Kitten Attacking Dog

After initial introductions between our now 15 week old kitten and an 8 year old malamute, the kitten would still hiss if the dog got close, but didn't seem too bothered by her. Our other 3 year old cat has literally never had a problem with this dog. While the dog sometimes wanted to chase him if he ran, we managed to curb this behavior by putting her in time out when this happened. He doesn't run from the dog at all, and will walk right under her. The worst she does to him now is lick him thoroughly if he gets close enough.

The kitten does not have the same relationship with the dog. I definitely thought things were getting better since she was only hissing at the dog occasionally if the dog got close. Yesterday, the kitten ran at or by the dog (not entirely sure), which caused the dog to react. This escalated into dog barking and going after the kitten, while the kitten attacked the dog. Yelling "No" was enough to get both of them fleeing in opposite directions. Now the kitten is growling and hostile to the dog, while the dog seems to be intent on watching her, but not actively stalking her or attacking her.

I'm wondering if the kitten might be following in her mother's footsteps? The foster mom who had her litter and the mother cat was having lots of problems with the mother cat viciously attacking her dog when the dog would literally just lay on the floor doing nothing. When we were looking at the kittens all of them reacted to the dog by growling and running away from her. 

How do I change this behavior? I just started giving the kitten full range of the house during the day and now I will have to separate the cats and the dog until I can get this behavior controlled again.

Separating them is best for now. And, likely need to restart introductions, going slower this time.

How long have you had the kitten? What introduction steps did you follow and for how long did you do each step?

The fact that the kitten already had a negative association with a dog before it came into your home means it is likely to take longer than a few weeks for them to really tolerate each other. It may take months. And, honestly, some cats will never tolerate dogs.

From personal experience, my cats were not raised around dogs. But, I inherited a large breed dog about 2 yrs ago. The dog was 6 at the time and had no prior experience with cats in a home environment and would bark at and chase the cats every chance he got.

We did training with the dog and put up baby gates to keep the dog confined to a specific area of the house. This allowed the cats to interact with the dog if they chose; but, they also knew that the dog could not go into certain parts of the house.

2 years later, the dog is great around the cats; BUT, about half of the cats are still not comfortable around the dog and may never be.

Do you have cat trees or wall shelves in the parts of the house where the dog and cats will interact? I know my cats feel safer when they are elevated above the reach of the dog.

Feliway diffusers and calming collars may also be beneficial.

We've had her five weeks. We started by having her in a dog crate in a room that the dog didn't go in. Kept her in there for about a week while working on introductions with our other cat. Then she started being out all of the time, though most of her time was spent in the rooms that the dog will not go into, since she didn't want the dog within a foot of her. In the rooms with the dog, there is plenty to jump up on. She also retreats to under furniture if she feels uncomfortable or just wants to explore.

She has slowly started to explore more which means ending up in other rooms of the house where the dog is.  She was never unsupervised for the next three weeks, and left in the dog crate while we were gone. This week she has been out unsupervised during the day. 

Since attacking the dog she has calmed down a lot about her today, just hissing (without any sound so just opening her mouth if the dog looks at her directly, or gets too close). We're going to keep them separate while we're not home for a while to see if this helps. Maybe something happened that scared her. 

I think @CatPack gave some great advice about using the baby gates, and having cat trees plus cat shelves, so that your kitten could always jump up, and also just lay higher, to observe what is going on in the room....that way she would feel safer.

Since you already have the vertical spaces, for her to escape to, then the next thing that may help, is using a long 'training leash' on the dog, just so your dog does not get too excited, and run at the kitten.

I actually think that what is happening, is that both animals are trying to play with each other, but because they have not yet learned each other's 'signals', then the dog's attempts at play, are being too soon, and too scary for the kitten, and so she reacted by attacking the dog. You're right about the kitten learning by example from her mom, but since you also have a 3 year old cat, that is not bothered by the dog, at all, then I think the kitten will learn from your 3 year old cat's behaviour, around the dog, too.

(It's kind of adorable that your dog will give tongue baths to your 3 year old cat. I don't think my cat would ever allow that, but the visual is cute.)

