Sydney and my cats

[Boiler]

Hey all, I am slowly trying to introduce my cats to Sydney. Each night I bring one of my cats out of the basement (where they have been hiding for two weeks) and hold it in front of Sydney. I have only been doing this for a few minutes at a time each night. Sydney tends to get very worried, whines alot, and huddles behind my wife. My cat doesnt like it very much either, she hisses alot and smacked Sydney in the nose a couple of times when they were sniffing each other. I do know that Sydney will bark and try to chase the cat if we are not watching.

Do you guys think this is a good approach?

[Burnsway]

Seems Syd may be picking up on "Your" worries. Although you can't just throw the cat in there with the dog and say ok whats gonna happen...... I would maybe try a lead on syd and the cat on the ground.

Keep in mind that many dogs never accept cats and visa versa. you may have to always keep them seperated. Just part of the cycle......

[Canadianrotti]

Do your cats still have their claws?

Not that ours was the "right" approach, but we brought Raelin in when she was 8 weeks old and just let them figure it out. We made sure that the cats had a place to go to get away from the dogs if they wish.

It has been a year and Raelin still trys to play with the cats, but does not understand that they are not dogs (she has a VERY high prey drive BTW), and can not play like that. We give her a verbal correction if she gets to aggressive with them, and she backs of and tries to encourage the dogs to play.

Every situation is different, this is just how we did it and the results we got.

Good luck.

[Boiler]

Yeah the cats have a place to go, they usually spend the night with us upstairs, and the days in the basement. Sydney has not been given full run of the house yet. Both my cats have had their front claws removed. It was pretty funny when my smaller cat smacked Sydney in the nose, the first time Sydney just sat there like "Wha???" then the next smack and Sydney backed off and looked at her like "Ya do that again and I'm gonna kill you" the hole time the cat was hissing and spitting. It only lasted a couple of seconds, then I took the cat back upstairs and let Sydney calm down. It was quite amusing, at least for us if not for them.

[Bear78]

We did the same thing keeping Zeus separated from the cats unless we had a supervised meeting. We then after the meeting had Zeus on his leash and let the cats do there thing while we had Zeus do some inside training so they would get used to each other being around together in the house. After the training we would give them about 5 minutes together on the same floor of the house with us supervising ( but watching closely and not allowing chasing). Increase this time a couple minutes each night or day and it didn't take us long for them to be together. Luckily this approach worked for us and now our cats sleep next to Zeus' crate at night and during afternoon naps. But the thing to remember is that cats are stupid and dogs are smart. So the responsibility lies on training the dog to do the desired behavior.

[Tank's Grandma]

I know my cats would seriously NOT like being held out in front of the dogs....we sort of let the cats wander around, making sure they have a place to go, and do not let the dogs chase them. If they persist, then a lead goes on them. They are not friends but do coexist. Tank still tries to chase them but will stop when told, for some reason we still can't understand, Jake seems to just want to step on them

[sophie's-mom]

Originally Posted by Boiler

the first time Sydney just sat there like "Wha???" then the next smack and Sydney backed off and looked at her like "Ya do that again and I'm gonna kill you"

YEH!! There's a way to teach HARMONY..........allow your cat, that your dog doesn't seem too savvy about to begin with, to SMACK your dog. YES, that is a SURE way to get them to be friends!!!!

CHEESE AND RICE I'VE NEVER HEARD OF SUCH A THING!!!!!!

[StephanieandToby]

I guess I got lucky. I put my kitten down in front of Toby...he gave it a sniff and a lick...nudged it with his nose and then they proceeded to completely ignore each other for the next five years...until the cat passed away.

[cosmic]

I have three cats and Joey was a chaser when he arrived!! Now all three cats respect him and the two youngest may even take the liberty of eating from his bowl when he is around!! Go figure!! The secret was to keep the dog downstairs and my cats upstairs. Meetings were supervised as all cats came down to eat. At the start Joe would sit there and quiver and whine and lunge. The cats were haughty. I always made sure the cats had somewhere to get out of the way like up on a wall unit. They eyed him warily for about 6 weeks. He got used to smelling them in 'joint rooms' (increasing the areas gradually when supervision was guaranteed) eventually came the day he was off lead in the garden and my only outside cat (other 2 never go out if they can help it) stalked outside. Joe went to chase I shouted no!! Things got smoother and smoother between them. Now they cuddle up together on the dogs bed and can safely be left together in the same room.

Joe is protective of them now.

Takes time... I would never force either party into an 'in your face' meeting they need to understand IF there is a threat. Once no threat is established they can quite often become friends.

