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What can I do? He barks and gets excited...the cat gets all frazzled...He gets in their face...even their attempts to claw him doesn't make him stop! Will this get better or am I going to be forced to choose between my animals or creatively keep them separate in my own home? I've only had the dog a few weeks...but there has been NO improvement..if anything it is worse. HELP!!!! I love my kitties too!
As a kid we had a cat (since I was 10) and she went through 3 dogs in her life. Most of the time Fluffy tolerated the dogs (who loved to sniff her). She's get fed up eventually and swap them with her claws. They'd stop.
My dog loves to cry and whine at my neighbor's cats. I have to pull her very hard in the other direction to get her away from them.
What sort of dog do you have? Maybe he has prey instincts coming out. Good luck.
I pu a child's gate across my bedroom door. The bedroom is the cat's sanctuary and the dogs are not allowed in. The cats can roam outside the gate if they want to, and they used to before I got a yr old new dog. He stands at the agte and watches them but it solved my problem. I've been using a gate for years for just this reason, across multiple dogs and cats. Works for everyone!
I too use a baby gate for one room so the cats have a safe haven from my newest dog. They also roam the house but if he starts to bother them they have someplace to go.
Since you have only had the dog a few weeks, I think it is natural for them to want to check the cats out and if the cats run from them, doesn't that mean we are suppose to chase them??
As long as your dog isn't aggressive towards them, they will work it out. My newest rescue will still bark at or chase the cats occasionally but has gotten much better than when he first arrived.
I have a new kitten along with 3 older cats. They all know where the 'safe' room is located.
We use the gate for our bedroom too. It sounds like your dog just wants to play with the cats, and they are not too into it yet. It will probably take more than a few weeks, so be patient and just make sure nobody is getting hurt. It took our one cat almost a YEAR before she would come up from the basement and tolerate the dog enough to run past her to head upstairs to the bedrooms. Our other two cats will play with and antagonize the dog just as much as she does them, but it took a few months for it to get to that point and they still (almost 2 years later) cannot be in the same room without somebody bothering the other. I always know when the dog has been too rough with the one cat-he pees in the dog's food bowl at some point during the night when everybody is sleeping. Absolutely hysterical. They have their ways of getting back at the dog...just be sure to keep giving your kitties some attention and if you can, use a gate to create a safe haven for them when they don't want to deal with the dog. Good luck!
They usually sort things out and the novelty of the cat or a good swat or two usually stops the dog from pestering the cat. However, our dog would still start a run from down the hallway, and into the kitchen, sliding on the hardwood floors into the cat and wiping her out. The cat was not amused.
What can I do? He barks and gets excited...the cat gets all frazzled...He gets in their face...even their attempts to claw him doesn't make him stop! Will this get better or am I going to be forced to choose between my animals or creatively keep them separate in my own home? I've only had the dog a few weeks...but there has been NO improvement..if anything it is worse. HELP!!!! I love my kitties too!
My puppy is the same way, he LOVES to try to play with my cat, but the cat doesn't seem to want to play. I've just been keeping them separated when I am not there to supervise, and I try to make sure the puppy is calm before letting him and the cat out together. Considering the fireworks when I brought home a (girl) cat for my (boy) cat, the minor annoyance he has with the puppy is far better. I feel as though once my puppy calms down (anyone who sees him when I take him out on walks is like "wow he's excited" even when he's calmer!) and realizes that the cat doesn't like him being hyper, they will coexist pretty well. Keep in mind that cats are not as much of pack animals as dogs are, and will take longer to accept a new addition to the household than a dog would. Plus, how would you feel if some weird creature came into your house, got the majority of the attention and then jumped and yelled in your face? Imagine how the cat feels...
Don't get rid of either, just keep them apart (for your puppy's safety) until there seems to be a general rapport. As long as your cat has claws, the cat will always be dangerous to the dog if provoked.
The baby gate idea works great as we used it at my parents when I gave them Phoenix. Being an aussie Phoenix loves to chase the cat and the cat runs. If he would just stand there Phoenix looses interest in him fast. chasing is the self rewarding behavior for dogs with high prey drive...what could be more fun?
The cat is a bit older so we got the high gate I think is 41 inches high to prevent dogs from jumping it but it has a small cat door at the bottom which we leave open. The cat gets his food in that room and the litter box is in there so that room serves not only as a safe place.
Sounds great right? Well the first time I visited, Dash was quick to show the cat side of him and got his big old body through the cat door ( mind you he is a 50lb dog with a wide rib cage). He kept doing it,not to bother the cat but to eat the cat food as he belives all food should be eaten the minute it touches a dish!
Well Phoenix saw him do it so hey what the heck maybe she is part kitty too so soon she was usiing the small cat door, she is not a small Aussie but then again all that hair really makes her look alot larger then she is.
Jazz has no cat in her as she can not get through the door her chest is too deep as she is very deep chested like a sight hound to be exact. At least one of the dogs is 100% dog!
Well My dad not to be out done by these two cat dogs rigged up a small board that covers about 1/2 the cat door which does stop the cat dogs and makes the cat have to squeeze through. The box for the gate claims the door is good for a pet up to 15 lbs, guess they are off by a few pounds?
For years the cat would not come out if my two dogs were around but now that it is just my dad, Phoenix and the cat he has decided it is too lonely so even with my dogs there he wil lay where ever in the house.The big difference is he no longer runs from the dogs but gives them an annoyed look and they leave him alone. That disappoints Jazz as she wants to play chase , catch and chew on cats head like she did as a young dog with the cat I use to have. Funny thing was the cat would make all sorts of noises but never even tried to scratch Jazz so it was all part of their weird game.Dogs and Cats have a way of working things out so give it time.
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HELP!!!! I love my kitties too!
