moving to new home with dogs

Hi there!

So I'm moving from Thailand to UK with my cat in July. She will be 2 and I found her at 2 weeks old, its just been me and her for 2 year's in a small apartment. She gets upset going anywhere ie. the vets. I've already got her crate for training for the flight but I'm really worried about when I get home.

I'm moving back to my mum as I'll have no job etc and she has 5 chihuahuas!!! My thoughts were to keep her away in my room at first until she gets used to the new surroundings and maybe introduce her to one dog at a time for short periods.

I'm really worried she's going to freak out and be really stressed by this new situation. My dream is that she'll be bigger than them so eventually she will boss them about and not be scared!

If anyone could give me advice or tips on what to do I'd really appreciate it!!

Thanks

Hi @panda27,  ...is there any way you can convince your mom to 'harness train' the chihuahuas?

This would help in controlling them, when you are first going to do 'cat to dog introductions' with your 2 year old cat.

Your idea of keeping your cat safe in your room is a good one, and introducing her slowly, to one dog, at a time, is also good.

Just do this extremely slowly, over a period of weeks to months, if necessary. That way all the animals will have gotten to hear each other, then scent introductions, then seeing each other.

Here is an Article that talks about slow steps in introducing cats to dogs:

 [article="29682"]Introducing Cats To Dogs​[/article]      ....some of the tips may help, but skip the tips where they suggest choke collars on dogs, or anything which you find would not work for your breed.

                                                    Sometimes Articles will trigger other ideas for you, to try out, and do not necessarily have to be followed to the letter.

I especially like the 'cat to cat introduction' article...even if it's not talking about cats-to-dogs...since it gives good methods of scent swapping, slow intros, doing it in steps, so that all the animals are relaxed, before actually meeting.

 [article="32680"]How To Successfully Introduce Cats The Ultimate Guide​[/article] ...of course, you won't be feeding dogs or cats near each other, but some of the scent-swapping might help.

Having a dog crate is also useful, since you can put any animal in it, and keep that animal protected from each other, while at the same time observing how the animals react.

You don't want to stress any animal, and so the introductions have to be done extremely slowly, from weeks to months.

(It took me 5-6 months to finally get my lab puppy to not try and chase the cats. He was on a long training lead most of the time, and the cats had the upper floor, separated by a 'baby gate' so he could not chase them.)

Some folks have mentioned Feliway sprays and plugs-ins, to help calm cats, but I have not used them. It might be worth researching, and asking your vet about them.

 [product="18452"]Comfort Zone With Feliway Spray For Cats​[/product]  

Good Luck to you and your cat.

I knew a lady who bred them she had the males wear  Belly bands  no marking, very low aggression even though none were fixed.

Hi sorry for the late response!! I will read those articles thanks!

My cat hates catnip and not really effected by feliway as i used it when i first moved into my apartment but it can do no harm trying it again! ![emoji]128522[/emoji]