How to Adopt a Cat If One Already Has One

Bringing home a new pet can be a challenging ordeal, even to an empty house. With a home that already has some feline family members, bringing a newcomer in can be even more challenging. It is important to take the proper precautions when starting a multicat household. Despite the initial protests you might receive from one or both parties, you can soon have a smoothly running house where both cats feel at home by following a careful routine.

Things You'll Need

  • Litter box
  • Litter
  • Food and water dishes
  • Cat food
  • Cat bed
  • Toys
  • Towel
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Instructions

    • 1

      Make sure that you are ready for the responsibility of another cat. Introducing a new cat to an existing one is much more time consuming than bringing a cat home to an empty household. You will also need to consider the fact that you will need to provide double the cat food, medical expenses and other pet supplies.

    • 2

      Purchase all of the needed supplies for the new cat. This should include a litter box, bed, food and water dishes, and toys. Even though your cats might eventually be willing to share some of these things, and might even curl up in the same bed together, you should be prepared to provide a completely separate set at first.

    • 3

      Set up a safe room for the new cat. For the first few days or weeks that you have your new cat, you should keep her separated from the other cat in the household. Provide the new cat with a room where she will have access to everything she needs.

    • 4

      Bring the new cat home in a carrier and take her straight to her safe room. Here you can release her from the carrier and spend some time introducing her to her home. Don't be discouraged if she hides in the nearest closet or corner at first. This is perfectly normal for new cats.

    • 5

      Continue to keep the cats completely isolated from one another for the first day or two. If the new cat is still hiding, wait until she is comfortable moving about her safe room before you begin introductions. When both cats seem to be getting comfortable with the arrangement, rub each one down with a towel. Place the towel with the scent of the resident cat in the new cat's safe room and bring the new cat's towel out where your resident cat can get used to the smell.

    • 6

      Open the door between the safe room and rest of the house just an inch or two, after the cats have gotten used to each other's scent. Allow them to touch noses, or look at each other. If they act aggressively, close the door and wait for another day to reintroduce them.

    • 7

      Continue opening the door slightly for the cats to see each other. When they seem comfortable with this, bring the new cat out into the house and lock the resident cat in the safe room. This will give them full access to each other's scent. Let the cats explore for 30 minutes to an hour before returning them to their rooms.

    • 8

      Wait until the cats are able to see each other through the partially opened door with no nervous or aggressive behavior. Then you can open the door wide enough for the cats to pass through. Once you have reached this stage, both cats should be ready to live together comfortably, though you might want to use the safe room for a few more weeks when you are out of the house for long periods of time, or at night when you can't keep an eye on their behavior.