Hi,

I wonder if you can help - I've already got 2 cats one who's 10 and one that's 2 and am considering getting a dog. Probably a rescue and probably not a puppy.

Could anyone give me advice or tips from similar experiences of settling them together. I don't want to cause stress for either the dog or the cats.

I want to ensure I have all the facts and have looked into this properly before making any further progress with selecting a dog.

Thanks in advance for your help.

PPB

In a word VERY carefully, if your rescue dog is used to being with cat's then it's easy.....if not you could be in for lot's of chasing and scrabbling of claws:hihi: Good Luck!!!!

some breeds are more likely to chase cats than others (terriers are tenacious when it comes to the chase instinct). the best investment you can get is a dog gate or two (or a baby gate (one you can walk through rather than step over, set higher up the doorway so that a cat can walk underneath it but hopefully a dog can't- not much use if you get a small dog though, but a cat can climb over it).

I've always found kittens to be more adaptable to living with dogs than cats- and housecats are more likely to get used to a dog than those that have access to the outside because housecats can't escape to the great outdoors and sulk/refuse to come home.

Feed your cats and dog seperately- another good reason to have a dog gate/boundary. Keep your dog on a lead when introducing to the cats - don't give it the chance to chase. Reward good behavious with treats and praise. remember your cats and make sure they have plenty of fuss so they don't feel left out. It's possible to get cats and dogs to live in harmony but it takes time, patience and understanding.

get a KONG stuffed with treats or other distraction device to entertain your dog, making chasing cats a duller pastime.

Be very aware, however, that dogs are big, bouncy things often unaware of their own brute strength and can easily injure a smaller animal - a common injury in cats is a broken pelvis from being whacked by a dog's paw or jaw whilst being pursued. Don't leave a dog and cat together unattended until you're sure they are OK.
Our dobermutt Ailsa lives happily with 7 of our 8 cats, by the way (4 came to us as pedigree kittens after we got Ailsa , our baby Arnie was born last year and was introduced to Ailsa at 3 weeks of age and has no fear of her, our 2 older rescue cats have accepted they must share with a big gallumpfing mutt but oulr oldest moggie is still very timid and won't go anywhere near the dog). All but one of our old moggies avoided her. That was fine, they each had their own space.

I had to do the same thing when i adopted Max, my border terrier..he came into a home with 2 well established cats. What you will find is that the cats will allways be boss...and the dog, as long as it is good natured will take a back seat to the cats.

If you rescue from a good rehoming centre they should let you try the dog on a trial or have done some tests with cats previously before they adopt the dog out. You will have a better idea of if they will settle better or not.

Good Luck !

I have introduced two terrier crosses, a GSD x Collie, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and a Beardie cross two my two cats without much trouble. Initially I got Gem who was the GSD x Collie and she was a cat chaser at 5 years old. I was worried as my cat was not used to dogs, I kept Gem on lead for the intro and as soon as she had a swipe from Abby they lived together fine. The cats rule the roost in our house, the Cavalier is still learning the ropes with the cats and funnily enough the terriers have been the easiest.:thumbsup:

It does take time for the cats to realise that running is not the best move and it is their instinct to leg it when faced with a panting dog. As soon as they realise that they can get the upper hand things do settle down. My eldest cat Abby ignores them and they ignore her. Mushroom is only two years and a bit of a cowbag with the dogs but they put up with her.

I would try and find a dog that you know has lived with cats previously if you can, there are lots out there.

Try this website

www.dogrescuepages.org.uk

It's taken over a year for one of my older cats to cope with Molly being introduced to my home (Molly's a German Shepherd, got at approximately 10-12 months old).

Most of my cats choose not to interact with her when they can avoid it- but never the less my old lad Arthur is head honcho and Molly is afraid of him. She lies in her bed whining because she wants to go up to him but she knows that she isn't allowed to (and she knows that he'll take her face off if she does!).

If you have space to do it then I'd recommend having a routine where the cats have a room where they know that the dog can't go- they're likely to spend all of their time in there to start with, but you can sit near the door and coax them out for a love when it's safe for them to explore. A baby gate across the doorway will stop your dog from going in to their space.

The most important thing for me would be to make sure that the cats have somewhere that they can eat, use the litter tray and sleep in peace whilst they start to cope with the dog's presence. It can be really detrimental to their mental health to not be able to eat without watching for the big scary dog and you could find that they stop eating properly and start losing weight or that their toilet training starts to suffer- watch out for signs of not coping.