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How to introduce a new kitten to an unhappy or aggressive older cat?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | unspayed | 2 months and 2 days old | 0.25 lbs

We just got an 8 week old, female kitten and our 2 year old, male cat is not pleased. We currently have the kitten set up in a dog kennel with everything it needs and only let it out when our male cat is not around because he hisses and growls at it. I was wondering if there was anything we could do to make it easier on both cats. The kitten seems to want to play with our male cat even though the male cat is hostile.

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on May 9th, 2017

Great question! Having a new cat in the home is stressful for the existing cat, and while having Koshka in a kennel of it's own is a good idea, I'm going to suggest taking it one step further to help them get along. Take the kitten, and put her in her own room with her own food, water, and litter box. Keep the door closed, and for a few days, feed them both treats on other side of door so they associate each other's smell with a good experience. Then let the other cat in the kitten's room while the kitten is in a cat carrier. They can smell each other, but not be in contact. If either becomes upset or show signs of aggression, remove the second cat from the room, and try again later. Praise them when they interact appropriately. When they are interacting well with each other through the carrier, you can let the kitten out of her room, and see how she interacts with the other cat. Praise them when they interact appropriately, and separate them with any sign of aggression or upset. I would get a cat tree with lots of shelves to give the cats vertical space to get away from each other. I would keep the kitten in her room when you go out until they are comfortable with each other. Good luck, I hope this helps :-)

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Lauren Jones VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on September 16th, 2017

    Introducing new pets can be stressful and challenging in some cases! Consider starting their introduction very slowly. Start by keeping the cats in different rooms separated by a closed door so that they can smell one another under the door. After a few days to a week of doing this, try switching them so that they are in the other cat's room for a few hours. If all goes well, consider putting the kitten into a cat or dog carrier so that the cats can see each other, but still have a barrier between them. Repeat this process several times per day for at least a week or so. If all seems to be going relatively well, allow them to meet face to face with close supervision, allowing both cats to have an easy escape if they feel stressed. During this entire time, consider using calming pheromone products, such as Feliway, which is available both as a collar or plug in diffuser. I hope this helps and that all goes well for Daisy and her new (hopefully) friend!

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