Oh the woes of cats and dogs...someone help me help my dog the cat is not too fond...

[kbutler247]

Here is a little back story about my situation. I had a cat for 5 years named Lucky. This cat was first. About a year into having my cat Lucky I adopted a puppy Harley. It was rough in the beginning but before long they were BEST FRIENDS. I mean inseparable. Slept together, played together...they would roll around on the floor and pounce each other. Everyone thought it was the cutest thing...they were buds. (Brings a tear to my eye to even talk about this) About a year ago my husband came home late from work, I was asleep. He didn't notice the cat had slipped out between his feet. We didn't realize he was gone until the next morning, but it was too late. We live in an area heavily inhabited by coyotes. I found patches of fur behind my house that matched that of my baby Lucky. I was devastated and swore I would never get another cat.

I realized after a while I wasn't the only one heart broken. My dog Harley would not eat, would not play...he sat by the window looking for Lucky for days on end. Worst experience of my life. My husband and I talked about the possibility of another cat even though I was very reluctant. One day my mom and I decided to stop into the shelter just to look (ya right, like that ever works). I met a beautiful cat that instantly melted my heart. He was so sweet and loving and I couldn't leave without him. He was young, but not a baby I had high hopes that he and Harley would bond and Harley would again have a friend.

Now onto the funnier side of the story...

BOY WAS I WRONG ABOUT THESE TWO BONDING! lol The dog was here first and the cat was young so I thought Harley would be the alpha...oh no. I realized from the second we walked into the house and I pulled the cat out of the carrier that this was going to be trouble. That cat walked though the house like "Im the capitan now!" He has never been shy, never been passive, never been submissive. Something obviously hard to discover at the shelter.

Well the first few weeks were rough as I expected it to be. They got in fights, the dog got his little nose scratched and the cat got chased under the bed a few times. I figured it would stop eventually. Well, I was wrong again. They "tolerate" each other. More like the dog avoids the cat if at all possible. The cat is still king of the castle. But I can and do leave them alone all the time no one has gotten really hurt aside from an occasional nail nick.

We are now a year into our family adventure and they still aren't friends, probably will never be. But this cat isn't going anywhere.

And finally the questions.

Every time the dog walks by the cat swats him, he can move as slow and as inconspicuous as possible but if he is anywhere in paws reach he will get whacked. Not a full attack, I'm not even sure the claws are out...but my dog does not like it!

Also, the cat attacks me all the time...you know that walking to the bathroom not paying attention ninja cartwheel leg attack...ya that's the one. We put a bell on this cat to try to avoid what happened to the other cat...but that sound (supposed to be a happy sound right) scares the crap out of me...I call it the bell of terror.  PS He doesn't attack my husband.

He loves to cuddle and be pet, but only on his terms...try to reach out and pet him and you will get scratched...or bit (neither are serious injuries...more of an annoying "hey what the hell!?"

The cat seems so happy sometimes, and others has the face of the devil. We are constantly saying "Geeze why you so grouchy?"

Any tips, for me, for both my dog and myself. Any behavioral advice? Keep in mind we are a year into this...oh ya and I forgot to mention, our house is only 950 sq ft so there ain't much room to hide!

I remember my old cat having this teenage attitude but it went away as soon as he and the dog bonded because they played so hard together. Since that doesn't seem to be happening this go around...how do I let him get his pounce on without it being at my expense.

Any advice please!

Thank you in advance! Yours truly, "The cats loyal subjects"

*If anyone can think of anyway that I can move the cats and dogs relationship past tolerable and into the friends zone please...nothing would make me happier. I so miss the days of Harley and Lucky rolling around playing...it was such a fun relationship to watch. Help!*

 

[kbutler247]

harleyandlucky.jpg

• kbutler247
• Jan 16, 2014

Here is Harley and Lucky....The old days when times were simpler....

zelda4.jpg

• kbutler247
• Jan 16, 2014

Here is the new baby Zelda...AKA the boss!

 

[kbutler247]

Yikes, anyone? Beuler?

 

[ilovecatesxoxo]

I am soo sorry about lucky :'(

Anyhoo, you can get your cat and dog to associate being in each others company as a time when good things happen or pleasure.

1. Bring Zelda and Harely into the same room at opposite ends to start with.

2.Place a bowl of food in front of them at the same time and let them eat.

3.Each day bring the bowls of food closer to each other.

4.You could also brind them together and give them both lots of cuddles and treats(not too much lol).

Hopefully they will come to associate being around each other with pleasure such as food and attention.

