Dogs And Cats

[Odin-Genie]

Hi,

I'm thinking of getting two kittens. However, my dogs have never been around cats. The only time they have seen a cat is when the neighbour's cat sits outside the fence, completely ignoring their barking.

I saw a few rescue kittens and the person in charge advised that I should keep the kittens in a spare room and let the dogs get used to the smell without actually introducing them. Then, about 10 days later, I should take the kittens out while the dogs are kept on leash and sit next to them petting the kittens.

This person also mentioned that once the dogs and the kittens are comfortable with each other I should just let them be together and let the kittens use the dog door if they want to go out. I am not comfortable with letting my cats roam. We have colourbond fences. Can cats jump those?

My dogs are used to playing with small dogs.

Any advice/suggestions would be great.

[minxy]

Hi there.

Not entirely the same, but I had to go through a bit of a process when bringing home a second cat. We did the whole getting them used to each other's smells and stuff. Some ideas (which may or may not be practical for you) are to confine the animals in separate parts of the house. Then swap them for a bit. Also can switch bedding etc, as ways of getting them used to each other's scent. Probably the easiest one which we also found the most useful, was to get a sock and dampen it slightly. Rub it over the cats to get their scent onto it (particularly around their face) and then rub it over your dogs face so that they can smell it. And vice versa. You'll see how they react to this. The first one or two times we did this with our original cat she got quite upset but curious about it. We were also suggested that if it is possible, you could have the cats and dogs somewhere where they can see each other and smell each other, but not actually get to each other. That way they can spend some time observing each other for a bit.

If you do a google search, you'll probably come up with a bunch of suggestions there too. I had a really good pamphlet on it from the RSPCA, but I can't find it at the moment.

ETA: It is possible that your cats will be able to jump the fences, especially if there is anything leaning up against them, i.e. kennel, shed, etc. If you're not happy letting them roam, would you consider indoor only cats? I'm a huge fan of indoor cats. I can't remember exactly, but the RSPCA said something about the average lifespan of an outdoor cat is like 2 or 3 years! Lots of risks with cars, feral cats, dogs, etc.

Edited August 16, 2010 by minxy

[Christina]

I bred cats as well as dogs. My dogs are cat friendly however I never just stick a cat or kitten in loose with them.

Seperate rooms to start with or dog in a pen in living area while kittens are around to start with. Good suggestions in last post.

When you can trust your dog & remember that the kittens may instigate the dog by tomenting/playing make sure the kittens have a high place to escape to if needed like bed on top of fridge/cupboard etc.

Never leave alone unsupervised or go out & leave in the same room until 6 months old.

Lots of info on internet to help. Hopefully lots of fun & laughs coming your way. Kittens are so entertaining.

[Burkes]

I don't usually wait that long before introducing my kittens to dogs. I will always allow the dogs to smell the box/crate with the kitten in it and then once they are calm and relaxed I will hold the kitten on my chest and allow the dogs to sit next to me and smell it.

Gradually I will allow them closer to the kitten depending on the behaviour of both the dogs and the kitten. If everyone is remaining calm I will allow the dogs to smell a small part of the kitten whilst I am holding it.

The most important part is to ensure that the energy of everyone involved remains calm. If the energy raises, remove the kitten or dogs into another room until it calms again.

Yes, your cat will jump over colourbond fences. I have a cat door in the front door so they can escape out there if they want. You can get some really good cat enclosures these days. They are quite pricey but in my opinion would be better than just having an indoor cat.

I love having both cats and dogs. I have two cats and two dogs and they are all great friends. We also foster rescue dogs and my cats love welcoming the dogs into the household. Its amazing that all the dogs so far have been great with the cats.

[Monah]

Ooh kittens

Agree with the previous posts. Please be very careful, no unsupervised access, slow and steady even if it takes weeks. Cats need to be able to escape, just in case. I personally would not allow the cats outside. Cats are very happy indoors and two will play and 'attack' each other and amuse each other without the need for outside play. Later they could have an enclosure if you wanted to.

I have 4 iindoor cats and all mine have been indoors for over 30 years without any adverse effects. It cuts down greatly on vet bills too!! Sadly there are many people who dislike cats and will do something about it When they are indoors you are almost sure to never have worms, abcess, injuries, diseases, fleas etc.

Also keeps the local birds, reptiles etc. safe and neighbours may be cross if they see one of your cats kill a bird, mess in their garden or just be in their garden. Remember too that neighbours have DOGS and there have been many instances on Dol when a neighbours dog, or the Dolers dog, have killed a neighbours cat.

The responsible and caring thing to do is keep them indoors, it does them no harm at all and the youngest cat I have had pass away since the 70's was 17!!!

I put this down to being inside.

Maybe also discipline the dogs if they get too boisterous with the cats, or chase them etc. Let them know it's not on, cats are king!! Our dogs have great respect for the cats, and I always make sure it stays that way xxxxx

ALso, if either of the dogs are a bit iffy, even after a lot of time, NEVER leave them alone together if no one is home, separate room for one or the other is the solution.

