Introducing anxious dog to resident cats

[Maggiez]

My husband just adopted a dog Freya. She is a Husky Pit bull mix that’s 2 year old. I was on board because she looked very mellow at the shelter and she doesn’t bark. The shelter told me she’s fine with cats because she’s afraid of them. But after adoption, I leaned that Husky has high prey drive and is dangerous to cats.

Right now we separate Freya in her own room on the second floor. She is not house trained, not leash trained, has separation anxiety, and is nervous about almost everything. It has been tough because we need to take her to back yard every two hours for bathroom break. It’s only been 5 days and she also encountered with my cats because it’s very hard to isolate all three my cats when we need to take her out. Two of my cats are curious about her, and can approach quite close (I always put Freya on leash of course). Sometimes they block the stairs and stare at her, and she just walked quickly by them and not looking at them. But there was a few times that she pulled very hard to approach my cats which makes me worry. Today, I cracked the door open so they can kinda see each other. Freya was relaxed and lay on the floor, and didn’t react to my cat smacking at the door.

I know I’m breaking all the rules of introduction. My cats are young (1 year old) and very bossy and playful. And Freya has been sweet as long as she’s with us. That’s why I even tried letting them kinda meet shortly after scent swapping. Do you think these are good signs that they potentially can get alone? Frankly I’m a bit stressed to figure it out sooner than later because I cannot keep a dog that might harm my cats. I hate to send her back to the shelter but my cats safety comes first.

Next step I plan to let the cats meet Freya when she becomes a bit more relaxed in the crate. I’m just worried that the cat appearance would make her anxiety issue even worse… also it’s very stressful for us these days since one of us has to be in the dog room, otherwise she will become panic and soil the room within 5 minutes. I feel so bad that I cannot spend time with my cats and I make them so stressed as well. I want to be able to walk in my house with the dog on a leash, so I can get my daily life a bit normal again. But I’m not sure if it’s too soon.

Any advice and suggestions are very welcome

 

[Maggiez]

Forgot to mention, my two cats always sit outside of the dog room and tried to get in when I open door to come out. Both have tried smack at the door and hiss. My husband and I are on either side of the door giving them treats for positive association. So far they are all curious about either other but my cats are definitely trying to show dominance.

 

[sunny578]

I think it's great that you are being cautious, but I also wouldn't put too much stock in the high prey drive of Huskies, especially since your dog is a mix. I have a dog (pit bull mix) with a high prey drive with other animals outside of our house, but inside, she is very respectful of our two cats.

To me, it sounds like it is going very well! The fact that Freya is anxious and that the cats are bossy and playful will most likely work in your favor. I would just keep doing what you are doing--the slow intros, having Freya on leash, and always being around when the cats and dog are together. The fact that Freya hasn't chased the cats or made any type of aggressive move towards them is a very good sign. I think pulling to sniff them is normal, but again, it's good that you are being cautious. I'd give Freya lots of treats when she's around them--lots of positive reenforcement for her good behavior like you've been doing. In my experience two year old dogs still have tons of energy, so as she is adjusting to your home, it makes sense that this energy is coming out as anxiety. The pit bulls and huskies I know are SO active and playful. Has she made it to the dog park yet? An outlet for all of her energy will help with her anxiety (and any latent cat-chasing desires she might have.)

Let us know how it goes!!

 

[di and bob]

You are doing good for such a short time. The animals must form a family unit before they can be safe with each other. These types of introductions usually take several months. Keeping the dog on a leash is a very good idea, that is what I did to introduce a small animal-killing hunting dog to my cats. it took a few months but they ended up being fine. dogs are driven to please humans, so if there are ANY signs of growling, lunging, etc. say NO sharply and pull back on the leash. These things take time, but just remember any dog is naturally driven to hunt so you need to make sure they know the cats are family and must not be hurt. I had a 4 lb Yorkie that killed squirrels and rabbits but got along with cats, so they all must be watched.

