On 4 March (Saturday) Jake and I decided to go to the animal shelter to look at a fur baby. We saw a video of Evy earlier in the week and I went to look at her a couple days after we saw the video. Then, when Jake had off work on Saturday we decided to go together to see if she would be a good fit for Lando.
We went to the shelter and she was so sweet and very loving. We decided to adopt her and we're able to bring her home that day!
That day and night we decided to keep her in a separate room so her and Lando could get used to each other's scents. Lando, who usually likes other cats, decided he was not happy with the new addition at all. He would growl and hiss at the door and I decided to go and get a multi cat feliway diffuser to see if it would help. Jake and I would check up on her occasionally and make sure she was comfortable. She had places to climb, hide, had food and water, and we kept her litter box clean.
The next day (Sunday 5 March) Lando had stopped growling and hissing at the door so we decided to see if they could get along without there being a door in between them. Lando still was not very happy with her and kept hissing and growling when Evy would go in his favorite spots. We decided to let them have supervised visits but if we were going to to be gone or sleeping Evy would go back in her safe room so Lando wouldn't hurt her.
Monday (6 March) we saw a huge change in Lando. He would still get upset with Evy occasionally but for the most part he seemed to be accepting of her. He would go up and sniff her and would let her sniff him. She still couldn't go upstairs or in his favorite spots. She found a favorite spot of her own under the stairs where she felt safe. Monday night we decided to put her in her safe room for the night.
Tuesday was a huge break through! Lando stopped being aggressive and kept wanting to play with Evy. He even let her cuddle with his favorite blanket, go upstairs, and sit next to him at his favorite spot in the dining room window. He didn't even growl or hiss when she went up to his food dish. Since they were getting along so well I decided to move Evy's things out of the safe room and put her food dish in the same room as Lando's. It worked out really well. I also put her litter box next to Lando's box in the laundry room. That night Evy slept in the same bed as me. Lando usually sleeps on the corner of the bed but he decided to sleep on the couch on the other side of the room instead.
On the 8th the were getting along still but Evy still spent most of the day under the stairs. She did come out for some cuddles part way through the day. By the end of the night Lando and her were sharing the same couch.
When I woke up on the 9th (Thursday) Lando and Evy were sharing the same blanket and sleeping next to me in the bed! I was so happy that they were finally getting along. After I got up and was getting ready for the day they went and sat next to each other on the back of the couch. Throughout the day they mostly kept to themselves but by evening Lando decided to share his favorite spot with Evy and showed her how to be the best guard kitty against little critters.
Now, a little over a week later on Sunday 12 March they are starting to become friends. There have only been a couple fights and they have ended rather quickly. I woke up today to Lando grooming Evy! I'm excited to see how they progress in their friendship and I will be sure to keep you updated.
Some tips that I believe really helped get these two fur babies together:
*I kept Evy in a separate room the first couple days to let them both become familiar with each other's scent.
*I bathed Evy when we brought her home to get the shelter scents and smells off her.
*I also left her alone for a bit in her room so she could get adjusted but visited frequently.
*I made sure she had toys, a scratching post, food, water, a litter box, spots to climb, and spaces to hide in the room.
*When Lando was in a separate room sleeping or outside on his lead, I let Evy out of her room so she could explore the house without Lando bugging her.
*After a couple days I gave them supervised visits only.
*Evy has a safe spot where Lando still doesn't go.
*I gave them both treats but gave Lando his first.
*When feeding them I gave Lando his food first.
*I also plugged in a feliway diffuser but I don't know how much that helped. I smelled plastic burning and realized it was coming from the diffuser. It was hot to the touch so I unplugged it and haven't used it since.
Hopefully this helps anyone wanting to introduce two cats and I'll have it for future reference when I want to look back on Evy's first week with us.
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