Cat attacks dog

[Wally31]

I have a 5 month old Rottweiler who isn't aggressive with my cat, he actually seems to just want to play with him. I'm trying to train him not to chase the cat because the cat just hates him. What is making it hard is that the cat will attack the dog while the dog sleeps. If the dog approaches the cat even just to smell him, the cat attacks him. The cat is declawed so he doesn't do much harm, but when the cat attacks, the dog wants to take chase (and who can blame him?). I don't feel like it's ok to allow the dog to chase the cat, but it's kind of hard when the cat picks fights with him. I'm afraid the dog will eventually hurt him. Any suggestions?

[RottiMomCT]

Got a spray bottle? One or two squirts with the the bottle to the CAT when he beats up the dog should probably teach the cat his antics are NOT allowed, nor will they be tolerated. If you see the cat approaching the dog, give the cat the "AHH AHH!!!!" sound....it'll probably wake up the dog, but it'll also probably stop the attack!

Contrary to belief, cats can be trained...ALOT harder than dogs in some respects, but they can be trainedl...

If the dog gives chase, correct the dog - again, NOT allowed. Granted, the dog probably wants to beat up the cat for bopping him upside the head while he's sleeping, but it's not allowed.

I have a mental picture of a de-clawed cat just walking up to the dog and smacking him on the head...I can even hear the sound the paw makes upside his head...makes me giggle cuz cats have such attitude....but the dog must be thinking 'that cat is CRAZY!'...

[Canadianrotti]

We have the same problem with our pup, but she has a very high prey drive. We have 2 cats, and one is very tollerant of her, the other not so much.

We just giver her the "ahhh" and get her attention away from the cat, and give her a ball or something to play with. Just keep on correcting and re-directing and it will get better.

[codglvr]

We have a cat who terrorizes the dogs and our other cat in this same fashion. You really do have to be watchful of the cat and learn to expect when the cat is going to ambush and reprimand the cat. Teaching the dog a good leave it, and a good stay will help immensely with preventing the chase.

[Wally31]

Originally Posted by RottiMomCT

I have a mental picture of a de-clawed cat just walking up to the dog and smacking him on the head...I can even hear the sound the paw makes upside his head...makes me giggle cuz cats have such attitude....but the dog must be thinking 'that cat is CRAZY!'...

Your mental picture is right on . What makes it funnier, is the cat also gives a huge display of growling, snarling, and hissing. I hadn't thought of the water bottle, but will definitely try that.

[AdonisRotts]

Well best of luck with your cat situation. My two love kitties and my cat is very dog friendly. They share toys, clean each other, and hang out together. But we have had our share of not dog friendly cat situations. We live on a farm and seem to get alot of stray cats show up (must be the barns). A couple of days ago a stray kitten showed up and Naya attempted her usual "hi, how are you kitty?" She laid down in front of the kitten and attempted to clean it. (Mind you that Naya was out playing in one of the pastures and we were watching from a distance) It tolerated her for a moment, then hissed and attempted to scratch Naya. I called Naya to us and started over to remove the kitten. I heard that kitten making the most horrible growling sounds and hissing, and it wanted to run off. Naya stood just a few feet away, and did an incredible bark and hold. She was so loud and everytime the cat started to move she circled around and kept it still. It was hilarious!!!! I thought I was going to die laughing, it was like she was telling the cat, "Don't you dare move, my mom's coming, and she will get rid of you!" She had no intentions of hurting that cat, but she wasn't going to allow it to run around on the farm acting like that. I picked up the kitten, who hissed at me and put her in a crate to take to the animal shelter. I watched Naya keep going to the crate, tale wiggling, saying, "Please won't you play with me" I thought I had to share that.
But back to the question at hand, I have seen some cats who just won't live with dogs. Plus cats without claws learn to bite, and my hubby says he has seen horrible cat bites on dogs, their teeth can be incredibly sharp, and make bad puncture wounds which can get badly infected. I would definitely reprimand my cat for starting an unprovoked attack on my dogs. When your rottie gets older, he may not tolerate the situation as well, and you could end up with a doggie/kittie fight.

