Introducing Chins to Cats

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Filia

Filia

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Joined
Dec 9, 2012
Messages
53
Location
Virginia
At some point in the near future, I will have to move my dear chinnies out from my bedroom into a cooler part of the house simply because it gets too hot in my bedroom during the summer. The room I plan to move them into, however, is where my cat dwells.
My cat is an old fatty, but he still maintains his spunk! He's a retired mouse hunter....So I'm a bit worried how he might handle having two plump rodents in a arms reach. I'm not even sure how the chins will react with a "natural predator" around...I'm pretty sure the bars on the cage are spaced closely enough that he can't reach his paw through...But ya' never know....

What do you guys 'n gals think I should do about this? There's no better place than that room, because no other rooms will stay cool enough. How should I introduce them?
 
I would keep him separated and unable to get at your chins at all.

1. Paw swipes can be deadly or costly to both you and your chin.

2. Cats carry bacteria in their mouths that can give all sorts of yucky things to your chins.

Overall, I just highly suggest keeping them separated. Either find a safer spot for the chins, or get your cat used to another dwelling space. :)
 
What kind of cage do you have? Can you wrap hardware mesh around the outside to prevent any kind of contact with the cat? Is your cage freestanding or do you have it on a separate stand?

I have two cats. One is old and fat and never leaves the bedroom except to use the litter box, the other is young and feisty. Both ignore the chin cage completely and neither are allowed in the room when the chins are having playtime. If there was ever a problem, measures would be taken to ensure chin safety as the top priority.
 
I have one mouser, that doesn't even bother with the chins. They're too big and in small enough cages they aren't an attraction. The only thing the chins are useful for (to my 3 cats) are as hay distributors. They think it's catnip and will stop at nothing to get to the hay.

I would put the cage on a stand or table small enough that there isn't a ledge for the cat to climb up on, and just gauge your cat's interest afterwords. Likely, there won't be a problem.
 
I was told that cats saliva is toxic to rodents, but I never looked into it because I don't have/ever plan on having a cat. Maybe just a thought you could look into?
 
I have the largest Critter Nation cage...So it's on a small stand but I dont think it will really make a difference. My cat used to climb up to the top my mesh/screen door....I doubt that's possible for him to do now (due to the fact that he can barely jump up on the couch...) but putting mesh around the cage might actually make it easier for him to climb.
I have AC through my whole house, but it never cools down my room enough. Perhaps a portable unite might help, but I'll have to buy one.
The only safe place I can put them where I can lock my cat out from is my brother's bedroom...However he complains that the cat will never stop meowing and scratching at the door if we lock him out. Hopefully the size of the chins will freak my cat out and he wont bother them.

I was thinking about using something that has my chin's scent on it and giving it to my cat to see how he'll react...What do you think? Any other ideas?
 
The scent isn't what is likely to get your cat going, usually it's the sight of something moving fast you need to worry about. If you're worried about the cat badgering the chin, you could put a tall cardboard wall around the cage as a perimeter. If he can't see the chin, then he might not care about it.
 
Unfortunately not everyone can spring for a unit, if this isn't an option, make sure the top of the cage is covered by something solid, a cat on top can sit and swipe at a curious chin nose. You said your cage is raised. I would just make sure it is high enough the cat cant stand up and paw at the bottom level. with these two access points cut off it should be ok. Also, I would shut out the cat while you have the cage open, you dont want a bad accident if one day your chin makes a break for freedom. Cats usually react to darty movements, I dont think smell would change that.

When you first move em watch your cat, to make sure he doesnt find a loop hole to reaching the cage.
 
Unfortunately, though, if cat and chin are in the room together, at any time alone and unsupervised, the unthinkable can happen. If a curious chin comes and sticks his nose through the cage, and a curious cat comes up and then gets playful by taking a swipe at the chin, now you have a potential emergency. Can the cat be encouraged to stay out of the room and dwell in another part of the house? Maybe a new cat tree or something to make another part of the house seem more desirable. A chin's erratic movements scare some cats, but draw in other cats to a deadly cat and mouse game. You just don't want to take the chance to find out.
 
Jenn said:
Unfortunately, though, if cat and chin are in the room together, at any time alone and unsupervised, the unthinkable can happen. If a curious chin comes and sticks his nose through the cage, and a curious cat comes up and then gets playful by taking a swipe at the chin, now you have a potential emergency. Can the cat be encouraged to stay out of the room and dwell in another part of the house? Maybe a new cat tree or something to make another part of the house seem more desirable. A chin's erratic movements scare some cats, but draw in other cats to a deadly cat and mouse game. You just don't want to take the chance to find out.
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Thats why you put the cage out of reach, if they can reach the bars or sit next to it they can reach the chin.
 
Zoaea said:
Thats why you put the cage out of reach, if they can reach the bars or sit next to it they can reach the chin.
Click to expand...

It is very difficult to make any cage out of the reach of a cat. They can jump very high and very far, especially if they are after something they want. Unless the cage is hanging from the ceiling, it may not be out of reach for the cat.
 
I have 2 chins in a double CN in my room with 2 cats. I have never had a problem, the bars are spaced close enough that the cats can't get their paws though. They like to sit and stare at the chins, but the chins are used to it and ignore them.
 
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