Dog or no dog?

hello,

Is this alright? Me and my husband as a big backyard.Have two cats. Would be alright to get a dog? my nextdoor neighbor has two dogs. Would I have to
keep the dog outside or in side? Of corse my husband will build a nice dog house. If i do get a dog would it be better to take my cats to the pound? or leave them home?
Thanks.


birdie

wow... i had to read that twice... You do mean take them with you to the pound to meet the new dog dont you?

I hope you do.

I dont see anything wrong with getting a dog as long as you can care for it. Make sure its good with kitties and introduce them all the right way.

(There is no such thing as an outside dog.) There are dogs who live indoors and go out to play and there are dogs who are neglected and lonely. So I vote for inside with lots of outside play time!

Good Luck!

If you're talking about taking the kitties to the pound with you when you pick out your dog, I would suggest no, that would be way to stressful for them, with all those strange smells and dogs probably barking like crazy
Have your cats ever been directly around dogs? how do they react to the ones next door? i agree with Stormysmom about having an inside dog with outside playtime, because dogs are pack animals and happiest when they can be with the leaders of the pack, namely you and your husband. The only advice i can give you is to research the type of dog that the shelter workers "think" the dog is too determine if it may or may not be good with cats, terriers are usually not because they are hunters and cats present as prey to them, notice i said usually. As much as pound puppies need rescuing i would recommend looking into a rescue group that home fosters their dogs so that you know if they are possibly good with cats, if you adopt from a rescue group, that opens a foster space for them to rescue a dog from the pound too

Dogs and cats can coexist without trouble. I'll leave the cat issue to those that know more than I.

If you do get a dog please dont leave it outside all of the time. Dogs are pack animals and you and your husband will be his pack members. He will need lots of love, attention, and most likely obedience training which works wonders for socialization. A dog is a huge commitment, much more than a cat, so think deep and hard about making such a decision.

I have two dogs and eight cats and they all get along fine.

I am also confused about taking the cats to the pound. Do you mean to get rid of them because you feel a dog would not get along with them? I sure hope not.

If you are considering getting a dog I would try to find an older dog from the pound. Perhaps around three to four years (depending on the breed) so they are past the "puppy" stage. You can also look only at dogs that are used to being around cats. The pound should have small info cards on each dog so you can find out if it is okay around cats. Some dogs are not.

You can also try the puppy route so it can be socialized with the cats but I personal think an older and calmer dog would be better to introduce to a household with cats.

Good Luck !

We never get rid of our cats. We were looking on petfinder.com and saw a 1 year old lab/yellow. At 1 year is that puppy hood or not. We were talking about like leaving it outside when we are gone. With A LOT OF WATER!!! we have chain fence. like a front yard.

Originally Posted by KittyLova

We never get rid of our cats. We were looking on petfinder.com and saw a 1 year old lab/yellow. At 1 year is that puppy hood or not. We were talking about like leaving it outside when we are gone. With A LOT OF WATER!!! we have chain fence. like a front yard.

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usually labs are pretty laidback so i believe thy are one of the better breeds with cats, but ask his foster or a shelter worker if they know for sure, he might have been a stray and then they'll have no idea, but it doesn't hurt to ask.... a year old is till technically a puppy, but not crazy puppy. About leaving him outside, to me it depends on how long you'll be gone and if you'll have proper shelter for him, I know you mentioned you husband would build a doghouse... most people crate their dogs when not home so I honestly don't see how leaving him outside on a lead with water and shelter is any different but some dogs will bark and create a ruckus, so you'll need t oconsider your neighbors if you take that route

Hi! We have 3 cats and 3 dogs... We've never had a problem with the cats and dogs living together. However, our dogs are indoor/outdoor dogs that are VERY well trained. I certainly suggest that if you are to get a dog to MAKE SURE it is trained and will listen to you. If our dogs weren't trained I couldn't tell you what kind of mess we would be in. We have VERY good loved dogs and VERY good loved cats. I can't remember who said it, but dogs are MUCH bigger responsibility than cats.

