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I know I've posted in the dogs forum in the past but I don't know why I've never asked on the cat forum considering my cats were at my house first.
We own 3 declawed indoor cats. About a month ago, we adopted an 8 month old labrador retriever. I have to say for the past month things have been a little crazy. She has chased each of the cats at separate times. I've had my vet over who is a canine behaviorist and he taught us what to look for in the dog when fixating on the kitties. I've tried to get her attention away from the cats but it's not that easy. One of our cats has a heart condition called hypertrophiccardiomyopathy. It basically means he has an enlarged heart and stress is not good for him. This cat has better dr.'s than we do. Go figure though, he's the most interested in the dog.
I'm just wondering if anyone on this forum has had their cats first and then added a puppy/dog later on. If so, can you tell me how things worked out in the long run? My cats tend to stay in the basement now. One stays under the bed sometimes and they come out when the dog is in the crate sleeping at night. I'd love to hear how your situation turned out. Just wondering if your cats every got used to the idea of the dog and if they went back to being their oldselves.
Here are 2 words that will change your life: baby gate. Give the cats a room where they can get away from the puppy, but can still observe if they choose.
When I brought 8 week old Shadow home from the shelter Mickey said "A puppy? For me?" and proceeded to clean her. Kitty Boy (RIP) on the other hand, looked at me and said "I hate you!"
I swear to you KB's feet did not touch the floor in the living room for almost a year. Now, he would sit on the "safe" side of the baby gate & watch the puppy. When she would fall asleep he would jump out, saunter over to her, slap the bejeezus out of the back of her head, and then bolt back to safety. Poor Shadow.
Eventually she started to mellow out and KB came around to liking her. It sure didn't happen overnight.
Here are 2 words that will change your life: baby gate. Give the cats a room where they can get away from the puppy, but can still observe if they choose.
When I brought 8 week old Shadow home from the shelter Mickey said "A puppy? For me?" and proceeded to clean her. Kitty Boy (RIP) on the other hand, looked at me and said "I hate you!"
I swear to you KB's feet did not touch the floor in the living room for almost a year. Now, he would sit on the "safe" side of the baby gate & watch the puppy. When she would fall asleep he would jump out, saunter over to her, slap the bejeezus out of the back of her head, and then bolt back to safety. Poor Shadow.
Eventually she started to mellow out and KB came around to liking her. It sure didn't happen overnight.
Thank you so much for your story. Actually, we do have a baby gate at the top of the stairs to the basement. I have to try to leave it off the ground a bit so the cats could get through. The other day, the dog got through! she's not a small dog. already weighs 47 pounds and she wiggled her body underneath there. I couldn't believe it. I was able to catch the leash that was hanging off of her in time though. LOL.
Did it ever look like your dog was hunting for your cats though? For example, when my cat went behind the entertainment center in the basement (after Sara getting down there the first time), the following time she got down there by accident, she remembered exactly where the cat was hiding previously and went searching for her. I'm sure she just wants to play. Note that all this happened prior to the baby gate. We have a bi-fold door to the basement & I had tried to keep it open a bit for the cats but Sara would put her head in between & learned how to push the door open. We now use a baby gate. It definitely helps but is annoying to have to remove whenever we need to do laundry or feed the kitties. I love how your cat used to come out and slap the dog when she was sleeping. LOL.. THat must have been hysterical.
My male, Fred who has the HCM swats the dog all the time. It's hysterical! He growls too. BUT they don't have claws so she's not getting the idea. Hopefully in time. I'm happy you told me that eventually they got along. That's what I'm hoping for when the dog calms down from puppyhood. I was getting worried b/c it's been a month and I thought by now things would have gotten better.
I adopted a dog from the shelter and already had 3 cats. Two of them are older, one is a teenager. The dog turned out to be part terrier, and he wants to chase anything that runs. If the cats just sit and don't run, he doesn't care about them. I have a water bottle and I squirt him whenever he chases the cat. He also has a doggy door in the bedroom and I can shut the bedroom door and keep him away from the cats when needed. He still can use the doggy door to go outside if need be. I try to give the cats as much attention as possible when the dog is not around and they can roam freely. But, looking back, I would not have gotten a terrier type if I had known. They are bred to chase vermin and small animals. He looks like a poodle, but turned out to be a SCHNOODLE (schnauzer/poodle). Its a challenge.