Yes, you definitely have to keep them separated, in their own safe rooms, when you are not at home, and then for the next while, keep good supervision on the dog and kitten.  Kittens can actually be quite pushy,  when it comes to dogs, and some will try to intimidate, and play-bully a dog, but usually will only attack if cornered, or no escape routes are there.  This little gal sounds rather feisty, so I'm glad that she does not try to push the 3 year old cat around.

Perhaps, like you said something happened, when you were not at home, that scared her, and so it will take extra time to adjust, and trust each other. 

(I'm curious if you've chosen a name yet for the little one, and what's the dog's and other cat's names?)

Oh, and is the dog's barking at the kitten vicious sounding, or more of a high pitched bark ?...as in does it sound like the dog got all growly and upset?

Most of the time the dog (Luna) will just lay there. She certainly understands that the kitten (Angua) boundaries differ from those of my other cat (Carrot). While Carrot will allow exactly three licks, before meowing and walking away, Angua is having no part of the tongue baths and hisses slightly if the dog gets too near. Luna will lay there as the kitten goes by and lick the air in the kitten's general direction. 

I will definitely keep the two separate when we are not home and keep a very close eye when they do go into the same room. 

I was in the other room when the whole cat dog squabble happened. The dog barked only once (she never barks ever) but it was more of a high pitched bark than a angry one. It definitely sounded like the dog was very upset and tried to grab the cat before my mom told hem both no.

It definitely never seems to be the dog instigating anything. She will just be laying on the floor and the cat will approach her slowly. If the dog notices the cat, then she hisses. She actually has trained the dog at this point to look away from her whenever she walks into a room. The dog doesn't seem bothered or nervous around the kitten until the cat and kitten are playing by racing around the house. 

The reason that the dog licks things so much is because she had puppies when she was about a year old, right before we rescued her.

Ahhh, your dog Luna sounds quite affectionate, and now I get that she has that maternal instinct, and likes to lick the older cat, Carrot.  Yup, "exactly three licks"...sounds about right for your cat Carrot to allow. (Actually, I have no idea about the dog licking the cat, but I still think that it's an adorable sight.)        Carrot sounds very laid back.

I'm not sure about the prey drive in a Malamute dog, because I only have a black Lab/Retriever mix, who still likes to chase squirrels but has been taught to leave our cats and other outdoor cats alone.  It took a good 6-8 months until I was finally sure that our dog would not bolt after the cats. 

I always had to use the 'long training leash' with Floppy the dog, and then he too, like your Luna, learned to 'turn his head' when the cats would come walking into the room, and approached him.  That must be entirely the dog telling the cats that he does not want to instigate anything, either, and just submits to everything being peaceful.  He would seem to get my previous rainbow cat back, in that he would try to chase the cat around the kitchen, and other rooms in a playful way, but would entirely stop on a dime, and actually back up if the cat would turn. This happened after they really got to know each other, probably a year later.

The only concern is to keep the dog under control, and not allow Luna to try to run at Angua, but if Luna responds to the "no" and "freeze" command...such as "down/stop/freeze" (whichever word you use), then I think that the kitten Angua will learn not to fear the dog, when she sees that Luna stops.  It is difficult to "referee" and supervise them all the time, but it really is important in the first few months, or longer, of their cat-dog introductions, and the animals learning to co-exist phase.  Also, difficult to know what actually happens when you don't see it, and often times I think it was my reaction that sometimes made things worse, in that I had to balance out protecting the cats from the dog, but then doing the reverse, and not getting the dog to get jealous, or think that the cats would get away with everything, either. A few times I saw one of the cats bop the dog on the nose, for seemingly no reason, and then the cat would be put in 'time-out', depending on the situation.

You'll do well, because you have already noticed the small details about how they behave around each other.   It's a little tiring in the beginning, but so worth it, when they all join you in the same room, watching t.v., reading, or just relaxing.  I'm sure that Angua will learn to trust Luna the dog, in time, but probably won't want Luna to be overly affectionate, or too close, just yet.  Good Luck with your fur gang.

So we tried reintroduction and the kitten and dog were doing great for a few days. They would hang out in the same room and the kitten didn't even hiss at the dog. Then today when the dog and cat were in the same space the kitten attacked her again. The dog was just laying in a sun spot and the kitten ran out from under the couch and attacked her. The dog jumped up and barked multiple times at her again. The kitten refused to back down hissing, spitting, growling, and swiping at the dog. Even though she had places to jump up and retreat she did not.