Good luck with your decision!

Can you tell me what kind of dogs you have?

only time i would leave the house if i would have to go food shopping or take my animals to petsmart,vet,exc.

Originally Posted by KittyLova

Can you tell me what kind of dogs you have?

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I personally have a Lhasa Apso and an English Cocker Spaniel, but of whom are good to excellent with the cats, but neither of which are outside dogs, even part time

Originally Posted by KittyLova

only time i would leave the house if i would have to go food shopping or take my animals to petsmart,vet,exc.

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Ok, I can say i wouldn't see anything wrong with putting the dog outside in a fenced yard for that amount of time

I have big brindle dogs... They prefer to be outdoors... if we leave them inside too long they complain. *shrugs* just depends on the dog I suppose, we have an acre for them to run out in, they like it

This is the male, Bandit

our female, Brown Sugar

Lots of great ideas have been posted. I would also suggest that if you get a dog, you sign up for the dog obedience classes at Petsmart or Petco. That will help you learn a lot about your dog, and how to teach it to behave.

The rescues may show their dogs at Petco and Petsmart, on Saturdays. I know I have often seen some dog rescues there when I was at kitty adoption shows. You wouldn't need to introduce the dog and cat at the shelter or adoption show, but just check with the foster home to see if the dog was good with cats.

I think labs are a good breed for first time dog owners. They are generally good dogs.

They are so cute!!!

I have a lab and cats - labs are VERY people oriented. They do not like being left alone - especially outside. When you are gone, keep the lab inside the house in a crate/cage till he/she can be trusted. They go thru the "teenager" stage from about 8 months to 14-16 months where they forget all they've learned. Its the most trying time for training; they still are in the puppy mode.

Most labs are turned into the shelters at that age. Almost every lab loves people and other animals. Check with the shelter first to see if this lab is ok with cats. And make sure you get the lab into training if he/she is not already trained.

You don't want to leave the lab tied up outside even with water and unsupervised. That's the best way to have your dog stolen!

Our dogs live outside and are perfectly happy. I dont understand people who think its wrong to keep pets outside. THEY ARE ANIMALS!! I would definitly recommend getting 2 dogs to people who want outside dogs so they have company and you need a big backyard. we also have a basement which can be accessed from a door in the backyard which has a doggy door on it so they can go in the airconditioned/heated basement in harsh weather (heat, rain, snow, cold etc.) as they please. Some dogs just arent house dogs. Our dogs get crazy and spastic inside. They get all hyper and break stuff. I undersand keeping cats inside all the time because they arent safe outside, they can climb fences and go out in the street but i dont think its awful to keep certain cats outside, i just wouldnt do it but some dogs are fine and happy as clams outside. (i mean not all breeds can go outdoors) anyway i think it a little ridiculous to think all dogs kept outside with company and plenty of shade and water are neglected and lonely.

I've got four cats and two dogs and they co-exist very well.

Please don't get a pit bull or Rottweiler (for the usual reasons!), and it might not be a good idea to get a terrier (except for i.e. a Maltese) because they tend to herd anything in sight, cats included!

Terriers do NOT herd everything - shelties/collies do. Terriers are diggers and are bred for killing rats, etc. Jack Russels can be one of the worse with cats - they are unpredictable. You may have a JRT for years with no problems and one day their instincts take over and they will hurt the cat. Our lab message board had a web link about this problem taken from a JRT message board - so they do know what they are talking about.

Labs are not meant to be outside dogs all the time. They are too people oriented to be put in the backyard/kennel and not have attention. IMO why have a dog if you don't want it to be inside and part of the family? Why treat dogs different then cats?

There are some breeds of dogs that do prefer to be outside - some of the other hounds (like foxhounds) and some of the husky types, but labs are NOT a dog that wants to be outside away from their people pack.

ok.i wont keep it outside