How to move with an older cat into a new home with a younger cat?

by Anonymous

How do you move with an older cat into a new home with a younger cat living there already? I currently have the sweetest 9-year-old indoor male Maine Coon who is currently unneutered as I adopted him a year ago from an elderly woman who never got him fixed.

In about 6 months, I’m planning on moving in with my sister who just adopted a male kitten who is also an indoor cat. I am worried for my older cat and how he will adjust to a new home, especially one that already has a cat.

He is skittish by nature and when he first moved in with me he was very hesitant to come out from under the bed or roam the house. Now he is very comfortable and we are extremely close but he will still at times hiss when people come in our room that he doesn’t know or if he gets scared.

I know me moving with him will help his nerves this time around but my biggest concern is possible aggression towards the other cat. I plan to get him fixed beforehand, I hope that’s not too many changes at once and it won’t cause him too much stress?

I just want the amount of territorialness/aggression to be as little as possible. He has never lived with another cat, only an extremely small dog who he tolerated and never attacked.

I was thinking of keeping my cat only in my new room for the first few days so he can get used to things? My sister's house is a lot larger than my 2 bedroom apartment so I’m hoping that’s enough space for them to share.

Any suggestions on how to introduce them and keep the two cats happy would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.