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...two days after the adoption, back to the local SPCA. He tried to kill our cat. They had told us he was good with cats.
Basically we went to SPCA Monday. Told them we have have a dog and a cat already. Told them dog must coexist with all of the above. They said to bring dog in for a meet and greet, but not to bring the cat. I asked if the meet and greet could happen at our house, they said no. So we brought dog, all went well. Went home. Had cat in an unused room upstairs for acclimation. Dog was able to walk by the door to the room without reacting at all, so we decided to make first introduction. Dog went ape****. He froze first, the muscles in his thighs twitched. Then he lunged for the cat. He was snarling and snapping. The dog was firmly restrained. Cat ran off.
We tried again Tuesday, dog went ape**** again. More snarling, growling, and gnashing his teeth. Cat was so arched he looked like a Halloween decoration. Cat was just... frozen like that, ears pinned, growling. Several hours later, we decided to see how new dog would react to cat in carrier. He gnashed and snarled at the bars of the carrier. I put the cat back in his room and fed him dinner. Thirty minutes later, he was shaking like a leaf in the corner, unresponsive, balled up, dinner untouched. It looked like he was shutting down. He puked when I picked him up. My mind was made up at that point.
It's just not worth the risk. What if I had lost control of the dog? Sure, we could possibly desensitize the dog to the cat's presence over time, but that would endanger the cat. Furthermore, the cat would be repeatedly terrorized in his own home during the "adjustment period". With a heavy heart and tears in my eyes, I brought him back to the SPCA on Wednesday. He was a really awesome dog, but he shouldn't be in a home with cats.
ETA: We did ask about foster-to-adopt, but they didn't have the forms and they couldn't print out more because their printers were down, and their computers were on the blink. I asked if I should come back tomorrow but they couldn't tell me when their stuff would get fixed.
It's a shame it didn't work out. You did the right thing. They might have said the dog was good with cats just by walking him past the cat cages to see if he reacted, which isn't foolproof by any means. There are dogs that take to cats easily, some that do with work, and some like this dog that just can't live with cats. I don't believe in trying to desensitize a dog that reacts that aggressively. It's too risky, and it's a risk that would never go away 100%. I don't know of any places that do meet and greets with resident cats at the shelter, just because most cats don't travel well, and wouldn't act normally at all in a strange environment like that (true of dogs too, somewhat, but not nearly as much).
I hope you'll find a dog soon that can fit in with the whole household. Please let us know when you do!
It's a shame it didn't work out. You did the right thing. They might have said the dog was good with cats just by walking him past the cat cages to see if he reacted, which isn't foolproof by any means. There are dogs that take to cats easily, some that do with work, and some like this dog that just can't live with cats. I don't believe in trying to desensitize a dog that reacts that aggressively. It's too risky, and it's a risk that would never go away 100%. I don't know of any places that do meet and greets with resident cats at the shelter, just because most cats don't travel well, and wouldn't act normally at all in a strange environment like that (true of dogs too, somewhat, but not nearly as much).
I hope you'll find a dog soon that can fit in with the whole household. Please let us know when you do!
Yeah, I don't blame the shelter for anything at all, except the attitude they gave me when I returned the dog. "Well, they probably just needed more time". What would time have accomplished besides ensuring that our social, outgoing, curious cat never shows his face anymore? Oh, and, "He probably just wanted to play with the kitty!" Yeah, he wanted to play with the kitty's corpse. Furthermore, their response does a disservice to the dog and the shelter because they just thought we were too lazy/impatient/stupid to work on it.
It just boggles my mind. Would it be possible to eventually desensitize the dog to the cat's presence? Maybe. But how much terror and fear would the cat be put through in order for that to happen? ...If that's not cruelty, I don't know what is. And what if he misses his jump? What if he's just a moment too slow? We can't take the risk. At least when Pete chases him, it's not with the intention to kill him. I had hoped that volunteers at an animal shelter would feel something like concern or compassion for a terrorized cat whose safety would be put at risk if he were to remain in his current situation. What if the tables were turned? What if we already had the two dogs, adopted the cat from them, and they observed the events over those couple of days? They would demand the cat back. But because he's already a member of our family, they think he can go to hell.
I agree, there is nothing else you could do. His reaction to your cat was extreme and aggressive. It certainly would have been dangerous and unfair to the cat to keep the dog and try to alter his behavior. Now at least the shelter can make it clear that he is not a good match for a family with cats, and with any luck he will be adopted by someone else.
