My new kitten won’t get along with my other cat HELP

Cats
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I am struggling with my cats right now. I found Pickle, my older cat, outside as a kitten about three months ago. He was older than eight weeks when I found him, but I’m not sure exactly how old he is. He seems to be in that “teenager” stage.

Three days ago, I got a new kitten named Peanut. At first, Pickle was confused and kept trying to sniff him. Peanut didn’t hiss or seem scared; he just let Pickle check him out. There was a bit of a mishap when my boyfriend’s niece accidentally pushed Peanut off the bed onto Pickle, which made Pickle hiss. I told her not to do that again.

For the first few hours, Pickle was unsure about Peanut, but now he wants to play. Unfortunately, Peanut isn’t having it and hisses and growls whenever Pickle approaches. Pickle backs off sometimes, but he rarely respects Peanut’s boundaries, which frustrates me. I feel bad for Pickle because he just wants a friend.

After failing to engage Peanut in play, Pickle starts meowing loudly and trilling. I know he’s not trying to fight; he trills when he’s being playful. He hasn’t hissed or growled at Peanut since that first encounter.

I mainly got Peanut, so Pickle would have a friend to play with when I’m not home, so it makes me sad that Peanut seems to dislike him. It’s strange because sometimes Peanut rubs against Pickle and lies next to him when they sleep, but as soon as Pickle tries to play, Peanut gets defensive.

I have looked up advice on introducing cats, and it usually suggests the resident cat is the one being territorial. But in my case, it feels reversed. Peanut has even playfully swatted at Pickle, but when Pickle does it back, Peanut gets upset. It’s confusing!

I tried separating them after realizing things weren’t going well. I set up a space for Peanut in the bathroom, but Pickle found a way in. When I fixed that, Peanut managed to escape. Our bathroom door didn’t latch properly, so he squeezed out. I even tried blocking the gap with blankets, but he figured out how to get past them.

I am at a loss and just want to find a solution. It’s getting concerning because Pickle sometimes pins Peanut down while playing, and Peanut meows loudly to get him to stop. I’m worried about Peanut’s safety and don’t want to have to re-home him. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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@Lilkimmiixx I don’t recall the specifics, but in the 1990s, we had a black cat named Sparkle. We were returning from my uncle’s place one winter night when we noticed Frisky. Frisky was a kitty. He tried to run into the home but was stopped when he saw Sparkle. Dad grabbed him up before he could get back out of the home. The next day, I believe we asked our neighbors if Frisky was theirs. They said no. We have to keep Frisky. Even though Sparkle was a cruel cat to us (according to my mother), I believe she got along well with Frisky until Sparkle died a few years later.

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@Ill_Opportunity_4642 Maybe they’ll get along someday; it’s just been three days since I received peanut. He’s much smaller than Pickle, so perhaps he’s terrified by his size. I’m not sure, but I hope it improves since I feel worried when nobody is home.

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@Lilkimmiixx I think the only time you should be concerned is when they draw blood. That only happened once with Frisky. We think one of the times he got out he either got into a fight with another cat or he jumped on or off a fence the wrong way. Sparkle, Frisky, and Smudge (brother’s cat) were all unintentionally indoor/outdoor cats. They would escape when we were going in or out of the house. Luckily for us, they came back when we shook the treat can.

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@Ill_Opportunity_4642 Yes, pickle never draws blood. Just makes Peanut angry and scared lol. I’m confident he’ll get used to him eventually, especially as he grows. Pickle sometimes runs under our trailer (we don’t have underpinning yet, we just bought the place) but doesn’t come back in for food, so I have to sneak up on him and retrieve him :rofl:.

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This isn’t as horrible as it could have been! When introducing cats, you should make a slow introduction, which it appears you did not do, but Pickle is handling it well. Peanut simply needs more time to acclimate; putting a cat into a new home normally follows the 333 rule, which states that he will take at least three days to quit being terrified of the new environment. Three weeks to develop a routine, and three months to really feel at ease and express his genuine nature. All you can do is make sure Peanut has somewhere to retire to when he feels overwhelmed, preferably somewhere high up and covered over; cat trees with a covered penthouse would be ideal.

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@LunaPurrington Yes, I should have done more study before acquiring another cat; I had two cats when I was younger and they got along perfectly, so I had no idea this would be the case. But when I realized it wasn’t going well, I tried the slow introduction method, putting peanut in the bathroom and trying to do so. But, as I previously stated, he discovered out how to escape, and despite my best efforts, he continued to do so. He has his own sanctuary to retreat into.

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@Lilkimmiixx Then just give him time and space, he’ll figure it out.