Can my Buster be cat friendly?

Hello! I am at a stand still with my pets. Buster (my Lab) is a friendly,playful overly energetic but generally good dog. I guess the energy is a bit of a breed trait ;) Well last year we had a kitten and Buster killed him :( I am quite confident he was not just playing rough. My question is. . . can I socialize Buster with my new Cattens or should I just keep them separate? It is really making me anxious just walking in and out of the house for fear that one of the kittens will try to get out or one of our dogs may come into the house. Any advice or suggestions are GREATLY appreciated. TIA

Jen

**Buster is 4.5 years old

I don't have any advice for you but I just wanted to say that Buster is gorgeous and Welcome to PET TALK. I hope someone on here can help you...

First of all, Welcome to Pet Talk! :) Second of all, your Buster is a cutie pie! :D Having 4 dogs with 2 cats, I have some expierience. My Buster and Miagi grew up together so there is no problem there. We just recently adopted Tiger and Buster still barks at him and all. I would just recommend SLOWLY introduce them to each other. Don't rush it or you could have some huge problems.

Watch them together, don't leave them alone in the same room or you're just asking for trouble. When you think or feel it's safe enough to leave them alone together in the same room(like if you have to go shopping or something), I'd go for it. Make sure you don't rush them into a relationship with each other. Let them come around on their own terms.

I wish you the best of luck! :) PM me if you have any questions and I'll try my best to help you answer them! :)

Is Buster and outside only dog? :( I've heard of dogs that will accept cats that live in the house with them but will chase cats outside of the house. If he is an outside only dog I would try to house train him and adjust him to having manners indoors first then slowly introduce the cats (with him under control, on a leash or something). My siberian husky is a lot calmer and more well-behaved in the house, outside time is running and playing time! I wouldn't ever leave him alone with any cat, personally either especially if he has killed a cat before. Supervised interactions only, and don't ever let him get away with chasing a cat, period!

I agree with the advice you got from wolf_q.

My dogs recently killed one of my cats, after 5 years of peaceful co-exsistance. Never had a problem until the night I came home to find Dominique's broken body.

So this is my advice from that perspective:

Never, ever leave them unsupervised together. EVER. No matter how long they have been living together, no matter how well they seem to get along. My dogs are allowed inside. However, they are not left alone with the cats. If I have to out for a minute or even into a different room, the dogs are confined.

When you are first introducing them, keep your dog on a leash or crated at all times. The kitten must be free to get away. He should not be held or restrained in any way. He can approach the dog on his terms. The dog should be firmly and consistently told NO for any interest in the cat.

I don't allow my dogs and cats to play together at all. They sometimes get close to each other, like on the couch, but they are never allowed to play chase. I keep one room of my house blocked off from the dogs. The cats can get in--I use baby gates across the door. The dogs can't get in there. It's a safe haven for the cats if they don't want to put up with the dogs.

Most of my dogs have learned to tolerate the cats. Any negative interaction with a cat leads to the dog going directly back outside. If they want to be inside, they learn to get along with the cats. My cats don't go outside. While my dogs are good with the cats in the house, an outside cat doesn't stand a chance in this yard. Unfortunately, I can prove that--Dominique escaped somehow and paid for it with her life.

Not all dogs can learn to be cat safe. I have two who are never allowed to even a see a cat. Despite my best efforts and the efforts of a couple other trainers, Kayleigh and Deuce are a threat to my cats. When it's their turn to come in the house, the cats all get locked up in one bedroom. There are ways to make a dual species household work, even with a non-cat safe dog, but it takes constant work and vigilance.

Jamieejoe ~ Buster sends tail wagging thank yous for the compliment! And thanks for the welcome too ;)

Love ~ Thank you for the advice, and I agree I would never leave them unsupervised.

WolfQ ~ Yes,Buster is an outside dog w/his 'brother' Bandit (st.Bernard) I would like to have had them indoors more, but hubby disagreed (diffrnt post) ;)

Glacier ~ I am sorry to hear about Dominique:(
I am concerned about my kitten(s) running the wrong way out of fear or disorientation when Buster starts barking. Sounds like a silly concern I know :o Bringing the dog(s) inside is not an option for me, so maybe leashing Buster after a looonng walk would be a start. What do you think about using a muzzle?

Thank you to everyone I REALLY appreciate your helpfulness :D

I don't know what to suggest.

I know when I first brought my cat home, I thought my lab would kill her for sure if I left them alone. I slowly introduced them. At first I put a muzzle on Josie to see how she would react to my cat. I had a gate keeping them seperate too. They could see each other and smell, but nothing else. It took almost a month, but now they get along good and I don't have to worry about them. I also recently got another kitty. It only took Josie 10 minutes this time before I knew she was going to be fine with him!

Good luck, he is a cutie!

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Originally posted by JenWhite


Glacier ~ I am sorry to hear about Dominique:(
I am concerned about my kitten(s) running the wrong way out of fear or disorientation when Buster starts barking. Sounds like a silly concern I know :o Bringing the dog(s) inside is not an option for me, so maybe leashing Buster after a looonng walk would be a start. What do you think about using a muzzle?

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It's not a silly concern at all. Most likely the cats will run away from the barking, but you never know what a silly kitten might do! I'd try to train him not to bark at the cats.

I use a muzzle on Kayleigh when there is any chance she might see a cat. She is muzzled if she has to go the vet for instance. Before I gave up on making her cat tolerant, she was muzzled and leashed when she was in the house. Now I just lock the cats up when she comes in. Never leave a muzzled dog alone with it on and get one that fits properly--so they can still pant and drink.