of the wet wipes. ;)

Before taking him to the clinic, I put him in the carrier and brought him inside to hang with everyone. My diva was on her favorite stool and showed no reaction to him whatsoever when I placed him a few feet from her on the floor. She hates the carrier so maybe thought he was being punished. :) When we got back from the clinic, he was in the garage eating and hanging out and she did not move from her spot on the couch where she was sprawled out sleeping. Perhaps a truce has been reached.

He's younger than I thought, vet thinks about 1.5 yrs. But he's bigger than my girl, she's full grown and 10 lbs. He's 12 lbs now and looks like he will get to maybe 15. He's already started gaining weight. Even though he hated the wet wipes, he let me give him a full wipe down. Tomorrow I will brush him. I hope he likes it as much as the diva does.

Thanks for the feedback everyone!

Oh, time to think of a name... let's see, male orange tabby, very sweet and affectionate, a real softie...

[razz]

He is a big boy so what about Max, if you are considering inviting suggestions. Good call on the vet check and services.

[Geila]

He is a big boy so what about Max, if you are considering inviting suggestions. Good call on the vet check and services.

Thanks razz, Max is a great name!

And yes, I welcome suggestions.

[rosarugosa]

Orange cats are so cool!

[Float On]

I applied flea meds on him (Frontline Plus).

.

My last cat, I used the Frontline drops on and she got seizures from it. She was a very petite cat and I don't know if it overdosed her or what though I used the lowest weight dose. I've been a bit afraid of them since and my dog always rubbed off all the hair on his backside when I'd try the drops on him. I've heard a lot of people recommending the Seresto collars this year over the drops. We're having a horrible flea problem this year in the mid-west due to the warm winter, spring flooding. I even had my yard treated and I've never had to do that before. I hate chemicals but man, they are bad. I went ahead and got the Serestos about 2 weeks ago and they do seem to be doing better with those.

[Tybee]

Jack-O-Lantern, Jack for short?

[Geila]

I do like Jack also.

I read somewhere that most animals respond better to short 2-syllable names with a "y" sound at the end. But I can't think of any that would be cute. Any ideas?

Float - that's weird about the pet reactions to Frontline. I've been using it for at least 15 years without any problem. Good info on the collars. It might be a good thing for me to try in the winter when there's less fleas around. My little poodle hates it when I apply the drops, I think they itch or burn his skin for about an hour afterwards. My strange boxer actually likes getting her drops.

[nswef]

Marmalade- Marmy for short?

[Teacher Terry]

so happy you are keeping him. I had a friend that adopted 2 very senior kitties from the HS so they would keep each other company. They did not fight but were never in the same room unless she was with them. I just named my new puppy Max so I am partial to it.

[Geila]

Today I'm keeping the new guy in the garage with the door open into the house. My diva sat at the doorway for a while making unhappy noises, then she went in the garage and walked around voicing threats. The new guy just stayed put in his bed the whole time. Then she walked out and went to lay on the couch and has not paid him any attention since. He's afraid of being in the house with her in it because she threatened him last night. I hope that later today she will be okay with him being in the house as long as he doesn't go near her.

One good thing is that the dogs have been really good with the new cat in light of his feline harassment. At first he was afraid of the boxer but now he's fine with her even when she walks up to his bed and sniffs him.

I'm going to try to get a photo of him to post. I tried this morning but he was too skittish and wouldn't stand still long enough for the camera to capture his face.

Another good thing is how impressed I was with the traveling vet clinic. They only do vaccinations, microchip, and a few tests, but they were very organized, well staffed, used technology to make everything go quickly and smoothly, and so professional and friendly. Plus, there was about 15-20 of us in line and I got to enjoy a bunch of gorgeous pets! There was at least 5 puppies in the 2-4 month old range. So CUTE! They come to my local pet store every weekend for 2 hours each day. After the initial burst of customers, they were not busy at all. And even with the initial crowd, it all went very quickly.

I'm looking forward to taking my other pets there when their shots are due.

[Teacher Terry]

Beautiful kitty!

[Tybee]

What a sweet face! He is more like a creamscicle than a jack-o-lantern!

We named our new puppy Abby after the character on NCIS and a few ancestors. So we meet the two syllable y parameter.

[Geila]

I looked creamsicle and you're right! He's quietly exploring the house right now while the diva sleeps.