I was given a female kitten last week who has settled well. My other cat at 5 also female just wont accept her.

She growles at the kitten and hisses, She wants to go out as soon as wake up and stays out all day and does not want to eat.

Why does she feel threatened?

keep them in a room together (with u supervising)

The kitten will force its attention on the old cat & eventually the older cat will accept it. Could take a few weeks of doing this.

we have done this a few times - upsetting to start with - but rewarding when they get along.

I've had exactly the same trouble in the past. Funny how it's always the older cat that seems so put out by the appearance of a tiny kitten!

The best way to introduce cats to each other, regardless of age, is through scent. Can you set aside a room in your house where your older cat can have everything she needs, i.e. a choice of sleeping places, preferably at different heights, food, water, toys, a scratching post or equivalent? This should be a room where the kitten is not allowed. You & your family need to spend quality time with your older cat in that room, playing, grooming, whatever makes her happy.

Rub pieces of cloth round the kitten's face & place them near your older cat's favourite sleeping places & do the same with your cat but put them near the kitten's bed.

If you can hand feed your older cat with tasty treats, try doing that with the kitten one side of a door & your cat on the other side. The idea is to build up positive associations between the kitten's presence (& smell) & the tasty treats.

After a few days, try the feeding with the door slightly open & the cats either side. Go slowly & gradually & let them get used to each other's smell before you try letting them get too close to each other. Then try it with the cats at opposite sides of a room, then gradually closer etc.

The reason your cat is behaving like this is because she is worried that her territory & access to all the things she values in life, is in danger of being grabbed by the kitten. You need to reassure her that there is plenty to go around, so feeding stations in different places, lots of beds & hidey holes, several water bowls around the house. If your older cat uses a litter tray, giver her one separate from the kitten. Your attention & affection is also probably a highly-valued resource so make sure you have plenty of time for your older cat.

In the meantime, make sure your older cat has free access to the outdoors without being "ambushed" by the kitten. Don't try to force them together as this will only make it worse. Be patient, it does take time (possibly weeks if not longer) before your older cat feels comfortable with the kitten.

Good luck ~ I hope it works out.

Thanks,
So far I keep both cats a part at night. They have seperate litter trays, feeding/water bowls.

Will keep plodding again thanks to u both

Chances are she's just stamping her feet a bit and pointing out who is boss.... Just give her a bit of extra fuss and affirm that she is still in charge.

We introduced a kitten to our 8 year old cat about 4 years ago and now it is pretty much a case of live and let live. Incidents mostly arose from the kitten wanting to play and the older cat wanting to be left alone.

Generally I would say just let them get on with it and keep an eye on them.. They may scrap and hiss bit but as long as there is no blood it's just a matter of time as they need to establish this pecking order.

It may not seem like a good idea at first but if you keep them confined together whilst supervised then a tolerance for each other will develop quicker as they won't have the option of running off elsewhere...

Hi, I went through the same thing with my older boy (also 5) and a young kitten.

My older boy just hated it and was seriously put out, but in the end I just left them to get on with it in the kitchen together and now they get on fine! (initially I was separating as much as possible, but in the end practicalities dictated I had to put them in the same place together and they had to just get over it!

It took quite a while for the older one to settle back down and eat and behave normally again though - it's very early days for you so do persevere and give it time. They will settle down. It might be that they just end up tolerating each other rather than be great friends - being great friends is a bonus though!

Don't forget to give older one lots and lots of fuss and attention as it's v easy to go all mushy for the little kitty all the time!

Good luck.