[Carol Burke]

I recently acquired a feral kitty named Sydney. I have four dogs, two are not cat friendly. I started with the kitty in a dog crate and the dogs loose so they could get used to the smell of the kitty. Then the kitty went to a covered x-pen where the dogs could see him better and get used to him being there. I never forced any interaction between the dogs and the kitty. Five months later they are all buddies, cat has the run of the house with the dogs, he does have a place he can go to be away from the dogs, but all are fine together. It just takes a lot of patience, don't try to force the situation.

[jbach]

Originally Posted by Tank's Grandma

I know my cats would seriously NOT like being held out in front of the dogs....we sort of let the cats wander around, making sure they have a place to go, and do not let the dogs chase them. If they persist, then a lead goes on them. They are not friends but do coexist. Tank still tries to chase them but will stop when told,

Ditto for us. Cat gets very curious, wants to sniff the dogs, dogs want to sniff the cat. They co-exist, but the cat can feel ganged up on sometimes because there's two dogs. The cat always has an escape route, and we settle the dogs if they look like they're about to be wound up.....The best way to let them meet is on their own. Don't force the cat and vice-versa. Make sure the cat can get to a safe haven, and have control of your dog. They may never like each other, but can co-exist happily in the same house. Or your dog may eat the cat. Proceed with caution.....

[Carol Burke]

The dog that really hated cats now allows the kitty to rub against her and she gives the kitty kisses.

[Lorrie]

This is article has some good advise .. while I might not condon all the tactics used.


Rescue Dogs and Cats (by Ellen O'Connell)
Introducing the new Rottie to your cats should be done slowly and in your home.
This section describes the method I have used to teach several adult foster Rottweilers that lived in my home for periods ranging from one to four months to peacefully coexist with my cats. Two of the dogs I fostered were adopted by homes that also had cats specifically because the dogs had learned to behave around cats while with me. The dogs easily adjusted to the cats in their new homes.
However, in reading this section, keep in mind that these particular dogs were each totally non-aggressive toward humans and accepted correction without dominant posturing or resistance. Also, my cats were raised with dogs, and the fact that they neither hide and refuse to show themselves nor behave aggressively towards a new dog is very helpful in teaching the dog how to behave. There are going to be dogs that will not learn to live safely with cats. If you work carefully with a dog for more than a week and see no improvement in behavior at all, make an honest assessment. You may have a dog that is not going to accept cats. There are also cats that are never going to accept dogs and will never live happily and comfortably in a house with dogs. If this describes your cat, you also need to make an honest assessment — is it fair to expect your cat to live in fear or plagued by nerves for the rest of her life? If you believe you have a rescue dog and a cat or cats that can learn to live together, the method I have used successfully follows.
I approach this training with the attitude that the cat is totally vulnerable and it is the dog that must learn self-control. I bring the dog into the house on a leash, wearing a collar that I know will let me control the dog, even if it lunges full strength, which for me means a prong. My cats hide or watch new dogs from high perches for a day or two, which gives the dog a chance to get used to the scent of cat and realize that there are cats present in the house. However, after that initial period, my cats take the attitude that it's their home. They stop hiding and start just walking around or even laying right on the floor tempting the dog. If your cat continues to hide, you may need to confine and protect the cat for short lesson periods in a large crate or devise some way to protect the cat yet expose the dog and cat to each another enough for learning to take place.
I discipline any attempt to "go for a cat" verbally with the harsh AAHHT AAHHT sound and use the collar and leash to keep the dog from getting near the cat. If that doesn't impress the dog, I use collar corrections and/or a squirt bottle with lemon juice when the dog goes for a cat. I am not gentle or forgiving about this. Dogs learn very quickly that the single thing they can do that really brings down the roof is go for a cat. Most rescue dogs coming into a new situation are very eager to please. Take advantage of that attitude.
When quick and violent lunges towards the cat stop, I tether the dog to my belt and just go about my business in the house. Remember to praise any sign of self-control or improvement in behavior and to discourage any lunging, stalking, or intense focus. When the dog, still on leash, shows enough self-control to stop making sudden lunges even when the cat moves quickly or jumps up or down from furniture, I let the dog off leash but confine him in one room with me using baby gates. I do this in the kitchen first and have baby gates that use pressure outward towards the doorframe to stay in place, positioning them with enough room underneath so the cats can easily run under. Make sure there are also high places a cat can go if necessary or solid furniture that will provide a safe haven underneath.
Your dog should be past lunging for the cat at this point. Use a squirt of lemon juice if the dog starts towards to the cat at all, shows stalking behavior, or focuses too intently for any period of time. Try to switch to only a sharp corrective sound almost immediately, and try to use that sound when the dog is first thinking about moving toward the cat, not after he has already started to move. Break up the staring behavior with a sharp word, with a diversion such as a toy or a short training session on "sit" or another desirable behavior.
Never, ever leave the dog loose in the house with the cat. Not even if the cat is asleep in a ceiling high perch and you only need to shake a rug on the back porch. You can teach the dog in several short sessions a day if you are persistent. Give yourself, the dog, and the cat relief from the intensity of the learning experience by simply crating the dog or shutting the cat in a safe room when you cannot concentrate on the dog. If you have children or others in the house that might forget, open that door and risk an accident, put a safety latch on the door up high.
You can watch your dog progress with its self-control, on the leash, then loose. First, they become able to control themselves when the cat is in sight but not moving, then they become able to control themselves if the cat moves, but not too fast. Finally, they become able to control themselves if the cat jumps or zips by. Mine all went through a stage of starting when the cat moved suddenly, which was I think the urge to chase kicking in, then being immediately reversed by an, "Uh oh, better not, or she'll be all over me." If you see this behavior, praise the dog for its self-control. After the first couple of days of correcting motion toward the cat, start breaking up obsessive staring and focusing on the cat. I do not correct the staring behavior so much as divert it at first. Once the self-control is at the point the dog is physically controlling himself in one room even when the cat moves, I concentrate more on eliminating the staring behavior and use a verbal correction if it becomes intense.
When the staring stops, even when you are still working only in a limited space in one room, you can be sure you have a dog that is going to learn to live with cats. I adopted one of my fosters. Baron was the most difficult of the fosters to teach about cats. He took longer in each stage than any of the other foster dogs, but I knew he was going to be all right the day he was laying in the kitchen and my cat Toes starting chasing her tail right there and he ignored her. When your dog has progressed to that point, you can start letting the dog into more than one room at a time. Don't give so much freedom that you cannot still reinforce good behavior and correct bad behavior. For instance, I don't let dogs upstairs while I am downstairs.
Of the four foster dogs I have taken through this procedure, the initial leashed stage took a week to ten days. The off-leash but one room stage took from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. If you already have a dog that is good with cats and that continues her own good behavior during this time, it will help you. I believe it helped me that I have an older dog that has been brought up with cats and knows better than to even think about hassling them
While the rescues I had that went to other cat homes adjusted to different cats easily, you need to be aware that generally dogs distinguish very finely between their own cats and the rest of the world's cats. They see no reason to treat strange cats like their own. Also, after a dog learns to behave with cats inside, outside is a whole different proposition. Baron, the rescue I adopted myself, took about three months before I stopped even thinking about the cats' safety in the house. He came to live with me in the fall. Once good weather arrived, I had to work just as hard with him outside. (The cats only go out for a couple of hours in the middle of the day on weekends when I'm home.)
This may sound like an awful lot of trouble, but I was very worried about bringing strange adult dogs into the house when I first volunteered to foster rescue Rottweilers. I was surprised and delighted at how quickly each dog progressed and how each one learned that harassing cats was an absolute no-no. These adult rescue Rotties of unknown backgrounds actually have learned more quickly and more thoroughly than puppies I've raised — probably because I've never been as absolutely careful and tough with puppies because they aren't a threat to the cats.
Choose your rescue dog with your own requirements in mind. Then be careful, be tough and consistent, and you too can have your rescue Rottie sleeping quietly next to your cat.

