How can I get a dog to get along with my cats?

[horse_1987]

Theres this really sweet beagle at the shelter that i work at. He is three years old and he has lived in a cage at the shelter since September 20th. I walk him every time im there and i might be able to adopt him, the only thing thats been holding us back from adopting him is, he doesn't have the best behavior around cats. When i was walking him one day, one of the shelters cats was laying outside under a bush and the beagle growled at him. As much as i love the dog, i have three cats at home, do u think this is going to work? or should i forget about it? :confused:

[yorkster]

It's hard to say....... I have a B .Collie/Lab mix, who is 3 yrs. old. I have only had her for 4 months now. When I brought her home, it was clear that she had not been around cats (I have 2 cats). She either wanted to chase them or she did growl a couple times. We had to keep them all seperated for quite awhile. It helps a lot if your cats are indoor only. Also, we kept the dog in a crate when we were gone or could not watch closely. With all that being said, they are now friendly with each other. It took a good couple months at least. One of my cats still does not LIKE the dog, but will tolerate her. My other cat likes her quite a bit. In fact, the other night, my dog shared one of her treats with the kitty! Very Cute! Anyway, good luck and let us know what you do.

[C.C.'s Mom]

I have a Golden puppy and 2 adult cats who had never ever seen a dog before in their lifes. It took us 2 months before the cats somehow accepted the dog, and now they all sleep together on the bed when we're not around. The cats remain somewhat reserved, but are very interested.
The main thing is, to not let the cats and the dog alone in the beginning because cats can be quite 'nasty' when it comes to defending themselves. One of my neighbors found this out the hard way and her dog has now a blind eye. Keep the dog on a short leash when introducing them, making sure the cats can hide or leave the room.
What helped in our home, was the dog sometimes having a cat treat, the cats emptying the dogs food. Also, when we visited the breeder when our dog was still with her mommy, we brought a towl back with the smell of the dog and left it for the cats to smell on it.
Good luck. Cats and dogs can become very good friends.

[Pam]

My first thought was to tell you I would be afraid to try it because the animals are not young. It is easier to have a smooth transition when you are dealing with puppies or kittens. That said, it looks like the others who have commented have had good success so it may just work out! :) The idea of bringing a towel with the dog's smell back to the cats was a terrific one. My two cats had lived with dogs before but it had been two years since the last dog died. We decided to get a puppy so that she could grow up with the cats. In my case it has worked out beautifully. There really are no problems now but I did watch them VERY carefully in the beginning. I'd say go and try it and good luck! :)

[wolflady]

Pam, that was one of my concerns about my future dog. I was thinking a puppy might be better because my cats have NEVER been around a dog, and having a puppy grow up with them would be ideal. However, I'm still wanting to do a rescue, possibly greyhound or whatever furbaby just happens to catch my eye...but I was concerned that a large older dog might be pretty scary to my kitties!!! In any case...that's still probably pretty far off since I still work too much and have a really horrendous commute! :rolleyes: But it's something I've been thinking about too.

[purrley]

My daughter and her husband bought a beautiful yellow lab a couple years ago. They have a Siamese cat who, surprisingly enough accepted this dog really well. Now they romp and tease each other all the time. It's really funny to watch - Gibby (her Siamese) likes to tease Gem (the lab) all the time. He just stays barely out of reach from Gem. She wants to play so bad and Gibby just loves teasing her. Neither one of them would ever hurt each other.

[gita]

I have a two years old Golden and Dahschund. The two dogs get along very well despite the difference in their sizes. Back in April, I saw a stray kitten underneath a car. She lookes so fragile, so I took her home an named her Mitchell. At first my two dogs were surprised to see a new creature in the house. The didn't like her at all, they barked non stop. So what I did at the time was to put the dogs in the backyard and the cat inside the house. I happen to have a glass door as an access to the backyard. During the separation they can still see one another through the glass, this way both the cat and the dogs got used to each others' presence. Bit by bit I brought them together (just for 5 minutes at first). Gradually I increase the time of their meetings. Now they are so used to each other, I can't separate them anymore.

