Lyra is here! But Oogi hates her

[kibaspirit]

We were able to go pick up Lyra yesterday and bring her home, but the introduction with Oogi went terribly. He swats at her, growls & hisses a lot and also chases her to deliberately swat. We didn't want to make her scared of him & feel unwelcome in her new house - so we blocked off the bedroom with her in there. She has several toys, her box and food. I spent the evening with her in there playing a lot and making her feel safe and welcome. She seems to be happy and playful, but Oogi even hisses and growls at us now ( I assume it's because we are covered in her scent now).

This morning we put a gate up, so that there can be a barrier, but they can see each other. I also put her shirt on him, so that he could be exposed to her scent. I slept with her in the bedroom last night, and Chris slept in the living room with Oogi. We didn't want Oogi to feel left out, so Chris gave him lots of love too.

This morning, we switched places - so Chris can bond with her too. Oogi isn't being angry at us anymore, which is good.

We are going to try switching them tonight (her in the living room, him in the bedroom - so that he can continue the scent introductions). But, because of how territorial he's being, I am afraid of another introduction face to face.

Anyway, but wanted some reassurance that they will eventually be pals. How many days do we have to keep them separate? Thanks for reading & any advice. I did read the FAQ & we are implementing the video about introducing cats. Any other lair friends have a really hard time introducing a kitten to their resident cat?

Here are some pics of her. She slept in my hood for the entire drive home

 

[Breeze]

She is super cute, I’m sure in no time Oogi and her will be friends. We just went through the same thing a couple weeks ago, it took about 5 days for our boy to come around to liking her and having them friends, cuddling and grooming each other. I posted our experience in this thread for another member a couple days ago.

Adding a second sphynx?

Hey there -- I have one 6 month old male sphynx, Klaus, who is a TOTAL terror. I love him to pieces, but he is amused by nothing less than my full attention with a toy -- definitely made more noticeable due to working from home. I'm a adolescent therapist and ALL of my clients have either met...

sphynxlair.com

 

[Sheldon13]

She is super cute, I’m sure in no time Oogi and her will be friends. We just went through the same thing a couple weeks ago, it took about 5 days for our boy to come around to liking her and having them friends, cuddling and grooming each other. I posted our experience in this thread for another member a couple days ago.

Adding a second sphynx?

Hey there -- I have one 6 month old male sphynx, Klaus, who is a TOTAL terror. I love him to pieces, but he is amused by nothing less than my full attention with a toy -- definitely made more noticeable due to working from home. I'm a adolescent therapist and ALL of my clients have either met...

sphynxlair.com

Well she is just adorable!

It will take a little time, but as they are both young I wouldn’t think too long. I see a little bit of an issue in Lyra being in the bedroom and Oogi locked out. That’s prime territory for him so he probably feels infringed upon.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

 

[Kelnym]

It takes time, my Rex DESPISED my Sphynx kitten when we first brought him home. We did absolutely nothing to try and help them get along, because that's what I've always done with cats and didn't know any better.

Anyway, they get along famously now. The Rex has always been a bit surly, but he plays with the Sphynx every day, and they're very much like brothers.

In my long history of having a lot of cats, it's very normal for the original cat(s) to desperately wish that the new cat would just die already.

The Rex would barely even let us near him while he was in his resentful, hate filled state. It took him a few months to get back to being his normal, needy, cuddly self.

 

[kibaspirit]

She is super cute, I’m sure in no time Oogi and her will be friends. We just went through the same thing a couple weeks ago, it took about 5 days for our boy to come around to liking her and having them friends, cuddling and grooming each other. I posted our experience in this thread for another member a couple days ago.

Adding a second sphynx?

Hey there -- I have one 6 month old male sphynx, Klaus, who is a TOTAL terror. I love him to pieces, but he is amused by nothing less than my full attention with a toy -- definitely made more noticeable due to working from home. I'm a adolescent therapist and ALL of my clients have either met...

sphynxlair.com

Thank you! I will read thru this

 

[kibaspirit]

Well she is just adorable!

It will take a little time, but as they are both young I wouldn’t think too long. I see a little bit of an issue in Lyra being in the bedroom and Oogi locked out. That’s prime territory for him so he probably feels infringed upon.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

Okay, that's a good point. We just switched them, so he can smell the room again - and she can check out the house.

 

[kibaspirit]

It takes time, my Rex DESPISED my Sphynx kitten when we first brought him home. We did absolutely nothing to try and help them get along, because that's what I've always done with cats and didn't know any better.

Anyway, they get along famously now. The Rex has always been a bit surly, but he plays with the Sphynx every day, and they're very much like brothers.

In my long history of having a lot of cats, it's very normal for the original cat(s) to desperately wish that the new cat would just die already.

The Rex would barely even let us near him while he was in his resentful, hate filled state. It took him a few months to get back to being his normal, needy, cuddly self.