I kept a stray wolf hybrid for a friend who picked it up in the middle of a move and without finding an owner adopted to the gorgeous anmimal. We had 3 cats at the time in a 2 story house. The baby gate went up went and when I came home I would let the dog in. Eventually the gate came down but if the dog looked inclined to go upstairs or otherwise misbehave it was back out in the yard. She was very smart and eventually could be trusted not to go up the stairs. I think it was several years before the bravest cat came downstairs and wandered around while the dog lay there watching her. Following her example her daughter soon was doing it. The 3rd cat never got it and made the mistake of coming down, getting scared and bolting for the stairs but got off with 14 stitches to close up the wound on his back leg.
I had two cats before I brought home my puppy a little over two weeks ago. My older guy (15 years) was very tolerant at first (as he has been around dogs most of his life), but when the puppy started really bothering him, he nipped him. Got him on his ear, I think. No blood, no nothing, EXCEPT a puppy crying like his leg had just been sawed off. Now, the two of them are able to be in the same room in a "live and let live" sort of fashion. And, still, when the puppy gets too close, my cat just bats at him, and all is well again.
My other feline buddy hasn't learned all that well yet. The puppy will chase him (we think he's part cattle dog, so this will happen), and the cat will jump onto the bed, which the puppy can't do yet. I think my cat is the one that enjoys the crate training the most in this house.
After living with these cats for 10+ years, I know that they can handle dogs. I am of the opinion that they will work things out, and, of course, I will supervise them. As long as the cats have an "escape route", I'm not too worried. Even though my puppy is very bright, I know that the cats are smarter.
Thank you for sharing all your stories. I truly appreciate it.
The dog we adopted is a labrador retriever and I believe they are supposed to get along with most animals. I think they were bred to hunt small birds. I know when we go on walks and she sees squirrels running, she wants to go chase them but I am constantly pulling her back on her leash telling her "no". She's also interested in birds as well. I think she just wants to play with our kitties but am praying that she won't hurt any of them if she is able to catch one.
My youngest cat (3.5 years old) is extremely interested in the dog and stays upstairs with the dog whenever she's in or out of her crate. It's as if he doesn't seem to care. He does take interest and try to get close to her but when the dog gets excited or wants to play, he bops her numerous times in the head. It's actually quite amusing. He does freak out sometime and run and then the dog chases. I've read online that the more there is a chase, the more reinforcement there is with chasing. So, we definitely have to try to stop the chase so she will learn not to do it. It's going to be a long road.
My other 2 cats who are older (9 and 8 years) are still very scared. My older cat stays under the bed when the dog is loose in the house and my female who is 8 mainly stays in the basement. I have a baby gate by the basement stairs right now and I have it a bit above the floor level so the cats can roam freely from upstairs to downstairs. My female who stays in the basement does try to come up to the top of the stairs once in a while and swats the cat and spits at her when she gets too close. However, my male who is under my bed does not seem like he wants to try anymore. I think my older cats are all chased out while the younger cat who is giving her a chance still enjoys the chase. LOL. He's always been the most playful out of all of them and used to harass my female kitty A LOT. I just worry b/c the youngest has a heart condition and any stress is bad for him. BUT I think he knows what he is doing b/c he instigates the chase sometimes. It's funny b/c when the dog gets natural chicken treats, the cat wants them too. it's very amusing. I just hope my older cats can adjust. They don't even sleep with me at night anymore.
When we adopted our Chocolate Lab we did not let the cats meet him right away even though they knew something was in their house. Kept the puppy in our formal living room (don't ask why I would do that) and closed the french doors so they could see each other behind the safety of the glass. After a month I let the cats come in the room 3 did one did not and still is protesting to this day which is 7 years ago. It is all in the training of the dog-two of the cats bonded with him and he was never allowed to chase them but his prey drive is not very high. Try feeding fresh chicken to both the dog and cats so they know it is a good think to be in each other's company. hate to say it but some cats will never get used to it and some dogs will always have the strong prey drive to go after them which is not fair to the cat. Good training is essential for the cats well-being and of course having a happy dog-good luck!!!
I had similar problems years ago when I "inherited" a 3-month old cocker when I already had two male Persians. My little spaniel initially gave them hell even though as the runt of the litter he wasn't much bigger than my big Persian boy.
Like someone else said I purchased a gate to separate the two species which worked well because I was house training the pup. I also "channeled" his playfulness into other toys. I learned quickly that he LOVED little vinyl balls with a lot of bounce. He was addicted to them and left the "toy cats" alone. I was then able to take down the gate. From then on they got along just fine.
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it's very amusing. I just hope my older cats can adjust. They don't even sleep with me at night anymore.
