Older cats & new kittens – it's s a bad idea, isn't it?

We’ve a 14-15 year old, still active, muched loved mog.
Sleeps 90% off the time, behaves like a kitten for the rest, but still happy & very affectionate, eating well and no problems with grooming.
Spends all day outdoors when the sun shines.

We did have another cat years ago before he failed to outstare a Mondeo, but they didn’t get on that well & he used to bully her.

Would it be unfair to introduce a couple of kittens into the house?
Not sure if this would be a good thing or not

We’re very wary of disrupting her environment and possibly causing her distress – she’s a happy cat and deserves a pleasant old age.

Anyone been in the same situation?

Thanks in advance.

sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t, cats adapt and a pecking order is soon established.

We did it. Stella was 9 years old’ish when we got her friend. A little male kitten called Jeffrey. She hated him from the start and despite people saying ‘it’ll take a few weeks for them to get used to each other’, we’re now 4 years down the line and she still hates him, he’s now twice her size, built like a brick sh*t house and doesn’t even seem to take any notice of her. He doesn’t even flinch is she lashes out at him.

Never really been a problem though – if anything its made her a bit more active. When anything happens to Stella, we’ll probably get Jeffrey a little friend… I think he’d be much more happy to have a kitten in the house then she was…

We’ve just taken on a new kiton! Cute she is!
Answers to the name of Miss Marbles.

Queenie Bee, aged about 17, lives in the house and is a bit unimpressed by the new arrival. Missy Marbs keeps trying to make friends, but is getting hissed at quite a bit. Not a surprise as Queenie is a miserable bugger, but she’s get used to having more company.

I say more cos she’s had to get used to Puddy (next door moved and left her to it), aged 12, who mostly lives in the shed and comes in for din-dins & when it’s too cold to be out. Puddy saw Miss Marbles through the kitchen door, looked like she was having a poo and ran off – no worries there.

MacCavity, aged 8ish, however is another matter. He’s a bit of a wanderer and spends a fair bit of time under a bush in our garden. He’s an alpha and, whilst nice & purry with people, will fight anything feline, even the enormous (poss Maine Coon) that lives down the road.
He looked at Marbs like she was dinner – will be keeping my eye on that situation and getting her neutered asap.

That’s right, I’m a mad cat lady and, as such, I say do it! And if it goes wrong I’ll take it off your hands 🙂

One of our older cats was a bit of a bruiser in her youth and kind of ruled the local neighbourhood. She had a chunk out of her ear and scar on her nose…I think the other cats may have called her Scarface or something.

Anyway, we got a kitten when she was about 14 or so.

We also had another older cat who was a bit of a runt (small and weedy), the kitten used to pounce on her when ‘play hunting’.

One day I heard screaming cats upstairs and the black cat shot down the stairs and straight out the front door. I went upstairs and found the older cat (the bruiser) sat on the bed licking her paws surrounded by tufts of black fur. I’m assuming the kitten tried pouncing on her by mistake.

The older cat lived to 23 in the end. Other than that, getting a kitten wasn’t a problem for one of our older cats really, but the weedy older cat didn’t like getting ‘attacked’ all the time.

Cat dynamics are unfathomable 😯 when the big fella went it all changed, then a little ball of mischief was introduced and it all changed again. Cats cope better than humans.

We waited until our old Moggie died before getting our kittens (well now big fully grown British Shorthair – one Tabby one Silver spot -beasts). It didn’t seem fair to stress the old mog in her dotage with a couple of kittens. The kittens – Smudge adnd Domino seem to have carved out the local neighbourhood much better than our little old moggie. As others have said, cat social dynamics are a mystery.

My experience.

Mushroom is a 14 yo female. We took in button a male 5 week old kitten 3 years ago.

He adores her.

She detests him.

It’s not going to change.

They scrap a bit but it’s not too manic.

Just don’t expect pussy harmony (sounds like a good film….)

We got a female kitten last year and she is now 10 months. We have four more male cats and they all seem to get on. But she is boss. There is the odd hiss and batting of paws on nose if one over steps the mark. She adores the puppy and meows to go in other room and see him.

Kittens will mither the moggy to buggery. Until a few strategic swipes will show the little sods who’s boss. They’ll all be reet after that!