Dog/Cat Help?

UnknownDreamland · May 2009

Well as some of you know, we just found a kitten a few days ago. There's no sign of an owner so we're highly considering keeping her. There's a big problem though.. Well, not too big: Bella. Bella's really wanting to baby Jane(Jane Doe, xD Not her real name as she lacks one). She tried picking her up yesterday and received a fresh swat on the nose. Now Jane's pretty freaked out about Bella. She'll let Bella come close, but Bella being the spazz she is, sudden movements.. You know. I was wondering if anyone knew how to deal with this. It's not aggression.. I mean Jane played with Bella earlier today, but then went back to being freaked when Bella got over excited. But Bella is just really wanting to play/baby her.

Pandalove · May 2009

It's not a big deal, my kittens went through this stage with my dog as well, they will eventually grow out of it, or the dog will back off, from recieving a swat from the cat.

Doggirl1995 · May 2009

Yeah, I don't think there's anything you will do. Eventually Bella will get the idea.

UnknownDreamland · May 2009

Well, three swats and Bella's still an idiot. x3 Any ideas to calm Jane down around Bella? Because sometimes Bella is somewhat decent. We've had Bella for over a year now. We've got four other cats and has been swatted many times by them. She's got 2 scars on her nose and a few weeks after getting her my cat attacked her(he's extremely dominant) and she still hasn't gotten the point. That's what worries me.

Pandalove · May 2009

I've had a total of 8 cats in 16 years. They all hated my dog, but most grew out of it, except for the stray ones we found. Now my dog is just old, and every time she sees a cat she goes puncing after it, she knows I bring home animals and doesn't want me finding them. XD

UnknownDreamland · May 2009

See, Bella LOVES the kitties. Kittys don't love her. xD

Pandalove · May 2009

Dreamland wrote:

Well, three swats and Bella's still an idiot. x3 Any ideas to calm Jane down around Bella? Because sometimes Bella is somewhat decent. We've had Bella for over a year now. We've got four other cats and has been swatted many times by them. She's got 2 scars on her nose and a few weeks after getting her my cat attacked her(he's extremely dominant) and she still hasn't gotten the point. That's what worries me.

I would suggest, buying her toys to keep her away from them, kongs usually distract dogs well, or train her out of messsing with them. If you plan on doing that PM me, I know good techniques to train her out of it. X)

albr08 · May 2009

What you do is sit on the floor with the cat and the dog....Make sure you have treats

And a toy for the kitten....Put your dog on the leash and sit on it so she cant lunge at the kitty...Play with the kitty and let her get used to the dog. Every time your dog ignores the cat or lays down beside you, reward it. This should be repeated at least 2 times a day....Not for very long but so they both get the hint: Dog not dangerous, and cat is to be respected. They should get along soon....Hope it works as well for you as it has for me

UnknownDreamland · May 2009

She's got plenty of toys. Chews, bones, a kong or two. We've also done putting some treats in a bottle that's not glass, so it won't suck her tongue in, and just in case we plug it up with peanut butter that's frozen. She only gets that one when supervised, however. She also has a couple other "work for your food" toys that were previously Auzzy's. I'll PM you about the training though.

albr08 · May 2009

ok...hope it works.

Pandalove · May 2009

albr08 wrote:

What you do is sit on the floor with the cat and the dog....Make sure you have treats And a toy for the kitten....Put your dog on the leash and sit on it so she cant lunge at the kitty...Play with the kitty and let her get used to the dog. Every time your dog ignores the cat or lays down beside you, reward it. This should be repeated at least 2 times a day....Not for very long but so they both get the hint: Dog not dangerous, and cat is to be respected. They should get along soon....Hope it works as well for you as it has for me

The other animal is more of a distraction than toys.

UnknownDreamland · May 2009

Sorry late response. That was in response to Panda. Though I doubt kitty would play in the presence of Bella, there are other things I know that distract her.

albr08 · May 2009

Kittens are ALWAYS playful unless sick! If you get the kittens mind off the dog it will not notice....

Pandalove · May 2009

albr08 wrote:

Kittens are ALWAYS playful unless sick! If you get the kittens mind off the dog it will not notice....