Thank you for sharing your experience!

 

[Yoda mom]

@kibaspirit Happy Lyra Gotcha! she is precious! I have 4.. slooow introductions, we all love it when we see members kitties hit it off right away with a seamless intro. usually that is not the norm. most of us have set u a "kitty safe room" rotating free roaming spaces. I used a spare bathroom set up with a cat tree too so kitty could sit up and peek over at the other kitty thru a baby gate I turned sideways and did supervised throwing treats on each side ... I cross scented a hand washcloth and put by eachs dishes. a tall cat tree in common area. its a big new world for both Oogi and Lyra. go slow, you got this... I actually put Toby on his harness when I built up at their comfort level of free roaming short practice meet n greets, armed myself with two dabird toys for mutual play distraction positive reinforcement. left the kitty safe room door open so newbie could retreat and/or would jump on the tall cat tree and watch resident kitty. my moms adoptee had a flat our brawl , then turned out to be besties for over a decade. you got this, some just take longer than others. it's like being the new kid on the playground hugs n head smooches! slow and steady wins the race with intros look forward to positive updates, when you search the forum threads you will see many similar experiences followed up by bestie pics . let them go at their comfort level. they do work it out

 

[kibaspirit]

@kibaspirit Happy Lyra Gotcha! she is precious! I have 4.. slooow introductions, we all love it when we see members kitties hit it off right away with a seamless intro. usually that is not the norm. most of us have set u a "kitty safe room" rotating free roaming spaces. I used a spare bathroom set up with a cat tree too so kitty could sit up and peek over at the other kitty thru a baby gate I turned sideways and did supervised throwing treats on each side ... I cross scented a hand washcloth and put by eachs dishes. a tall cat tree in common area. its a big new world for both Oogi and Lyra. go slow, you got this... I actually put Toby on his harness when I built up at their comfort level of free roaming short practice meet n greets, armed myself with two dabird toys for mutual play distraction positive reinforcement. left the kitty safe room door open so newbie could retreat and/or would jump on the tall cat tree and watch resident kitty. my moms adoptee had a flat our brawl , then turned out to be besties for over a decade. you got this, some just take longer than others. it's like being the new kid on the playground hugs n head smooches! slow and steady wins the race with intros look forward to positive updates, when you search the forum threads you will see many similar experiences followed up by bestie pics . let them go at their comfort level. they do work it out

Thank you, we have been rotating the spaces all day. Lyra now has more free reign of the house and Oogi is currently in our computer room, it's his favorite space and he has been on the window perch just fine. We bring her in every couple of hours or so for a sniff and hiss, followed by treats. When we feed wet food tonight we will do it on either side of the gate that we have set up. She is playing great out in the living room right now. she's so much more independent as a brand new kitten then he was. I wonder if it's a girl thing.

 

[Catzzzmeow]

A good benchmark to hope for is around 2 weeks for things to settle. If earlier great but not pushing it is best. Our youngest we waited the longest to do face to face and did the whole room swap and it was the best job we ever did. Keep doing what you’re doing. Slower integration with your other baby means your new baby will have time to bond with humans.

 

[Toa and Ross]

Congratulions! Lyra is super cute. And so beautiful. She already loves you I can see. Oogi will need some time to get to know her. Most of the times it takes a week or 2 before they have a new routine

 

[Kelnym]

Congratulions! Lyra is super cute. And so beautiful. She already loves you I can see. Oogi will need some time to get to know her. Most of the times it takes a week or 2 before they have a new routine

Or 3 months when you have a neurotic Rex...

 

[kibaspirit]

Strange Update: Perhaps you all have some insight into this new situation. So... it only took a few days for Oogi to adjust to her - he hasn't hissed or growled at her in days now. I think he realizes she is something to play with. BUT - he is SO aggressive with play (our fault - he likes to roughhouse a lot) - she hates it so much. He pins her and chases her. Now SHE is the one hissing at him & growling. That seems to get him going with aggressive play. We intervene constantly - but when we turn our backs he is cornering her. But he doesn't seem to be threatened or stressed at all by her presence. He only makes his play "trill purr" noise, when he is in playful kitty mode. In fact, she doesn't put her tail between her legs at all - so we aren't sure what the next step is. Should we let them rough it out and set "boundaries"? I don't want him to permanently traumatize her. I have also kept the breeder updated & she doesn't seem concerned in the slightest. Maybe I am just being overprotective.

Here is the strange part - they sleep together GREAT! We all sleep in the same bed, and they love to nap on the perch together. They are even grooming each other! I am truly at a loss - I can't figure out how they feel about each other... getting whiplash over here. Here are the many pics of them sleeping together. This literally started a day after I made this post. Originally, we separated them and rotated spaces - as per lair suggestion. Me & my partner slept in separate rooms - one with each cat ( in rotation) for 2 nights. After that they kept climbing the gate to play with each other - but it always ends in him being too rough with play. Oogi has also returned to his old self personality-wise.

