Social animals that we are, we humans tend to attach great importance to the concept of family, friendship, couple life and unconsciously project our values onto a species whose social structure is actually very different from ours. The cat is one of these. Our feline friends are facultative social animals, which means that in nature they can decide – if resources are sufficient for all, and in any case at their own discretion – to join their fellows. Living in groups in any case is not necessary for their survival.

In our homes, a cat can hardly decide whether or not it wants a companion and possibly choose its preferred housemate. All the more so if you live in a flat. Thus the arrival of a new cat is often a problem not only for the newcomer, but also and especially for the resident cat. Accustomed to being mirrored in a familiar territory, our kitten can experience the sudden and forced sharing of the living environment with more or less marked and lasting stress.

Sometimes, after an adaptation phase, cats manage to renegotiate their home space and find their own balance, tolerating themselves or even ‘making friends’. In many other, less fortunate cases, a conflictual relationship may develop, sometimes made up of simple looks and threatening postures, sometimes marked by real fights, with ‘bully/victim’ dynamics in which the discomfort of cohabitation severely limits the activities of one or more cats.  

And here the question arises: was it really good to get an extra cat? What can be done to improve multi-cat cohabitation?