That's untrue, I have had several kittens who where unplayful.

iluvdogs111 · May 2009

albr08 wrote:

What you do is sit on the floor with the cat and the dog....Make sure you have treats And a toy for the kitten....Put your dog on the leash and sit on it so she cant lunge at the kitty...Play with the kitty and let her get used to the dog. Every time your dog ignores the cat or lays down beside you, reward it. This should be repeated at least 2 times a day....Not for very long but so they both get the hint: Dog not dangerous, and cat is to be respected. They should get along soon....Hope it works as well for you as it has for me

I have to agree with you. Just give them treats and toys when their near eachoter so they assosiate being with eachother to good things.

albr08 · May 2009

iluvdogs111 wrote:

albr08 wrote:

What you do is sit on the floor with the cat and the dog....Make sure you have treats And a toy for the kitten....Put your dog on the leash and sit on it so she cant lunge at the kitty...Play with the kitty and let her get used to the dog. Every time your dog ignores the cat or lays down beside you, reward it. This should be repeated at least 2 times a day....Not for very long but so they both get the hint: Dog not dangerous, and cat is to be respected. They should get along soon....Hope it works as well for you as it has for me

 I have to agree with you. Just give them treats and toys when their near eachoter so they assosiate being with eachother to good things.

EXACTLY!

DiamondPuppy0809 · May 2009

I had to go through this with my rabbit and cat... xD Bunny = wanting to play with kitty & makes sharp movements and scary thumping sometimes. Cat = wants to be left alone & sleeps on the couch all day. Mess with her and the rabbit gets a swat in the face. I sat down with both the cat and bunny in my Mom's bedroom and held the rabbit so he'd stay still. The cat wanted nothing to do with him. I let the rabbit go and she started acting like she was going to pounce on him... and... eat him o.o Eventually the cat realized she could play 'seek & run' with the rabbit and began to find the bunny when he hid from her behind a stool/basket and she started playing with him. I don't think my telling you that experience will help, but I have a few tips otherwise. Have you ever watched 'The Dog Whisperer'? It's great for these sorts of things... First of all, Bella should be able to settle down around the cat when you tell her to do so. I know this seems practically impossible with some dogs! But, the cat should also be able to respect Bella. If Bella just wants to play, she's showing signs of affection and welcoming the kitten, not showing the kitten that he or she is unwanted. Which is good! At least you don't have an overly dominant dog that wants the kitten gone! If the kitten's scared, that's normal. Honestly, to get past the stage of them understanding each other would mean they'd have to get to know each other. I'd give it time and whenever Bella is around the kitten, perhaps you should keep a close eye on her and make sure she's not too jumpy.

That's all I can really say; my kitten loved my dog xD Now they're just buddies that kind of ignore each other, buuuuut... at least there's no hatred. xD

UnknownDreamland · May 2009

albr08 wrote:

Kittens are ALWAYS playful unless sick! If you get the kittens mind off the dog it will not notice....

Untrue. My one cat had one toy he liked. Feathers. Other than that he was quite content to make funny poses. Some kittens are crazy, some are mellow. Jane is in between. I understand giving toys/treats. That's simple work. But Bella actually denies treats. Who wants a dumb old liver flavored treat when she could baby a kitten? *edit* Ludie, typing reply.. You guys are too fast for me.

Pandalove · May 2009

iluvdogs111 wrote:

albr08 wrote:

What you do is sit on the floor with the cat and the dog....Make sure you have treats And a toy for the kitten....Put your dog on the leash and sit on it so she cant lunge at the kitty...Play with the kitty and let her get used to the dog. Every time your dog ignores the cat or lays down beside you, reward it. This should be repeated at least 2 times a day....Not for very long but so they both get the hint: Dog not dangerous, and cat is to be respected. They should get along soon....Hope it works as well for you as it has for me

 I have to agree with you. Just give them treats and toys when their near eachoter so they assosiate being with eachother to good things.

Untrue. Dreamy stated that Bella does not want the treats, and you have to give the treats at the right time, in order for the dog to comprehend.

