Calling all dog whisperes: help with new kitten

The Coffee Shop
1

We just got a new kitten. We also have two dogs, a Saint Bernard and a Jack Russell mix. The Saint Bernard loves the new addition and is about as motherly with it as you’d expect a St. Bernard to be – think Nana. The problem is with the Jack Russell mix. She seems to view the kitten as vermin that needs to be eliminated. So far, we haven’t had a problem as we don’t let them get close to each other. On the one occasion where I held the dog by her coller and let her get close, she still lunged into the cat, got swatted but didn’t back off. She didn’t growl or anything, and I’m not even sure she tried to bite. I pulled her away before there was even the chance of finding out. And I don’t want to risk anything further.

So, anyone have tips on how to acclimate a dog to a cat?. (I could care less of the cat likes the dog.) Ideally, I’d like for them to be able to be together unsupervised in the same without having to worry about the dog attacking the cat.

I’ve thought about placing the cat in a kennel/cage in the room, with the dog loose but ordered to lay down – she’s obedient enough to do that. Hopefully, that may help the dog to calm down and get used to the cat’s presence.

2

The problem, that is what terriers were bred to do.

3

Yeah. I realized that the other night. I have to believe, however, that that’s not the end of it.

4

for now supervise as your doing. keep at it everyday and things will be fine. kittens can adapt to anything.

5

Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound like its a lost cause, just an uphill battle. It sounds like you’ve trained your terrier well, so that will be the key to overcoming the instinct.

6

I think the key is getting the dog to submit to the cat. I imagine your Jack Russell goes from 0 to 60 in less than 3 seconds when the cat is in the room, so I would try to slow that process down. Get the dog calm and assert yourself as in control. Have a way to correct undesirable behavior and refocus bad energy (think a slap on the rump or something similiar). Then, having the dog sitting at your side bring the cat in. The nanosecond the dog makes a move towards the cat or even looks at it funny, correct the behavior. Eventually, the dog will ignore the cat and all will be right in your household pecking order again.

Think calm and assertive. I’ve seen Cesar do this many times on TV with great success.

7

AlanShearer,

There is an interview with Cesar Milan in this month’s issue of National Geographic. I think there is an even more in depth one on their website.

He says that his techniques would basically work with any animal that has a strong pack mentality. So I think you are properly approaching the problem at the dog level.

It seems to me that after a day or two the animals will find some sort of a homeostasis where there is some tolerance of each other. I hope for your sake anyhow!

Bernie

8

We have the same exact problem in out house except change the perps to a lab, rat terrier mix puppy and 2 adult cats. The lab and the cats lay together lovingly. The cats hate the terrier and open a can of whoop ass on him every so often. I don’t know if they will ever like each other. When your kitten gets larger things will likely calm down. Until then, I would keep a close eye on the pair.

9

Alan,

My girlfriend and I had a very similar experience trying to integrate my two labs with her two cats. Here’s what helped us:

When we were around, we leashed the dogs and tied the leashes to her heavy couch. This allowed the dogs some freedom of movement, but not much. The cats then could feel free to roam the house and test the limits with the dogs without fear of being chased, and believe me, both dogs wanted to chase the cats.

When we weren’t around, we closed the cats up in our bedroom and let the dogs have the run of the house so they could get used to it (it was her house). We’d also give the dogs a break every now and then when we were home and do the same thing.

Within a month and a half, the dogs were comfortable enough with the cats that we could let them off the leashes and they wouldn’t try to chase them. Today, they can all be in the same room together and have no troubles at all. Occasionally, one of the dogs might accidentally startle a cat by walking up behind it to sniff. This usually ends with a swipe to the snout and all is forgiven.

Just in case, we put up doggie gates in key doorways risen JUST a bit off the ground so the cats would have an escape route if the dogs decided to chase. So far, it’s never been needed.

As others have stated, a little patience and work will probably fix the problem. The dog and kitten just need time to get used to each other.

10

A lot of dogs have a high prey drive and will chase a cat sharing a hosue with them, and many, esp. the working dogs, will try and herd them–but they won’t (intentionally) kill them. After all, if a collie kept killing members of it’s flock, it wouldn’t be very good at its job.

Terriers, however, are one of the most difficult dogs to acclimate to cats, simply b/c like someone else said…that is what they were bred to do: hunt, chase, and then kill vermin. They see cats as vermin. It’s not a matter of personality or training or obedience…it’s genetics. They are hard-wired to chase and kill, and for many of them, once that chase and prey drive is engaged, it CANNOT be turned off, no matter how much voice command you have over a dog. Some dogs simply cannot coexist in the same house as cats. That’s just all there is to it.

Now, that doesn’t mean you have an impossible situation on y our hands–but it DOES mean you may have a lot of work ahead of you…with no guarantee that it will ever pay off. Some dogs and cats are never trustworth w/out your supervision.

Sam, our Akita/GSD mix LOVES cats…he worships the ground our three cats walk on. As soon as Maxxie (the oldest cat) turned about 12 weeks old, I was confident leaving the two of them alone together. Sadie, on the other hand…sturggles. She LOVES to chase them and nibble at them and corral them. She does not, at this time, have unsupervised access to them. Do I think she’d HURT them? No, probably not (at least not intentionally)–she’s a Sheltie/GSD mix, both of which are herding dogs, and she seems more inclined to try and g et hem to play. BUT I’m not willing to take that chance. So, for now, when we’re gone, she stays confined in a separate room. (FWIW, one cat avoids her totally, one will swat and hiss at her if necessary, and the other solves the chase problem by simply lying down on the floor and she loses interest)

Here’s a link to a site that I really like. This article, in particular, deals with introductions, and there are lots of other good things on the site. I usually wander over there at least every few days to look something or other up…

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/...0&C=0&A=2130

Good luck!!

11

Rather than putting the cat in the kennel, I would put the Terrier in there as part of the training.

12

It’s the breed. My black Lab loves our five cats. My brother’s Siberian Huskies would try to kill them.

13

my dog was bred for treeing mountain lions and was OBSESSED with all cats when she was a pup. she “tree’d” my cat every day - on the couch, on the chair, etc. but before long, they were acclimated to each other and could be left unsupervised. i don’t have much advice, but they will get used to each other. good luck!

14

Yeah. I realized that the other night. I have to believe, however, that that’s not the end of it.

No offense Alan, but Duh!

Think how the kitten feels with death always lurking. Think how you will feel when the JR gets a hold of it.

15

a jack russel killed one of my mother in laws kittens. As already said they have such a high prey drive once something is moving they can’t help themselves. (ever see one catch a rat it is unreal) If he gets a hold of the cat and is able to shake it, it’ll be dead in seconds. Oddly enough the jack russel that killed the kitty shares the house with a cat that he gets along with.
They were able to aclimate it with the cat by keeping them seperated and slowly acclimating them together.

16

I don’t have a dog and I’m part joking, but why not fatten up your cat and get him to learn some defensive moves (I wrestle my guy all the time)? My guy is still 1 years old+ but loves starting fights with bigger, stronger cats. Of course, its entirely possible he’s just dumb and doesn’t understand the animal hierarchy. Actually, my sister says my little guy knows no fear…