HELP! My Sister is visiting with her new dog...

...And I am worried sick about how my kitten Kiwi is going to react. (Seriously I was up all night thinking about this) I don't want to tell her to leave the dog at home, because I know it will hurt her feelings.

What do I do? How do I make sure the weekend goes smoothly? I don't think its fair to bannish Kiwi to a certian part of the house for the weekend, it is HER house afterall, and she has ALWAYS had free roam of it. On the other hand, it is not fair to crate the poor dog all weekend either.

The ONLY other time Kiwi has seen a dog, she was TERRIFIED and that dog was the best mannered dog I have ever seen.

I know this may seem silly to some (maybe even most) people, but I am seriously freaking out about this......

Why is your sister bringing her dog to your house? If your cat is afraid of dogs, she should be leaving the dog at home and coming to visit you alone.

Do you have more than one bedroom? If the dog is housetrained, how about keeping the dog in one room? Let her out only on a leash, and if she gets too excited at the sight of the kitty, put her back in the room...Please, please, please, don't feel too badly about keeping the dog in a separate room; she is a guest and sometimes you have to make different arrangements for guests, especially of the pet sort...I am always happy when other people allow my pets to join me at their home, but I don't expect them to be able to run freely like they do at home...

IF it were my cats, between someone else's dogs, or even my dogs over someone else's dogs...it's my dogs and my cats, I make different accommodations for the guests, but mine are the residents, and I shouldn't have to make different accommodations for them "just" because their cousins are coming to stay with us!!Lol! Just my perspective!

I remember several years ago when an aunt visited and brought her pomeranian. He was a very nice dog that did come from a household with a cat and we had dogs - though, larger ones.

One of our cats took offense to the fluffy little trespasser and attacked. The dog's fur saved it from bites.

Lesson - your cat may not only be scared but may switch into defending it's territory (including you). Don't let them meet if that's a possibility.

Its your house, its the cat's house. The dog is the visitor. Either the dog stays in the bedroom or in a crate or another place where the cat is safe from him as he won't know the dog.

You could always ask your sister to bring a baby gate with her (a tall one if it is a bigger dog) and put the dog in a bedroom, kitchen, laundry room, whatever - just far away from your kitty's food and litterbox . That way, the cat would be able to roam, the dog could still see and/or hear you and your sister, the cat can eyeball the dog whenever she's feeling brave, and if it is a well behaved dog, maybe they could get used to each other. Just a thought , especially if the dog (or any dogs) would be visiting you on a fairly regular basis. Whatever you decide, good luck!

You know what? The weekend went surprisingly well. The dog was actually very calm (never chased, or barked or anything) and Kiwi is one brave kitty!! She surveyed the situation from the top of her tree, and once she decided that she could take on the dog, she was right there investigating. She hissed at him a couple of times and the dog immediately retreated and Kiwi actually went into his crate to snoop around. It was almost like she was telling him "You back off dog, and let me check this out....alright, I guess you can stay if you must...." Then she just went about her business. After everyone left, Kiwi gave the house a good once-over, and then flopped down on the couch and napped. Thank you everyone for your advice. I love this place!!

I worry about her feelings all the time. Especially when she is weaving around my feet and I accidently kick her or something. (or roll over in bed and send her tumbling to the floor) I always feel so bad, and apologize to her over and over. My husband thinks itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s ridiculous. Even my sister wanted to just throw the cat and dog together and let them "sort it out". I think Kiwi knew that I was uneasy about the whole thing, and thatâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s why she was so brave about it.