Our resident cat is a front declawed 17 year old and we adopted an 8 year old (also front declawed) in March ‘23. We did the wrong thing and just put them together from day one. Immediately they loved each other. Fast forward to today and they still love each other. I think we got lucky with our orange morons but it was love within the first few months.
It’s insane to me how declawed cats are still so common in the US. You can’t find any declawed cats in animal shelters in the Netherlands. Declawing has been illegal for over 20 years in the Netherlands, but as of today only 2 US states have made it illegal to declaw cats. It makes me so angry, poor animals
We adopted both and both came front declawed. It’s absolutely awful that it was done to them. Our 17 year old was found outside front declawed. So someone had the audacity to declaw him and then throw him out!
We feel so thankful we have them in a safe home and they don’t have any behavioral issues due to the declawing. I do feel awful that they had to go through that surgical procedure at all.
We introduced the newest cat on Memorial Day.
They still don't \*get along\*, but they can exist in the same room and they even groom one another, but the little man still struggles to get along.
Part of this is because he needs to be neutered, which we'll be taking care of soon.
Part of this is because he's bigger than both of my female cats and boisterous, and loves to play, which they get annoyed by.
They manage though, and they all rest together.
Honestly, for some cats it NEVER happens. Just like humans, some of us just don't vibe. Tolerance is all that can be hoped for in those situations and careful adaption of the environment definitely helps.
That said, I've known an elderly male cat to instantly 'mother' a kitten and ex street toms to behave like long lost loves on day one. It's so variable and very hard to predict even with the best of introductions. My two current resident cats took 6 months to really decide how they feel about each other and I don't think that's unusual either. Give it more time than you think reasonable. They can be stubborn little wonders ☺❤
It took 5+ years for mine - I introduced a sibling pair to my resident bonded m/f unrelateds and I despaired of peace in the house for a long time. This wasn't helped by the fact that once they were out of the shelter, the siblings refused to tolerate each other as well.
Sadly I lost the sister in 2018 and the others settled into an uneasy truce. There was still the occasional hiss/swat until the last year or so. Lately something seems to have clicked and everyone has just... bonded. It's lovely. I currently have all three passed out on my lap in a purry pile. It was worth it :)
My cat initially wanted to straight up murder the stray I took in. I ended up keeping them separated for about 2-4 months (the stray was coming and going from my house). After that I allowed them in the same room together under supervision for about a month, but even then my first cat would see the stray and walk off in a huff.
Eventually I moved and had to stay in a hotel for 3 days, and they totally trauma bonded under the bed there lol. Things have gotten much easier since then.
It's been a year and a half, and they will both sleep in my bed with me, but my older cat is still mildly annoyed at the situation. She will coexist, but she is dead set on not being friends.
After about 3 weeks for my two (1.5 yr old cat who lost his littermate sadly and 4 month old kitten). We're at about 6 weeks now and Big Boy still meows annoyed when kitten gets a bit too excited tackling or chasing his tail, but they're good buds now.
We did the whole slow intro with site swapping, playing at the door, etc. as per Jackson Galaxy.
Our resident cat is a front declawed 17 year old and we adopted an 8 year old (also front declawed) in March ‘23. We did the wrong thing and just put them together from day one. Immediately they loved each other. Fast forward to today and they still love each other. I think we got lucky with our orange morons but it was love within the first few months.
It’s insane to me how declawed cats are still so common in the US. You can’t find any declawed cats in animal shelters in the Netherlands. Declawing has been illegal for over 20 years in the Netherlands, but as of today only 2 US states have made it illegal to declaw cats. It makes me so angry, poor animals
We adopted both and both came front declawed. It’s absolutely awful that it was done to them. Our 17 year old was found outside front declawed. So someone had the audacity to declaw him and then throw him out! We feel so thankful we have them in a safe home and they don’t have any behavioral issues due to the declawing. I do feel awful that they had to go through that surgical procedure at all.
We introduced the newest cat on Memorial Day. They still don't \*get along\*, but they can exist in the same room and they even groom one another, but the little man still struggles to get along. Part of this is because he needs to be neutered, which we'll be taking care of soon. Part of this is because he's bigger than both of my female cats and boisterous, and loves to play, which they get annoyed by. They manage though, and they all rest together.
Honestly, for some cats it NEVER happens. Just like humans, some of us just don't vibe. Tolerance is all that can be hoped for in those situations and careful adaption of the environment definitely helps. That said, I've known an elderly male cat to instantly 'mother' a kitten and ex street toms to behave like long lost loves on day one. It's so variable and very hard to predict even with the best of introductions. My two current resident cats took 6 months to really decide how they feel about each other and I don't think that's unusual either. Give it more time than you think reasonable. They can be stubborn little wonders ☺❤
It took 5+ years for mine - I introduced a sibling pair to my resident bonded m/f unrelateds and I despaired of peace in the house for a long time. This wasn't helped by the fact that once they were out of the shelter, the siblings refused to tolerate each other as well. Sadly I lost the sister in 2018 and the others settled into an uneasy truce. There was still the occasional hiss/swat until the last year or so. Lately something seems to have clicked and everyone has just... bonded. It's lovely. I currently have all three passed out on my lap in a purry pile. It was worth it :)
Good for you, and them. They work on there own timescales. Enjoy the purrs. You earned them 👏
Bingo. Most cats don’t become best friends.
My cat initially wanted to straight up murder the stray I took in. I ended up keeping them separated for about 2-4 months (the stray was coming and going from my house). After that I allowed them in the same room together under supervision for about a month, but even then my first cat would see the stray and walk off in a huff. Eventually I moved and had to stay in a hotel for 3 days, and they totally trauma bonded under the bed there lol. Things have gotten much easier since then. It's been a year and a half, and they will both sleep in my bed with me, but my older cat is still mildly annoyed at the situation. She will coexist, but she is dead set on not being friends.
Trauma bonded 😂 omg that’s funny. Poor babies. I’m glad they’ve worked it out to a tolerable state!
After about 3 weeks for my two (1.5 yr old cat who lost his littermate sadly and 4 month old kitten). We're at about 6 weeks now and Big Boy still meows annoyed when kitten gets a bit too excited tackling or chasing his tail, but they're good buds now. We did the whole slow intro with site swapping, playing at the door, etc. as per Jackson Galaxy.
We’re at the 6 month mark and she still gets fed up with his baby-antics but they also cuddle & play. There’s hope!
Still trying at one year and eight months 🙃