Philadelphia Business Daily

Any ideas on how to keep our cats happy during a move to a new house and introducing a new cat into the family?

My husband and I just bought a new house. The previous owner left their male cat (unfixed, outside) there when they moved. We've decided we have to keep him. The problem is we already have three other indoor/outdoor cats (two fixed males and a female). Any ideas on how to keep our three cats from completely freaking out by the move itself and by the introduction of a new cat?

Public Comments

1. Okay, the same thing happend to me, what you do is take the new male cat and keep him inside and don't let him out. Get catnip to relax him and rub it over new carpet and when hes done vacum it up and the scent will stay there until a long time and son they will get along Or just take him inside ur house and keep him there and don't let him out cuz he might run away. and when you done this just leave him be until hes ready ro come out k>?
2. Hi Susan If you are open to natural therapies, I've found the Bach flower essences work very well in this type of situation. The most appropriate remedies are: Walnut and Honeysuckle, which are for adjusting to new circumstances, including moving house, but also anew dditions to household. If there is any aggression, or territorial disputes arising, the remedies would be Vine and Beech. If there is extreme stress/fear etc, use Rescue remedy first - one or two doses Good luck!
3. The first thing I would do is get the male cat fixed. I do not suppose he is very popular in the neighborhood. Even though your cats are fixed, the presence of an intact male signals trouble. And it will take awhile after neutering him for his hormones to fade. So he will still act as if he is intact for awhile. All right, you really want to keep your cats inside for at least a month to scramble their homing instincts to your old place. So while they are inside, the newly neutered male's hormones are fading. For the move, assuming you are using clumping litter, remove the clumps but don't change the litter nor scrub the litter boxes. That way, they will recognize the litter boxes in your new home. It might be best to keep them in one room for several days, since arranging the furniture, etc., in your new home is usually a lot of turmoil. And there are boxes, and cats love boxes. While it is good to let them play in the boxes, you certainly don't want to put a box containing a hidden cat out on the curb. Since most of the things in the new house are from your old place, a lot of the scents will be the same, so adjustment will be quicker. They will want to look out windows, so clear some pathways to several windows that they can look out of. Then if you let your cats out after a month inside, they will handle the cat as they would any other cat they encounter outside.