Archive through January 21, 2003
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TV ClubHouse: Archives: 2003 January: Cats & Dogs living together: Advice please: Archive through January 21, 2003

Julieboo

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 07:14 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Hi

We currently have a few cats. One 4 year old and two 6 month olds. (well, we'll pick one of the 6 mo. olds tomorrow. She got spayed yesterday after we adopted her.) We also want to get a dog. I was wondering if anyone had any advice on how to do an introduction or any advice or personal stories. Or even any links to websites dealing with this.

Thanks!

Mygetaway

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 07:35 am EditMoveDeleteIP
When I first brought home our cat Tag, I kept him in the family room which had a closeable door. I put up a baby gate (two actually to cover the whole door) and let them get to know each other through the gate. It worked pretty well. I also brought him out for "supervised" visits until I could trust them together. It was more the cat getting used to the dog, because the dog had been "raised" from a pup by my other cat who was THE boss of the house when we brought the puppy home for the first time..lol

Julieboo

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 07:39 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks MGA! Can you also tell me how the intro went when you brought the dog home to the cat? Though if he were a puppy at the time, that may have been easier. how old and big was the pup?

Mygetaway

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 07:48 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Gosh that was sooooo long ago..LOL It seems like it went really well. My cat was pretty independant. He never tolerated another cat buddy to come into the house. The dog was a golden/shep mix and she was about 4 months old, so she was pretty good size, bigger than the cat, but not by a whole lot. The dog loved the cat and bowed down to him.. It was funny. Even when she became full grown, he was still the boss. That cat looked like a panther. He was so sleek and muscular. I think he weighed 20 pounds.

Kaili

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 08:19 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I think it depends on the individual animal. If you adopt a dog, ask at the humane society if they know how this dog interacts with cats. Some don't mind cats, some it may be a problem with. The people or place you adopt from should be able to let you know. Age is also a factor. A puppy who has never been around cats will be more likely to accept them than a dog who never has been.

Cats are just weird animals so it's harder to tell. Some cats hate each other when introduced. The cat may or may not have had bad experiences with dogs. I think temperment is the overall most important factor for wither animal.

I've seen cats who think they are dogs- my aunt's cat sleeps curled up with the dogs- a lab and a husky- (the cat came first by years but was always around dogs, the dogs came in as puppies).

I would ask about the dog you are considering getting and just try it out while observing. Even if things aren't great at first, eventually they will probably accept each other.

Karuuna

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 09:02 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I think just about any animals can get along, if you're patient. I had a half wolf-dog who had a very strong kill instinct. Some friends of mine convinced me I needed a cat, who was about a year old. This cat was also very aggressive.

I used the baby gate idea, and it took about 3 months of pure hell, but the two of them became the best of buddies.... eventually. There was a time in there that I thought I would just move out and let the two of them have the apartment .

Years later, the cat had to have some surgery, and had to wear one of those awful cone collars. But every day when I came home from work, somehow he'd gotten that collar off. One day, I had to go back into the apartment shortly after I left to get something I had forgotten. Imagine my shock, when I walked in the door to see Charlie the wolf-dog holding the end of the cone collar, while Manfred the Wonder Cat backed out of it.

Keep the intro gradual. It's better if you do it when they're all young, but it can be done, even with older pets. It also helps if you're using the baby gate to separate them into different rooms to occasionally switch rooms, so that they can smell all around the room in which the other pet was hanging out.

Kaili

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 09:10 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Karuuna- how funny! I would have died laughing if I saw that with the cone!

Rissa

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 09:44 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Hey Julie, we actually did it the other way round... got the dog first. I am sure that the order makes a huge difference. For us, we kept the dog out of sight for the first few days so the kitten{s} could explore without fear. Then we let them loose with hubby on one side and me on the other. Our dog was never aggressive for a second but SUPER excited about having a friend. The kitten{s} were both very able to let him know {translate: hissed, spit and clawed} ASAP when he was getting too rowdy. We never left them alone unsupervised until we were sure they were ok. With our first cat this took weeks, silly dog was so hyper and needed to be 'smacked down' quite a lot. LOL With this new kitten, it was beyond funny. He very slowly crept up to her on his belly, literally took him ten minutes to cover 5 feet and the kitten just sat there and stared him down the whole time... when he got about 2 feet away, the kitten gave out this wimpy little spit and the dog jumped/retreated/tucked tail and ran and has not gone near her since. LOLOL

Our dog is not much bigger then a housecat I should note and he is very much an 'Opie' while our cats are Garfields. LOL We were never concerned about our kittens, we were scared the dog would get hurt. LOL You know by now that our dog is crated at night? I change his blankets every couple weeks and keep the extras on the top of his crate. That's where the cat sleeps. Curled up on top of his crate, and they are best friends. If there is ever any trouble.. we know it's the cat that started it. LOL This new kitten is still an independant. If you are getting the dog as a puppy, not grown then I would worry about keeping the dog safe. You will find that facing down a scared cat is much more dangerous for the dog then the other way around.

One thing that I had no idea about but am told now is very common....dogs eat cat poop!!! Apparently it's quite healthy for them {aside from behavioral reasons} because it's so high protein. Can it get grosser? LOL Anway, be warned. After months of trying to stop it and finding cat poop rolled in cat litter on our carpets, we finally moved the litter box into a room in the basement and put a pet-door-flap on the door. The cats can fit through it, but the dog can't.

