💞 Will they get along?

Guide: how to introduce a new pet at home

What this tool does

Will they get along? helps you predict how your current pet will live with the one you want to add to the family. It gives you a compatibility level and, most importantly, a seven-day plan to introduce them step by step and reduce fights and stress.

How it works

Choose each animal's species and answer questions about age, temperament, energy and past experience with other animals. The tool combines those answers and shows the pair's strengths and risks, with specific tips for each day of the introduction. It includes other species, like ferrets, fish, tortoises or horses, for special cases.

The keys to a good introduction

The most common mistake is putting them together all at once and "letting them work it out". A slow introduction almost always goes better:

• Days 1 and 2: each in its own space. Swap blankets or beds so they meet by scent.
• Days 3 and 4: let them see each other through a gate or pen while eating or getting treats.
• Days 5 and 6: short, supervised meetings, with dogs on leash, ending before tension builds.
• Day 7 onward: slowly increase time together. Keep separate areas for eating and resting.

Some animals need weeks instead of days. Go at the pace of the more nervous one.

Special cases

Dog and cat: the cat should always have high places and escape routes. Never let the dog chase it, not even in play.

Two cats: cats are territorial and the introduction can take weeks. Have one litter box per cat plus one, and separate feeding stations.

Dogs or cats with birds: to a dog or cat, a bird is prey. Even if they seem like friends, never leave them together unsupervised.

To choose the new pet wisely, also use the Which pet is right for me? quiz, and to understand signs of tension, What is my pet telling me?

Signs you're on the right track

The animals eat calmly near each other, ignore each other without tension, play with pauses or sleep in the same room. A relaxed body is the best sign. If one goes stiff, stares or chases the other nonstop, go back a step in the plan.