[Babes]

I brought Babe home when she was 12 weeks old and introduced her right away to my 10 year old cat "Cheemo" and our kitten "Sky". Needless to say, Cheemo looked at me with the look of "What are you doing to me?" The kitten loved Babe. They have been best friends ever since. Even though Babe could step on that poor kitten with no problem now, they still love each other. Anyways, Babe is now 8 months old, and Cheemo still has not taken to her. He will walk up to her when she is sleeping, but if Babe crosses her path too quickly, or surprises Cheemo, Cheemo gives her the "claw slap" on the nose. Babe knows though, to give him room, and all three of them live pretty happily together. I never tried to keep any of them apart at any time. I knew that they would figure out what they were comfortable with eventually, and there have never been any fights. Even though all three aren't friends, they all love "Mom and Dad". Many nights, Babe will be resting on the couch with us, and the two cats will join no problem, all within inches of each other.
Something I just remembered, was when I got Babe spayed. I brought her home and she was sick for two days. She just layed on her bed and wouldn't move. Cheemo noticed she wasn't well, and stayed by her most of the time, smelling her and looking over her - until she was feeling better. It was sweet.

[rottnelmo]

I got a non-dog savvy cat and had a non-cat savvy dog...so I posted here and got lots of GREAT advice.

Heres my thread: http://rottweiler.net/forums/showthread.php?t=33353

We put a gate across a room, put her litter box and food in there...so she had a safe place to go and when she was ready she came out and investigated. Zoey whacked Elmo once (on her own terms, we werent holding her) and then it was all over. Elmo respected her and let her be. I dont allow chasing of cats and I didnt allow her to beat up Elmo (she lives with my ex now).