I hope the trick work out for you. ;)

[pepper636]

gita ~ I wish we had both found this board two years ago. Then I wouldn't have had to wait for this idea to surface. I rescued a 3-1/2 year old black lab from a kill shelter. To make a long story short, I think his owners fed him and were OK to him and kept him in a kennel but other than that nothing. Plus he hated my cat. He's 5-1/2 years old now and I have not made much headway with the cat issue.

Just the other day, I opened my french doors which have a screen and my four cats were sitting there. Payton was outside (we have an electric fence which does not allow Payton to come up on the stairs to the french doors) and he kept staring. So I thought, why not do this and feed Payton treats while he is looking at the cats so he will associate cats = treats. Of course, now I'll probably have to wait until next spring.

[Scarlet91]

I understand what you are all talking about. Now my husband wants to buy a cat. We now have a yellow lab three years old and I'm afraid of them not accepting each other. We can't try it without purchasing the cat first. So if it doesn't work out, we're basicaly screwed. I"m so afraid that one is going to hurt the other. He really wants this cat for christmas and I hate to say no, but I'm just not seeing any signs that it will work out. Since Chester (our lab) has been there for three years already, he may think of the cat as a threat. Any suggestions would be appreciated....

[Christiansmommy]

Originally posted by Scarlet91
I understand what you are all talking about. Now my husband wants to buy a cat. We now have a yellow lab three years old and I'm afraid of them not accepting each other. We can't try it without purchasing the cat first. So if it doesn't work out, we're basicaly screwed. I"m so afraid that one is going to hurt the other. He really wants this cat for christmas and I hate to say no, but I'm just not seeing any signs that it will work out. Since Chester (our lab) has been there for three years already, he may think of the cat as a threat. Any suggestions would be appreciated....

Is it possible to see how he would be around someone else's cat? Maybe a friend has one, and you can bring your dog over to see what you are up against? Or maybe, could you take your dog to a shelter and see it reaction to some of the shelter cats that are known to be fine with dogs?

I have a large dog, who, even though, he has grown up with 2 cats, since he was 8 weeks old, still gets the urge to chase them now and again...he is still puppyish, so I know, in time, he will outgrow it. My one cat isn't bothered by him at all, the other could certainly do without him :) I would prefer them to give him one good scratch on his snout, but they are too friendly to do so...they usually just run...the other day, one hissed at him, and my big doggie went running, it was very funny :) He will eventually get the point :)

ANyway, maybe a friend with a cat can be of some help to you, to test the waters, before you adopt one yourself. And i wouldn't take the cat out of it's familiar ground, i would bring the dog to the cats house, if anything...just a thought...

[Scarlet91]

I don't think I'm as afraid of the cat not accepting Chester as I am Chester not accepting the cat. Dogs are very territorial and this has been his domain now for almost three years. I have asked some people at work and have gotten different reactions. Some say to get a kitten instead. Others say to get a full grown one. I don't really see much difference in the size. I think Chester is going to either try and eat him or hurt him. At the same time I would really like for him to have a playmate. I also don't like telling my husband that I do not want a cat when obviously he does. I'm like between a rock and a hard place. He is supposed to pick up the cat, if he wants it, on Friday. I wish I knew if it was going to work out or not. I don't want us to make any hasty or bad decisions. I guess there's only way to find out!

[Thandi]

My newly adopted lab/Rhodie took a few days to get used to the cats--I don't think she'd ever been around them. My cats took about a week of hissing and spitting. Now they love her, even sleep touching her!

I think it might well work--just be prepared for some major fights at first, and if you are around at the beginning you will be able to intervene if it gets bad, otherwise let the cat hold its own--and it will!! I remember introducing my recently departed Rhodie to a new cat, she drooled so much I though the cat was definitely a gonner. Didn't take long before they lived in perfect harmony, even if the Rhodie did chew on the cats occasionally. Much screaming, hissing, clawing, and then life went on as normal.

Good luck!