Can an elderly cat adjust to a new cat in the household?
In the past I had a pair of littermates who I'd adopted at the age of 10 weeks. When they were around 12 years old I asked my vet how old would be "too old" to adopt an additional cat -- that is, at what age would they not be able to tolerate an addition -- and she said "pretty soon". I had the impression that she was making this judgement based on their age and not an evaluation of their individual personalities.
My current cats are middle-aged (about 6 and 8), and while my spouse has informed me that we have no plans to adopt more cats, it got me wondering about my vet's past advice. Is there such a thing as "too old for new additions"? If so, when is it in general and how can I tell if my cats have reached it? How relevant is the age of the newcomer? (I can imagine arguments for getting another older cat and arguments for getting a non-threatening kitten.)
For purposes of this question, assume that all cats involved are basically healthy and well-adjusted indoor-only neutered cats.
(2)2 Comments
Sorted by latest first Latest Oldest Best
In my experience, it depends a lot on the cats. My senior (geriatric - she's 20.5) cat has adjusted to a 5 month old kitten who joined the family when she was 15, and a 5 year old cat we got a couple of years ago.
When I married, she was 8 and my husband's cat was 10. The two of them adjusted in a kind of "we'll ignore each other and everything will be fine" kind of way - but when my husband's cat passed on some years ago mine got very demanding - which lead to the introduction of the 5 month old kitten.
Generally speaking, I've found that the more easygoing the cat, the more likely that cat will adjust well to other cats regardless of age.
In my life I have integrated:
A 5 year old cat with a kitten
A 16 year old cat with a kitten
A 5 year old cat with a kitten
These same cats 7 years later with a 5-7 year old cat
A 16 year old and 11 year old cat with 2 kittens
2 one year old cats with an 8 year old cat.
The last integration is still ongoing, with the new cat hissing some at the kittens and staying in her room, but the kittens are willing.
The main reason a young cat might be too much for an old cat is energy. You can help by getting 2 young cats to work on each other, and the old fellows can watch or join in as desired. This worked very well in the second to last instance. Counteracting the age difference is that most kittens learn some respect for the veteran and don't hound them too hard.
It was very touching to have the kittens and the older fellow all playing with a robot toy in his last months of life - especially since he could never lift his tail up and look friendly to a cat when he was younger, so had difficult relations all his life until then.
Terms of Use Privacy policy Contact About Cancellation policy © freshhoot.com2025 All Rights reserved.