[Wally31]

It is a concern of mine that Tuck will bite the cat and hurt him later. When called off he hesitates but does stop, he has done a lot of barking at the cat for him being a pain and has done some puppy nips mostly in the air and not actually gotten his skin in a serious manner. He is getting increasing upset with the cat though. Tuck acts out with frustration if he is not allowed to what he intends in some situations. For example I made the mistake of letting him lick my face when he was a puppy and as he got older I really didn't want him to because he got more slobbery and when I started to try getting him to quit doing it he got frustrated and would not stop until he got to lick my face and for as long as he intended. I have slowly worked it down to he just gets to lick my neck and will try to get him to lessen his need until he stops doing almost altogether. It is this kind of situation it seems for him with the cat he really just wants to smell him and see what he is all about but does not want to take no for an answer from the cat. I feel bad for him because my cat really is a miserable beast, he is a really unhappy unfriendly cat. I guess I will try to get better behavior from the cat and try a squirt bottle but he is a stubborn cat and really could care less what punishment you try to give him.

[Squeaky2004]

Sorry I had to giggle at your post! We also have a cat who seems to get much enjoyment out of harassing the dog. Our pup is almost a year old (gosh where has the time gone) and Pepper still goes after her. I have noticed though that my cat will not use her claws on the dog, she will hiss, growl the whole bit but never claws. When I get after the cat I will give a sharp "Pepper"! and Squeak will immediately come from wherever she is to make sure the cat listens to me LOL! When I ask Squeak "Where's the kitty"? She will go and find the cat and run back and forth between me and the cat. It is really cute. The dog likes to get the cat going too, I think she enjoys it! We do correct the both of them, and Pepper is getting much better (she will not attack Squeak when she is sleeping) she only does when Squeak chases her, which we are working on. I hope you get the problem solved soon, good luck.

[hmeadq]

Our cat is so stupid he will lay in the dogs crate. Then when the dog comes over and stands in the crate looking at the cat, the cat will hiss and paw at the dog. But no one ever said cats were brain surgeons.

[Daisy Duke]

we used to yell at our dogs about chasing the cat,until one day we saw what she was doing....she would hide around the corner, and as soon as the dogs were close enough she would reach up and slap the crap out of them with her paws. then as soon as they fought back, she would flee in terror. Needless to say, the dogs rarely get in trouble for chasing the cat anymore.

[rottnelmo]

Originally Posted by hmeadq

Our cat is so stupid he will lay in the dogs crate. Then when the dog comes over and stands in the crate looking at the cat, the cat will hiss and paw at the dog. But no one ever said cats were brain surgeons.

I like to think that cats aren't stupid...they are just incredibly brave. Like Bull Riders!

I would suggest working on a really good leave it. That is what works for Elmo when Pebbles gets racing around the house. Then he just sits and watches her...grinning at me, Like "I know, I cant chase...I'll just watch that crazy cat."

Put him on a leash to help reinforce it. Leave it works for so many things!!

[damp]

Originally Posted by Wally31

What is making it hard is that the cat will attack the dog while the dog sleeps. If the dog approaches the cat even just to smell him, the cat attacks him. The cat is declawed so he doesn't do much harm, but when the cat attacks, the dog wants to take chase (and who can blame him?). I don't feel like it's ok to allow the dog to chase the cat, but it's kind of hard when the cat picks fights with him. I'm afraid the dog will eventually hurt him. Any suggestions?

So if the dog is not allowed to chase the cat, why is the cat allowed to "attack" and disturb/bother your dog???

Fair is fair!

My mental picture is a bit different from RottiMomCT's.

My mental picture is, some day, the dog is munching the cat's bones and spitting out the fur!!!

Don't blame the dog for finally getting that "titbit" it deserves for being patient for days/months with a bothering cat!!!

[Wally31]

Oh, the cat is definitely not allowed to attack the dog. The cat is reprimanded also.