This technique worked with my cat and dog. The dog was here for five years before a cat came into our family. My dog is a huge wolfound cross terrier (don't ask how :-D) and was a sworn enemy to all cats and woe betide any cat who dared step foot into her territory!
But after doing this for a few weeks she has just fallen in love with Fabby my cat and she licks him all over when he comes inside like an overprotective mother lol They are inseparable and love to play and sleep together. ;-)

here is a usefull link that helped me from total carnage :

http://www.paws.org/introducing-cat-to-dog.html

Good Luck!!!

 

[kbutler247]

I am soo sorry about lucky :'(

Anyhoo, you can get your cat and dog to associate being in each others company as a time when good things happen or pleasure.

1. Bring Zelda and Harely into the same room at opposite ends to start with.

2.Place a bowl of food in front of them at the same time and let them eat.

3.Each day bring the bowls of food closer to each other.

4.You could also brind them together and give them both lots of cuddles and treats(not too much lol).

Hopefully they will come to associate being around each other with pleasure such as food and attention.

This technique worked with my cat and dog. The dog was here for five years before a cat came into our family. My dog is a huge wolfound cross terrier (don't ask how :-D) and was a sworn enemy to all cats and woe betide any cat who dared step foot into her territory!
But after doing this for a few weeks she has just fallen in love with Fabby my cat and she licks him all over when he comes inside like an overprotective mother lol They are inseparable and love to play and sleep together. ;-)

here is a usefull link that helped me from total carnage :

http://www.paws.org/introducing-cat-to-dog.html

Good Luck!!!

Thank you I will try that. I have heard of doing that before but my dog is so food possessive I was worried it would make matters worse...I guess a year down the road I might as well give it a shot I doubt any harm will come of it. I just wonder if anything will change since its been so long this way. I can't even believe its been a year since I have had the cat! Geeze time flys the older you get!!!

Thank you. Keep the tips coming!!!

 

[ilovecatesxoxo]

Haha tell me bout it I had my cat Kipper since I was TWELVE!!!im twenty now haha and studying to be a vet in colledge wow time really flies!

If your dog is food possessive maybe keep them far away at the opposite side of a room till he is accustomed to having Zelda eating near him but if harley starts to show signs of aggression don't push it make sure that they are comfortable in each others company and keep the meetings short but sweet don't drag them on for too long :-)
Good luck hope that they become friends!

(ps thank the lecturer who taught me this haha!)

 

[andrya]

As to the swatting, one of mine does the same thing - both to the dog and to us. l can just about hear him laughing when he catches us unaware.

My 10 year old dog was here first, then got the addition of swatty Siamese 7 years, bratty Cornish Rex almost 4 years, and lovebug Scottish Fold 1 1/2 years. And the dog loves everybody. There's no grooming or sleeping together, but they are completely harmonious.

This is my first and only dog so l had no idea what l was doing, whereas l know cats. The piece of advice l got that l stuck with was that the cats are always alpha, and to never treat the dog that way. Poor Eric knows he's bottom of the totem pole, that's his spot and he's happy. He's fed last, there's no growling at the cats allowed around his dish. He once headbutted the Siamese out of the way when he came close to his dentabone, and funny as it was to see, that's the only time l remember any discord.

l can't give any advice or experience sorry, but l think sometimes mere tolerance is all that can be hoped for. Your Lucky was special and his behaviour likely won't be replicated.

 

[di and bob]

Zelda obviously has a low threshold for petting, the best way to not get scratched is to watch for a swishing tail or dilated pupils, QUIT when either happens. I've had several cats like this and there is really nothing you can do. He should be scolded and then ignored when he attacks, I'll bet your husband didn't let him get away with it! Try to give him something else to 'attack', my cats just love kicking the you know what out of a kickeroo, and then they run to their corrugated scratchers and claw them too. It sure saves OUR legs! He is one of the cutest cats I've seen, I LOVE your picture! Well, good luck with the bonding, try not to make them into what you used to have, it won't work. Maybe some future day they will come to love each other, a year isn't really that long, it took that long for my two to stop trying to kill each other, and now, 3 years later they lick each other's face! Bless you for caring so much.  

 

[ilovecatesxoxo]

Oh yes nearly forgot, always use positive reinforcement so don't scold them if their naughty but don't give them anything and if they behave then treat them because (especially in harleys case) if you hit/tell off etc. they will come to associate being around each other with bad things and harley will attack Zelda because he thinks Zelda is the reason for the telling off/scolding.

I know this is a cat site but if harley starts attacking zelda she could get seriously injured so id recommend watching some of Victoria Stillwells 'It's me or the dog' you can learn some really handy tips! :-)
sending vibes so that all geos well :-D

 

[kbutler247]

 
As to the swatting, one of mine does the same thing - both to the dog and to us. l can just about hear him laughing when he catches us unaware.

My 10 year old dog was here first, then got the addition of swatty Siamese 7 years, bratty Cornish Rex almost 4 years, and lovebug Scottish Fold 1 1/2 years. And the dog loves everybody. There's no grooming or sleeping together, but they are completely harmonious.

