How do I safely introduce a new kitten to multiple adult cats at once?

Question

We just found a young kitten (6-8 weeks old) outside our home in a tree. Its VERY lucky to be alive! We have 7 LARGE dogs on two acres of land. And we have 3 adults indoor cats too. The kitten is in a isolated bedroom unti!l I can get it vet checked next week. My question, once vet cleared, do I do kitten to adult introductions as instructed slowly to ALL 3 adult cats at the SAME time??? All the adult cats are related. Mom, 8 years old & her two grown kittens 6 years old - all neutered. Help! Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | unneutered | 1 month and 28 days old | 5 lbs

Dr. Strydom, DVM · Accepted Answer

Good question! You do the introductions slowly, yes. The ideal way is to put the kitten in one room and the other cats in the rest of the house. Once the kitten is cleared by the vet, you will want to put the kitten in the rest of the house and all the other cats in his room. Do this for 30-60 minutes a couple times a day. That way they can get each other's scents. Also, at this stage you will want to feed the cats by the door of the kittens room; feed the kitten on the other side of the door too. So they can smell the kitten and get a reward at the same time. Once that is going well you can use a baby gate to separate them at the door for feeding. After a few days if that is going well (no hissing etc) you can let them all out together. When I say feed them at the door I mean something really good that they will consider a treat like canned cat food, canned chicken or canned tuna. Make it a really pleasurable experience! I also strongly recommend you get some Feliway diffusers. It is "happy cat pheromones" that really works to calm cats down. Use it for at least 2 or 3 months time. Hope this helps. I know it's a long process but it is much better to do it slowly than to cause issues by just throwing him in!

How do I safely introduce a new kitten to multiple adult cats at once?

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