Thanks again for reading & any thoughts you may have.

 

[Toa and Ross]

Look at those cute, already the best snuggle buddies!
If they sleep together like this, I'm thr rough playing isn't something to wprry about too much. Oogi is probably making sure the little one knows he's the big boss. I would let them sort it out together. If you think it gets too rough you can try to distract Oogi by starting to play with him yourself

 

[Sheldon13]

I agree. It’s a shame that he can’t respect her when she signals she’s done. But as long as he isn’t hurting her or terrifying her (like clamping down on her throat or something) I think they will work it out. It’s tough being small! She will hold her own more as she grows, no doubt.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

 

[Breeze]

Oh my, they look so cute sleeping together!!! ❤

My two also went through this exactly. We just made sure he wasn’t actually hurting her and made sure she had a safe space and time to get away from him if it got too much for her. She eventually was confident enough to let him know when he was being too aggressive by giving him a few hard swats (no claws out) or would push him away.

 

[kibaspirit]

@Breeze @Sheldon13 thank you. It's so hard to watch when she's upset. I think they are getting a little better everyday. We will continue to monitor their interactions.

 

[Yoda mom]

@kibaspirit awhhh. adorables together, surely working it out as breeder would have let you know if she thought it was a problem. espcially with those adorable pics. sphynx kids adjusting being kids. I did as @Breeze did. Toby got the nick name " Toby Love" bcz I redirected him and told him Toby have Love! they are besties now. she doesn't his at him anymore and he grooms her all the time
hugs n head smooches ! love the pics!

 

[Yoda mom]

@kibaspirit awhhh. adorables together, surely working it out as breeder would have let you know if she thought it was a problem. espcially with those adorable pics. sphynx kids adjusting being kids. I did as @Breeze did. Toby got the nick name " Toby Love" bcz I redirected him and told him Toby have Love! they are besties now. she doesn't his at him anymore and he grooms her all the time
hugs n head smooches ! love the pics!

 

[Kelnym]

@Breeze @Sheldon13 thank you. It's so hard to watch when she's upset. I think they are getting a little better everyday. We will continue to monitor their interactions.

Try not to anthropomorphize her too much, cats understand each other extremely well. This might be what Oogi needs to do to show dominance, by proving that he can overcome her even when she protests.

She's designed to emotionally handle this kind of thing, she's not suffering by being "upset".

If they're cuddling together and not trying to kill each other, they're fine. Whatever reactions you are seeing are normal animal interactions.

I think it's good to step in to help modify behaviour while she's so little, but don't let it upset you. Once she's a bit bigger, she'll probably spar with him in epic Jiu Jitsu matches.

I just tried to upload a video of my two, but it's so long that it was too big. It featured an epic battle where the Rex frequently pinned the smaller Shpynx to the ground and clamped down on his neck, and there were angry noises coming from both of them, but it's clear that they were both playing, and neither was getting hurt.

They do this almost every day, it's our main isolation entertainment actually.

For the first several months, the Rex really did hate the Sphynx, and would swat his face with claws out. We watched to make sure no real damage was being done, but otherwise we let the drama play itself out and now they are very comfortable in whatever roles they've established with each other.

Basically, don't let it stress or upset you, it looks like they're adjusting beautifully.

 

[kibaspirit]

Try not to anthropomorphize her too much, cats understand each other extremely well. This might be what Oogi needs to do to show dominance, by proving that he can overcome her even when she protests.

She's designed to emotionally handle this kind of thing, she's not suffering by being "upset".

If they're cuddling together and not trying to kill each other, they're fine. Whatever reactions you are seeing are normal animal interactions.

I think it's good to step in to help modify behaviour while she's so little, but don't let it upset you. Once she's a bit bigger, she'll probably spar with him in epic Jiu Jitsu matches.

I just tried to upload a video of my two, but it's so long that it was too big. It featured an epic battle where the Rex frequently pinned the smaller Shpynx to the ground and clamped down on his neck, and there were angry noises coming from both of them, but it's clear that they were both playing, and neither was getting hurt.

They do this almost every day, it's our main isolation entertainment actually.

For the first several months, the Rex really did hate the Sphynx, and would swat his face with claws out. We watched to make sure no real damage was being done, but otherwise we let the drama play itself out and now they are very comfortable in whatever roles they've established with each other.

Basically, don't let it stress or upset you, it looks like they're adjusting beautifully.

Thank you so much for this! I appreciate this insight.

 

[Kelnym]

Thank you so much for this! I appreciate this insight.

It's so easy to worry, I totally get it, but animals have their own pack rules where they have to challenge each other in order to determine roles. You won't see much if one of your animals is naturally extremely passive, but if you have two assertive animals, you may have a lifetime of them testing each other's limits.