UnknownDreamland · May 2009

Garfieldz Gal wrote:

I had to go through this with my rabbit and cat... xD Bunny = wanting to play with kitty & makes sharp movements and scary thumping sometimes. Cat = wants to be left alone & sleeps on the couch all day. Mess with her and the rabbit gets a swat in the face. I sat down with both the cat and bunny in my Mom's bedroom and held the rabbit so he'd stay still. The cat wanted nothing to do with him. I let the rabbit go and she started acting like she was going to pounce on him... and... eat him o.o Eventually the cat realized she could play 'seek & run' with the rabbit and began to find the bunny when he hid from her behind a stool/basket and she started playing with him. I don't think my telling you that experience will help, but I have a few tips otherwise. Have you ever watched 'The Dog Whisperer'? It's great for these sorts of things... First of all, Bella should be able to settle down around the cat when you tell her to do so. I know this seems practically impossible with some dogs! But, the cat should also be able to respect Bella. If Bella just wants to play, she's showing signs of affection and welcoming the kitten, not showing the kitten that he or she is unwanted. Which is good! At least you don't have an overly dominant dog that wants the kitten gone! If the kitten's scared, that's normal. Honestly, to get past the stage of them understanding each other would mean they'd have to get to know each other. I'd give it time and whenever Bella is around the kitten, perhaps you should keep a close eye on her and make sure she's not too jumpy. That's all I can really say; my kitten loved my dog xD Now they're just buddies that kind of ignore each other, buuuuut... at least there's no hatred. xD

xD Sounds like my cats/rabbit. Andi is very dominant over my cats. My kitty(the dominant one) is always like "lolwut?" when Andi chases him. xD Mind you, Charlie the kitty weighs about 3 times Andi's weight so he doesn't have too much to worry about. I don't have cable/satellite so no, I haven't. But I'm very anti-Cesar. Sooo.. xD Maybe I'll try the technique I used to get Bella to calm down around Andi(who she also attempts to baby). But I'm not sure how well she'll do. Andi at least wasn't afraid of her. Right now Jane's got loose run of our kitchen and dining room(and the bathroom she stays in at night) and then we've got doors(french doors with about 2 inches separating them from the floor) which has been nice for Bella and Jane to see/smell each other with a barrier.

iluvdogs111 · May 2009

Pandalove wrote:

iluvdogs111 wrote:

albr08 wrote:

What you do is sit on the floor with the cat and the dog....Make sure you have treats And a toy for the kitten....Put your dog on the leash and sit on it so she cant lunge at the kitty...Play with the kitty and let her get used to the dog. Every time your dog ignores the cat or lays down beside you, reward it. This should be repeated at least 2 times a day....Not for very long but so they both get the hint: Dog not dangerous, and cat is to be respected. They should get along soon....Hope it works as well for you as it has for me

 I have to agree with you. Just give them treats and toys when their near eachoter so they assosiate being with eachother to good things.

 Untrue. Dreamy stated that Bella does not want the treats, and you have to give the treats at the right time, in order for the dog to comprehend.

I meant, reward them when they're being calm and tolerating eachother.

Pandalove · May 2009

Garfieldz Gal wrote:

First of all, Bella should be able to settle down around the cat when you tell her to do so. I know this seems practically impossible with some dogs! But, the cat should also be able to respect Bella. If Bella just wants to play, she's showing signs of affection and welcoming the kitten, not showing the kitten that he or she is unwanted. Which is good! At least you don't have an overly dominant dog that wants the kitten gone! If the kitten's scared, that's normal. Honestly, to get past the stage of them understanding each other would mean they'd have to get to know each other. I'd give it time and whenever Bella is around the kitten, perhaps you should keep a close eye on her and make sure she's not too jumpy. That's all I can really say; my kitten loved my dog xD Now they're just buddies that kind of ignore each other, buuuuut... at least there's no hatred. xD

Not all dogs and cats can overcome this stage, my cat (that died two years ago) hated EVERYTHING, and that's an understatement, she even hated her own kittens, she wouldn't feed them or mother them, of course, she was a stray, she let humans pet her ocasionally, but if she saw another creature she would kill it. She only liked my cat, Simba. He practically raised her and fed her. (yes, he's a boy and he fed her with cat food, dont ask) But she tried killing my dog, who was twice her size. :shock:

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Dog/Cat Help?

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