I will start reintroduction again. Keeping them apart is just so difficult since she hates being confined to one room and it seems to damage her relationship to my other cat when she is confined.

NewYork1303 said:

 
So we tried reintroduction and the kitten and dog were doing great for a few days. They would hang out in the same room and the kitten didn't even hiss at the dog. Then today when the dog and cat were in the same space the kitten attacked her again. The dog was just laying in a sun spot and the kitten ran out from under the couch and attacked her. The dog jumped up and barked multiple times at her again. The kitten refused to back down hissing, spitting, growling, and swiping at the dog. Even though she had places to jump up and retreat she did not.

I will start reintroduction again. Keeping them apart is just so difficult since she hates being confined to one room and it seems to damage her relationship to my other cat when she is confined.

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@NewYork1303    In this last situation I think the kitten Angua should have been put into a 'time-out', for a short period of time, or maybe whisked out of the room...using a towel between you and the kitten.

The thing with re-introductions, is to get the dog and cat used to each other's scent and presence, so that their 'fight or flight', or fear response does not kick in and take over.

You might have to play a lot with kitten Angua, and get her really tired, so that she does not want to pounce onto Luna the dog.  Wand toys are the best for tiring out a kitten.

Could you describe the kitten and dog attacks a little more?  Does the kitten Angua seem to be trying to exert dominance over Luna the dog, or does it seem like playfighting, playacting?  Does Angua play fight with Carrot?

Have you read any of the Articles on TCS....which I just noticed are also in the "Cats and Other Animals" Section of the Forums...in the Blue Sticky Section.

http://www.thecatsite.com/f/41/cats-and-other-animals

They might help with offering some tips and suggestions about cat and dog situations.

The other thing that might help is reading other threads in the Cats and Other Animals section, to get some new ideas.

I think that this is quite a common problem, and just will take plenty of time and patience.

I've been reading threads to get more information for sure. She was put into a time out. I picked her up and locked her in her dog crate for a while. The dog seems genuinely upset by the attacks rather than aggressive, I just worry that she will try to protect herself and hurt the kitten since she is so much smaller than the dog. I think it seems like the cat is trying to impose dominance. It seems like the cat wanted the sun spot and decided to chase the dog away for it.

NewYork1303 said:

 
I've been reading threads to get more information for sure. She was put into a time out. I picked her up and locked her in her dog crate for a while. The dog seems genuinely upset by the attacks rather than aggressive, I just worry that she will try to protect herself and hurt the kitten since she is so much smaller than the dog. I think it seems like the cat is trying to impose dominance. It seems like the cat wanted the sun spot and decided to chase the dog away for it.

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Oh, my....this is not a funny situation at all, but I picture a small kitten being foolish, and trying to chase a larger dog away for the special sun spot.

So you don't think it was playing, then?  Does Angua get those crazy 'zoomies' and start chasing and running around, and acting all bold?  Kittens have the greatest, and shortest burst of energy, but can be pretty stubborn, too.

I forgot to ask, if she was spayed, because hormones do indeed have a strong role in the cat's development and interactions.

If it is the kitten trying to impose dominance, then yes, the only thing to do is have 'baby gates' to separate them for now, and each will have to have their own space.  It is difficult to judge when to intervene, because I agree with you about the dog being much bigger and able to hurt the kitten very easily, but the kitten has to also learn how to act around the dog.

I would go with your first instinct, then, and try the introductions over again, and see if going slower and separating from the dog helps Angua learn not to chase the dog.

Another thing that you can possibly try is harness training for Angua in the house.  That way your kitten is kept under control, while you are all in the room together. It might be worth a shot, just to see how Angua reacts.  She'll hate it at first, but might warm up to it in time.

She was spayed at 11 weeks at the shelter that I got her from. She does do zoomies with my other cat and they run around and wrestle and play (they're actually doing it right now).  I think as a teenage cat now she is just pressing boundaries. I know that she has been doing that to us and the older cat, seeing how far she can go without us stopping playtime. I suspect that she does have genuine worry about the dog based on the fact that she is bigger, but she only seems to get scared after the dog barks (which she never does unless the cat attacks her).

I have a harness for her and we have been working on training her to wear it. This definitely seems like something that would be helpful for introducing her to the dog.