This is my first and only dog so l had no idea what l was doing, whereas l know cats. The piece of advice l got that l stuck with was that the cats are always alpha, and to never treat the dog that way. Poor Eric knows he's bottom of the totem pole, that's his spot and he's happy. He's fed last, there's no growling at the cats allowed around his dish. He once headbutted the Siamese out of the way when he came close to his dentabone, and funny as it was to see, that's the only time l remember any discord.

l can't give any advice or experience sorry, but l think sometimes mere tolerance is all that can be hoped for. Your Lucky was special and his behaviour likely won't be replicated.

I have never heard that the cat is always alpha. My other cat, even though he was first in the home...was very passive. The dog ran the show in those days. The dog would push the cat away, the cat would be like ok and move along. My old cat was very go with the flow...whatever the dog did, the cat would just follow him. I expected that to be the case again this time because a) the cat was young and b) the dog was here first. I was seriously shocked when the cat came into the house and within 5 minutes was completely at home. My old cat, when we moved into our new house...took weeks to get comfortable. He wouldn't even come out of his carrier for a couple hours lol. The new cat was like "IM HERE!!!" within minutes. Funny how different cats can be...

 

[kbutler247]

Oh yes nearly forgot, always use positive reinforcement so don't scold them if their naughty but don't give them anything and if they behave then treat them because (especially in harleys case) if you hit/tell off etc. they will come to associate being around each other with bad things and harley will attack Zelda because he thinks Zelda is the reason for the telling off/scolding.

I know this is a cat site but if harley starts attacking zelda she could get seriously injured so id recommend watching some of Victoria Stillwells 'It's me or the dog' you can learn some really handy tips! :-)
sending vibes so that all geos well :-D

Good advice, I try to scold who ever starts the fight with a loud "NO!!!" but I have to remind myself that they are not children and they don't know who is getting the "NO!" My cat Lucky was my first cat at 24, my dog is my first dog at age 25...now my new cat I got when I was 30. I try really hard to make everyone happy...but I also am new to the game. I read a lot, have taken the dog to lots of obedience training...and really try to not just exist with my animals but to make it a happy healthy home they can thrive in. I just love animals and want everyone to be their best. Thank you for the advice!

 

[kbutler247]

Oh yes nearly forgot, always use positive reinforcement so don't scold them if their naughty but don't give them anything and if they behave then treat them because (especially in harleys case) if you hit/tell off etc. they will come to associate being around each other with bad things and harley will attack Zelda because he thinks Zelda is the reason for the telling off/scolding.

I know this is a cat site but if harley starts attacking zelda she could get seriously injured so id recommend watching some of Victoria Stillwells 'It's me or the dog' you can learn some really handy tips! :-)
sending vibes so that all geos well :-D

I am going to try more treating good behavior and less yelling when they are naughty...I would never hit my animals. I'm not worried about the cat at all...I'm more worried about the dog getting an eye gouged out. Its actually funny (well not funny but you know) to watch them "fight". The cat gets up on his hind legs with both front paws straight out swatting like its a girl slap fight...and the dogs mouth is wide open and his eyes are sealed shut just nipping at air...I want to laugh but know I can't. I just can't help but think...guys...this is not productive! haha

 

[kbutler247]

 
Zelda obviously has a low threshold for petting, the best way to not get scratched is to watch for a swishing tail or dilated pupils, QUIT when either happens. I've had several cats like this and there is really nothing you can do. He should be scolded and then ignored when he attacks, I'll bet your husband didn't let him get away with it! Try to give him something else to 'attack', my cats just love kicking the you know what out of a kickeroo, and then they run to their corrugated scratchers and claw them too. It sure saves OUR legs! He is one of the cutest cats I've seen, I LOVE your picture! Well, good luck with the bonding, try not to make them into what you used to have, it won't work. Maybe some future day they will come to love each other, a year isn't really that long, it took that long for my two to stop trying to kill each other, and now, 3 years later they lick each other's face! Bless you for caring so much.  

Ya I admit that I like to mess with him a little...I see him getting irritated and I pet him anyway. Or I hold him like a baby while he makes that growling sound and I say "Zelda why you so gwochy" lol. I guess in my mind I'm thinking I'm going to make you more tolerant by being intolerable lol gee as I say it out loud I hear myself sounding like an idiot. I'm just that person that likes to play rough...and now I have created a monster. Ok ok...Its all becoming clear to me now haha.

 

[ilovecatesxoxo]

Awww that must be cute to watch (well depending on how you look at it).
Im sorry i don't have much advice on Zelda I don't know much about cat behavior. Dogs and horses are more my line of expertise
good idea about bringing harley to obedience training.

Good luck!!!