Squaredsc

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 12:03 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
omg rissa, our dog has been in the kittie litter and i caught him with a piece of poo. ick. i took it away and flushed it. but are you saying its ok for dogs to eat kitty poo? if so then i won't take it away if he has it again. eww. we have the litter in the basement too but keep the door cracked so kitty can get to it. but they do chase each other everywhere.

i probably went about intro'g stray kitty to my dog(Angel who is now 3, bichon frise). he is a submissive breed. so when ds brought kitty in, both ran in diff directions. tried putting kitty in a crate the first nite but it was just a mess. so kitty has had free reign since day 2. they chase eash other. kitty smacks angel, angel barks at kitty and nips at kitty's paws. hasn't been to bad actually.

Rissa

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 12:40 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
LOl square. I have no idea if it's OK for them to eat it, only that the vet said the attraction is because the cat poo is the perfect proportion of protein to blah, blah, blah. Apparently cats eat much more protein then dogs but not all gets digested and what comes out the other end is....well, I've covered that already. It won't hurt the dog but I don't suppose it's a habit you want to encourage. LOL Our dog had a raging 24/7 obsession with the dang litter box. We never even saw him actually EATING it, he just picked up hunks and deposited them all over the house!! LOLOL

Goddessatlaw

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 12:56 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Under these alternative circumstances, I think I can make Julio's Q-tip obsession/collection work for me. Actually, it's looking mighty fine to me right now.

Grooch

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 12:59 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Well, I wouldn't let him eat it, Diseases and stuff. Plus, would you let him give you kisses anymore?

Rissa

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 01:02 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Not that I am trying to change the subject or deflect attention from my poop-eating puppy :), but has everyone seen this? North American House Hippo I am not sure if is strictly Cdn. or has aired in the USA as well. It's one of my favorite commercials, I never tire of it.... too cute. Just click on the picture of the cat stalking the hippo to view the commercial.

Jagger

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 01:07 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Do not allow your dog to eat the kittys doo doo, my neighbor allowed this and his dog got very fat and sick from it, he has spent an enormous amount of money on special dog food for the dog. The vet told my neighbor that it was indeed the dog eating the doo doo that was causing all the troubles for the dog. This was several years ago and the dod is still on special food because of it.

No suggestions on getting the cat and dog to like each other, my dog chases every cat he sees until they turn around and face him, than he turns tail and runs.

Squaredsc

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 01:26 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
thanks jagger and grooch, and gal. rissa, i guess we need to keep our guys away from the kitty poo.

Rissa

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 01:43 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Just to be clear... I was NOT recommending the eating of kitty-doo, but warning that it happens a lot and is a normal or to-be expected behavior. LOLOL That WOULD add a whole other dimension to puppy-breathe, wouldn't it? Although.... Grooch? You DO know where your dog sticks it's own tongue, don't you? :)

Square, I guess it's back to IAMS for us. RFLOL

Squaredsc

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 01:50 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
lol. i know you weren't advocating. heck, angel even playes with his own poo. but, gotta love him.

Julieboo

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 01:52 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Did you guys ever see a picture of a cake that is made by using a clean litter box instead of a cake pan? Maybe it was a pudding or a jello recipe...most litter boxes are plastic. But anyways, it's decorated with some crumbly topping and I think some mini Baby Ruth candy bars. I think you get the idea...

Twiggyish

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 02:01 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Julie (I'm laughing at the thought of it), Can you imagine bringing that cake to a party? Oh yeah, that would be a big hit. It's probably a Martha idea.

Grooch

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 02:02 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Rissa, I am in denial. :)

Babyruth

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 02:02 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
hey!

Halfunit

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 02:11 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I've posted this before, lol...

klc

Kitty Litter Cake

Ingredients
1 German chocolate cake mix
1 white cake mix
1 lg. pkg. vanilla instant pudding mix
1 pkg. vanilla sandwich cookies
Green food coloring
12 small Tootsie Rolls
1 new kitty litter pan
Plastic wrap to line litter box
1 new pooper scooper


Directions

Prepare cake mixes and bake according to directions (any size pans).

Prepare pudding mix and chill until ready to assemble. Crumble white sandwich cookies in small batches in food processor, scraping often. Set aside all but 1/4 c. Add a few drops green food coloring to the 1/4 c. cookie crumbs and mix until completely colored.

When cakes are cooled to room temperature, crumble into large bowl. Toss with half the remaining white cookie crumbs and the chilled pudding. Mix in just enough pudding to moisten it. You don't want it soggy. Combine gently.

Line new, clean kitty litter box with plastic wrap. Put mixture into litter box. Put three unwrapped Tootsie Rolls in a microwave safe dish and heat until soft and pliable. Shape ends so they are no longer blunt, curling slightly. Repeat with three more Tootsie Rolls and bury in mixture. Sprinkle the other half of cookie crumbs over top.

Scatter green cookie crumbs lightly over the top, mimicking chlorophyll in kitty litter. Microwave three Tootsie Rolls until almost melted. Scrape them onto top of the cake; sprinkle with cookie crumbs. Spread remaining Tootsie Rolls over the top; heat until pliable, hang it over the side of the kittle litter box, sprinkling it lightly with cookie crumbs.

To serve, place the "litter" box on a newspaper and sprinkle a few of the cookie crumbs around.

Babyruth

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 02:14 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Seeee? TOOTSIE ROLLS!!

Twiggyish

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 02:14 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
ewwwwwww! I notice it mentioned a NEW litter pan. hahahhahaa

Karuuna

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 - 03:49 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
For dogs eating cat poo, there is an additive you can put in the kitty food that will end this awful habit. It also works for dogs that eat their own doo doo (copraphagia - aren't you impressed?). Most large pet stores carry it, or you can get it by catalog. I use Deter for the dogs from J&B Pet supply (online at jbpets.com), and For-Bid for the cats (drsfostersmith.com).