Help!!!!

[Orlando & Hobbes]

My 2-year-old beagle is having aggression issues towards my cat. He howls every time he hears a meow and today he got over the gate and chased him all around the upstairs. We’ve tried to give them daily interaction while he was on a leash and it was going well but after the incident today we aren't really sure what to do!!! Please we’re desperate! We need some advice!!

[BC_MoM]

Hmm.. I have never had to deal with dog-cat aggression, so here are just a few ideas of things I would try:

1) Have your dog on the leash. When the cat meows and he howls or tries to chase, redirect his attention and get him much more excited about something else. Example: a favourite toy or treat.

2) Every time he makes a go for the cat, say "NO" firmly. As soon as he breaks eye contact with the cat and focuses on you, quickly reward him with his favourite toy or treat.

Sorry I can't be of any more help, but I'm sure you will get more replies from others who have had to deal with this and have had success with these or other methods.

Good luck!

[Giselle]

Most beagles have rather high prey drives. Coming from a breed of dog that was raised from birth to chase prey, I'll tell you that some dogs and cats just don't mix.

You could muzzle your dog or keep the two in separate rooms, but it's not fun for you or your pup or your kittie. Sometimes, Nature overpowers Nurture and many hound people have found out the hard way =/ I won't suggest giving one or the other up, but if your dog really does have a high prey drive, it's not something you can easily train out of. Rather, it's something you'll have to contain, and that requires a lot of vigilance and responsibility.

[Canis-Lupess]

It is hard to get dogs and cats to mix if they aren't brought up together. Their body language is quite different to each other and friendly body language in a cat can look very challenging to a dog. Also, if cats run away, dogs are bound to chase them. No doubt if your cat learned to stand up for itself and give the dog a little swipe, he might think twice before trying to give chase again. Maybe this is something your cat will learn if he/she ever finds him/herself without an escape route but there is the risk of things not being pretty.

The reason dogs chase cats is for the simple fact that they run away. A lot of dogs would stop in their tracks if the cat suddenly stopped and faced them and wouldn't actually know what to do next. It's just the chase that they get the kick from.

Our Jess had to get used to our cats more when we started letting her come into the porch. She's had a couple of spats with one of them but that particular cat can get a little too close and stare a bit too much for our Jess's liking. She doesn't mind them close so long as they don't stare at her. I think they've both learnt a few lessons about respecting each other from these spats though and they will tolerate each others presence now without issue. Our Jess just tries to ignore the cats and if one trots past her when she's laying in the doorway and she ignores it, I praise her and give her fusses and the odd treat sometimes when a cat is around and fuss her with one hand, the cat with the other so she can learn to associate them with good experiences. The cats have learnt that if they show respect in return, she'll leave them alone.
The other cat keeps her distance a lot more than the first and certainly wouldn't stop in front of her and stare like the other so there hasn't been any spats involving her and our Jess.
Things have definitely improved but thats because Gizmo, the first cat, is likely to have a go back if Jess has a go at her and, although Jess would win if it came to the nitty gritty, I think she'd rather avoid it and knows she could be harmed too, especially now at 13 and a half.

I wouldn't use the no command to try and stop aggressive behaviour because anything negative can further convince the dog that the cat is bad news and can worsen the relationship. The dog will think it is being told off because the cat is there, not because it is showing aggression towards it and will learn to just hate the cat as a result.

I'd never try and push the relationship more either. Dogs don't take to it very well and cats even less no. I think Jess has done pretty well considering. She's used to seeing them in the back garden and ignoring them then from being younger so that may have helped. Cats are less easy to mould and convince than dogs though....Still, sometimes with these delicate situations, less is more.

[Blackrose]

Chloe does the same thing, only I blame most of it on that kitten. Pheobe will NOT leave Chloe alone and consistantly pounces on and attacks Chloe. Then Chloe chases Pheobe around the house, trying to tackle her. I can finally get Chloe to leave Pheobe alone, then Pheobe attacks Chloe and it starts all over again....Considering Pheobe is four pounds and Chloe is forty, that isn't such a good thing.
We just keep the two of them seperate. When Pheobe is running around the house, Chloe is outside in her kennel. When Chloe is running around the house, Pheobe is either in one of our bedrooms or in our laundry room with her food, water, litterbox, and toys.
We would just keep Pheobe upstairs, but our other cat, Rush, rules the roost upstairs to stay away from both the puppy and the kitten. lol

[Seravieve]

Good Luck. We had a $300 ER Vet mishap back when J used to live with her mom.. who has several cats... And Zeke likes the taste of cat.... soo.. Jake the cat has a bobbed tail now.. They really never got along.. always had them in separate rooms, and then one day we came home, the door to the bedroom (where cats were) was open and Zeke thought they were dinner... So If they dont automatically get along, Id recommend seriously keeping them apart or sticking to one type, either cat, or dog, only.

[mruffruff]

My two dogs have learned to ignore the cats. I have a gate to the cat room so the cats have a place to go if the dogs decide to chase. I never leave the cats and dogs together when I leave the house, even for an hour.

It has taken a couple of years to get to this point. Both dogs were here first. One of them has a high prey drive for squirrels, so she thought the cats were overgrown squirrels. Mac the cat quickly changed that attitude! He didn't run away, just approached carefully. If the dogs attempted to chase the cat, I reprimanded the dog. Eventually they got the picture. Now there are 8 cats that aren't afraid to come out of the cat room to visit. They know they can always retreat to their safe place.

You might want to try reintroducing your two with the dog on a leash. Keep the dog near you and let the cat approach. If the cat doesn't come near, allow him some time to run around without the fear of being chased. If he does come near, control the dog with your hand on his collar and a lot of soft praise for sitting there (even though your keeping him in one place). Repeat daily until the dog doesn't try to chase. This could take quite a while, but don't give up easily. Also be sure to provide a place for the cat to feel safe at all times.

Good luck.

[nickjmeyer1]

i agree with bc_mom

1.make sure your pet is on a leash
2.make sure your pet is comfortable while wearing the leash