 

[Maggiez]

I think it's great that you are being cautious, but I also wouldn't put too much stock in the high prey drive of Huskies, especially since your dog is a mix. I have a dog (pit bull mix) with a high prey drive with other animals outside of our house, but inside, she is very respectful of our two cats.

To me, it sounds like it is going very well! The fact that Freya is anxious and that the cats are bossy and playful will most likely work in your favor. I would just keep doing what you are doing--the slow intros, having Freya on leash, and always being around when the cats and dog are together. The fact that Freya hasn't chased the cats or made any type of aggressive move towards them is a very good sign. I think pulling to sniff them is normal, but again, it's good that you are being cautious. I'd give Freya lots of treats when she's around them--lots of positive reenforcement for her good behavior like you've been doing. In my experience two year old dogs still have tons of energy, so as she is adjusting to your home, it makes sense that this energy is coming out as anxiety. The pit bulls and huskies I know are SO active and playful. Has she made it to the dog park yet? An outlet for all of her energy will help with her anxiety (and any latent cat-chasing desires she might have.)

Let us know how it goes!!

Thanks so much for being positive! I really need some encouragement these days since it has been stressful to get Freya adjusted to her new home.

Today we made some good progress.

She had some more face time with my female cat Pen Pen, sho is the boss of our house. She was pretty pissed at me these days and meowing to get in the dog room. We did: open the door just enough so she can poke one of her paws in; give her and Freya treats; tell Freya to sit and lie down at the door. Pen still smack at the dog sometimes but Freya never minded. It lasts maybe 2 to 3 minutes until both Pen and Freya calmed down.

Freya met Ash the third time, in another room with leash on. Ash is a very playful male cat just turned one, and he's extremely friendly. He approached Freya and I think he might want to make friend. Freya sniffed him (I will need to pull the leash) but she managed to get really close, her nose almost touching Ash, and Ash looks relaxed and didn't run away this time. The first two times there were more tension, and Ash puffed up and eventually ran away. After some sniffing Freya walked pass him without any problem, and didn't look too scared this time.

Judging from her reaction, I plan to do the baby gate introduction instead of crate introduction. She can sleep through in the crate but still doesn't love it. I let the cats in the room last night when she's in the crate with the blanket covering, she got very scared. I feel like she might be able to do better if she's more relaxed in her own room instead of the crate.

 

[Maggiez]

You are doing good for such a short time. The animals must form a family unit before they can be safe with each other. These types of introductions usually take several months. Keeping the dog on a leash is a very good idea, that is what I did to introduce a small animal-killing hunting dog to my cats. it took a few months but they ended up being fine. dogs are driven to please humans, so if there are ANY signs of growling, lunging, etc. say NO sharply and pull back on the leash. These things take time, but just remember any dog is naturally driven to hunt so you need to make sure they know the cats are family and must not be hurt. I had a 4 lb Yorkie that killed squirrels and rabbits but got along with cats, so they all must be watched.

I totally agree. There's no way I'll let her off leash at this stage, and probably not for a long while. I'm getting some baby gates set up this weekend so at least she can start to explore the other rooms and get comfortable. I'm hoping to give her a section of the house unleashed eventually, but now we plan on leash plus baby gate. Because I'm pretty sure that my cats will jump over the gate to explore. We also hired a trainer to teach us how to probably leash train the dog and basic obedience training. Once she is better on leash (now she pulls hard when we walk her), I will put her on the leash that chain to my waist so I can still supervise but not confined to her own room.

 

[sunny578]

That sounds so great! It seems like everyone is doing the right things Having such confident cats totally helps, and Freya seems to be doing a great job. As a side note, a front hook harness can help with the pulling.

 

[Maggiez]

That sounds so great! It seems like everyone is doing the right things Having such confident cats totally helps, and Freya seems to be doing a great job. As a side note, a front hook harness can help with the pulling.

Thanks for the recommendation! I will do some research on the leash.

One of my three cats is quite shy, and he has been a bit spooked since the dog arrived. But fortunately the other two cats helped him to come out of hiding and today he even explored the dog crate (when I took the dog for a walk this morning). I keep telling myself to be more patient and take it slow so I don’t mess it up