Introducing cats to new house

[Vespasia]

We have 2 cats. The older one is 4 and we have had her since she was a few months old. The younger one is 3 and we have had her for about a year.

The older cat HATES the younger cat. She will chase her and back her into a corner if given the opportunity. We keep them separated whenever we are out and most of the time we are home. Sometimes if they're both allowed to roam the house the older cat will leave the younger one alone for an hour, sometimes she goes right for her. The younger cat is really passive and just hides. The older cat doesn't attack her, she just seems to want to show her dominance. The older, bitchy cat is about 1/2 the size of the younger one.  

When we got the second cat we introduced them slowly over time but it didn't seem to help. I also tried a  Feliway collar but that just seemed to annoy her more. Neither of them act out in any other ways. 

We are moving in a few weeks and I am hoping that neutral territory may make the older cat less aggressive. 

My question is what is the best way to introduce them in the new house? Should I take over the younger cat first and let her establish herself? Or take them at the same time? Try to keep them separate, which will be harder there, or just put them together right away? Would it be worth it to put some Feliway diffusers in the new place? I haven't tried them yet since the collar didn't seem to help. 


Any advice is appreciated. 

[msmerymac]

No guarantees, but as I was reading your post, it also occurred to me to bring over the younger one first. I'd let the younger cat roam the house for a day or so if possible. Then I'd bring over the older one, put her in a small room, such as a bathroom, and then let her out into a larger area that the younger cat has already explored.

It might not work. Older cat might just be set in her ways. But it wouldn't hurt to try to reverse the tables and give the younger one a head start.

[apelila]

This exact thing happened to me. I brought home a 4th kitty that was bullied by the other 3 and had to be kept isolated for months. Eventually I moved to a new place. Here's what I did...

-A few days before moving the kitties over I plugged in a couple Feliway diffusers throughout the new apartment.

-The day I planned to move the kitties to the new place, I took them all for a bath. While they were there, I brought over their cat trees and toys.

-When I picked them up from the groomer I brought them 'home' to the new place. The calming diffusers were already there, and their familiar stuff was already there. I put them all in the center of the living room in their carriers and let them chill there for close to an hour, just acclimating.

- When I let them out of the carriers I made sure that the newest addition was not first, nor was he last.

It's been over a year now and they still sometimes pick on him, but he's allowed to be in their sight without getting beaten up! If it were me in your situation with only the two kitties, I would do all of the above and then open their carriers at the exact same time.