My in-laws also had to surrender a dog. He was a beautiful Lab-Newfoundland mix and extremely gentle with people, but he attacked their other dog more than once in the two days they had him. Perhaps over time, they could have become friends, but my mother-in-law became so upset and anxious she just couldn't cope with the situation. He was returned to the rescue group and was later adopted as the "only dog" in another family.
ETA: It's mind-boggling that you got this defensive response from the shelter. Of course they want their animals to be adopted, but they also want the adoptions to work out well, don't they?!
I have friends that managed to stop their new dog from being aggressive with their cats. Today my friends post pictures of their dog and cats napping together on the couch - a few years ago she would have tried to kill them.
HOWEVER, it took a lot of training with a very skilled behaviorist and this dog wasn't "angry" like you describe. She just viewed cats the same way she viewed gophers and rabbits - as prey. As a herding breed, she was amenable to rethinking her position once it became clear to her that the cats were part of her new household and pack. The dog you tried to adopt sounded like it had a much different attitude, as if it saw cats as an actual threat. Thank heavens you introduced them in such a controlled way!
I have friends that managed to stop their new dog from being aggressive with their cats. Today my friends post pictures of their dog and cats napping together on the couch - a few years ago she would have tried to kill them.
HOWEVER, it took a lot of training with a very skilled behaviorist and this dog wasn't "angry" like you describe. She just viewed cats the same way she viewed gophers and rabbits - as prey. As a herding breed, she was amenable to rethinking her position once it became clear to her that the cats were part of her new household and pack. The dog you tried to adopt sounded like it had a much different attitude, as if it saw cats as an actual threat. Thank heavens you introduced them in such a controlled way!
That's an excellent description of a dog that's difficult to socialize to cats, vs a dog that should be kept away from cats. With your friends' dog, the reaction was "just business, nothing personal". "I'm a dog, and chasing prey is what I do". Sometimes there are dogs whose prey drive is so extreme, they can't be retrained either. But when there's actual anger involved, the situation becomes incredibly dangerous. You hear people say a swat on the nose is all a dog needs. Not true at all for some dogs!
High prey drive. Cat-aggression. I saw little use in trying to tack a label on it. Point was, he was a danger to the cat and it wasn't worth the risk.
My grandparents had two cats. They adopted a dog from a high-kill shelter, and they were told he would be good with cats. Similar story, he was trying to kill their cats, but after agonizing over it for a few days, they decided to try and work on it. They hired a trainer, etc.
After a month, not much progress was made, if any at all. Guests were over. Maybe they lost control of the dog, or maybe someone left a door open by accident so there was no control to begin with.
The dog chased the cat. The cat went up his tower, and the dog knocked the tower over. It fell on the cat and broke her back. She was euthanized when they got her to a vet.
Something like that could happen. Something like that could have happened. “They just needed time,” says someone who has not had to pry mangled creatures out of a dog’s mouth before.
High prey drive. Cat-aggression. I saw little use in trying to tack a label on it. Point was, he was a danger to the cat and it wasn't worth the risk.
My grandparents had two cats. They adopted a dog from a high-kill shelter, and they were told he would be good with cats. Similar story, he was trying to kill their cats, but after agonizing over it for a few days, they decided to try and work on it. They hired a trainer, etc.
After a month, not much progress was made, if any at all. Guests were over. Maybe they lost control of the dog, or maybe someone left a door open by accident so there was no control to begin with.
The dog chased the cat. The cat went up his tower, and the dog knocked the tower over. It fell on the cat and broke her back. She was euthanized when they got her to a vet.
Something like that could happen. Something like that could have happened. “They just needed time,” says someone who has not had to pry mangled creatures out of a dog’s mouth before.
What happened to the dog? Did they take him back to the shelter?
What happened to the dog? Did they take him back to the shelter?
Yes. They tried rehoming him, contacting rescues, contacting no-kill shelters... Because of that incident, it was a no-go. They didn't feel right lying about why they couldn't keep him. It wouldn't be fair to lie about it anyway. After they felt they exhausted all other possibilities, they returned him to the shelter he came from.
Luckily, the shelter we returned our dog to was no-kill.
Ugh, I'm so sorry. My dog is a high prey drive dog too and the shelter told me she'd be good with cats - she often has a similar reaction (she's improved but I could never have a cat). Hope the shelter takes what you said seriously after thinking about it a little more. Prey drive is prey drive. A friend of mine has a dog who killed a friend's cat, it was horrifying.
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