Have dogs adopting a cat

Hi.. and welcome to TCS!

Dogs can be surprisingly good with cats, as you've found out.

It's a really difficult question as it's totally dependent on how the dogs are.. some dogs are intrigued and gentle with kittens and more feisty with bigger cats, but it can go either way, and the wellbeing of your new cat is very important.  Young cats that get scared can take a long time to get over it, and it can affect their personality for life.

If you get a little kitten you will need to keep a very close eye on her/him and be very sure the dogs aren't rough.  It would probably be safer to go older... but you'll still need to take great care. I wouldn't leave them alone together until you're very, very sure of them, in either case. 

If your dogs are accustomed to cats then they will do just fine with a new addition.  The dogs at my parents' house get along great with the cats, including newcomers.  With the exception of Jason (the large male cat) the cats don't want much to do with Buck (the larger of the two dogs), but Alafair and Jason both love Rusty.  Rusty in turn loves cats and views them as enjoyable playmates.  When I introduced Stella (my new kitten) to them Rusty was racing in circles trying to play with her once he figured out that she was a cat, but she was terrified of him. 

I don't think that the age of cat you choose would necessarily matter, but I would look to choose one that has been around dogs before.  If you find a kitty that is ok with dogs then it would likely make the introduction go much more smoothly rather than having to desensitize a cat (of any age) to the idea of dogs in general.  With the exception of Stella every cat/kitten that has gone through our doors has been just fine with the dogs.  It took baby Jason a whole 20 minutes to go from scared of them to biting them on the butt, and some kittens that we found were climbing all over Buck the moment they saw him.  The first time Stella saw Buck she started hissing,spitting, and lashing out at him.  If you get a cat with unknown dog history you could end up going in either direction, so I would consider going through a rescue group that can provide you with a cat of the age you desire that has been exposed to dogs.

For what it's worth, we have never had a problem with either of our dogs being too rough with a kitten.  Buck is just intimidated by them, and Rusty is gentle with them when they are babies.  Then the cats grow up, and they bully the dogs!  I would encourage you to go with an older cat because they are much more difficult to adopt out, but I think you would do just fine with a kitten if you know your dogs well and monitor the interactions.