Edited August 16, 2010 by Monah

[Odin-Genie]

Thanks. Great suggestions. I would prefer to have indoor only cats. However, since my dogs have access inside and outside, I'll have to lock the cats in a separate room, otherwise they'll use the dog door to go out. This would mean no unsupervised interaction with the dogs. Is it ok to have the cats in one room for close to 11 hours a day? I and my OH work full time. When we are back from work, at least 1 hour is spent taking the dogs for a walk and to the dogpark. The dogs sleep in our room (one of them on the bed ).

I want to ensure that I make the right decision here. Also, are there any particular breeds of cats who are better as indoor only cats? Someone had suggested Ragdolls. Would you suggest getting cats from rescue or a registered breeder?

[minxy]

Any cat will be fine indoors. In fact, even a cat that has been allowed outside for say 10 years of its life, could be turned into an indoor only cat. Ragdolls are beautiful. You'll probably have more luck finding one of those from a breeder, but I have cats from the RSPCA and I thoroughly recommend them.

[Golden Rules]

My 2 cents worth here is to make sure the dogs know that the cats are above them in pecking order.

The cats here sleep on the bed, the dogs on their own beds on the floor. Of course, the cats get to sleep on the dogs beds too if they choose, they have first pick on everything!

[Odin-Genie]

My 2 cents worth here is to make sure the dogs know that the cats are above them in pecking order.

The cats here sleep on the bed, the dogs on their own beds on the floor. Of course, the cats get to sleep on the dogs beds too if they choose, they have first pick on everything!

Thanks. That sounds like a cat

From a training perspective, is that because a cat can be more easily hurt? So it needs to be higher in the hierarchy?

[mita]

When I adopted our puss, I had to introduce her to the 2 resident tibbie girls. There were preparations before I first brought the puss out of the car & into the house.

The 2 tibbie girls had been placed in a crate on the verandah deck. We timed it that the very moment they first laid eyes on the puss, they were given liver treats.

We just kept this up as puss's carry cage was put on the floor in their eye range. More & more liver treats.

Then the carry cage door was opened a bit & puss's head poked out....more liver treats for the dogs. We wanted them to associate the sight of the new puss with good things happening....like liver treats. So their attention was well taken with the treats.

Next, we opened the door of the dogs' crate slightly & 2 tibbie heads pocked out....more liver treats. To our amusement, the puss joined the queue with the 2 dog heads sticking out....& got a liver treat, too. It was really funny how the 3 heads patiently waited their turns as each got a liver treat. After that, puss & the dogs behaved as if they'd known each other all their lives. But this worked, I think, because of the natures of the 3 pets involved. The puss had already been tested at the UQ Adoption Program as tolerating a strange dog being nearby.

But we'd been told to introduce them with good things happening for the dogs first time they saw the cat, when the cat was in their line of vision & then when the cat was loose in the same room.

Edited August 17, 2010 by mita

[ravenau1]

Thanks. Great suggestions. I would prefer to have indoor only cats. However, since my dogs have access inside and outside, I'll have to lock the cats in a separate room, otherwise they'll use the dog door to go out. This would mean no unsupervised interaction with the dogs. Is it ok to have the cats in one room for close to 11 hours a day? I and my OH work full time. When we are back from work, at least 1 hour is spent taking the dogs for a walk and to the dogpark. The dogs sleep in our room (one of them on the bed ).

I want to ensure that I make the right decision here. Also, are there any particular breeds of cats who are better as indoor only cats? Someone had suggested Ragdolls. Would you suggest getting cats from rescue or a registered breeder?

We had a cat door put in the window of our spare room, then built an enclosure outside. Our cats don't have access to the whole house when we're out or asleep, but the one room plus the outdoor enclosure is plenty of space for them when we put them out. There's furniture inside the room for them, and out in the enclosure there's logs and platforms and such.

[Golden Rules]

My 2 cents worth here is to make sure the dogs know that the cats are above them in pecking order.

The cats here sleep on the bed, the dogs on their own beds on the floor. Of course, the cats get to sleep on the dogs beds too if they choose, they have first pick on everything!

Thanks. That sounds like a cat

From a training perspective, is that because a cat can be more easily hurt? So it needs to be higher in the hierarchy?

Yes - cats are generally far more vulnerable than dogs (no matter what anyone says!)

[Linda K]

you can get some stuff to put along the fences, so that the cats are unable to jump them, thus cat-proofing the fences check out places like catnets.com.au or thecatshack.com.au

[lilli_star]

We had a cat door put in the window of our spare room, then built an enclosure outside. Our cats don't have access to the whole house when we're out or asleep, but the one room plus the outdoor enclosure is plenty of space for them when we put them out. There's furniture inside the room for them, and out in the enclosure there's logs and platforms and such.

Wow! My cat would love something like that. Just as well he can't read