New dogs, cats not happy...!!!

[Hippykitty]

Sorry, I didn't mean to start an argument, just to prevent this becoming a "GTree" situation. I'm sure the OP is more dedicated, otherwise they wouldn't have asked for advice, which they have been given by those who have both dogs and cats living in harmony. They may have agonised before making the decision to take the pups, just as I did before deciding to keep Fred and Victoria and risk upsetting Polly and Sam; though I didn't purchase F and V, they just failed to home.

In the experience of friends, the best cat-dog situation occurs where they have all been together as young kits and pups, or where the cats or the dogs are used to having the other species in the family. Maybe Wizz has some advice about this?

It would be nice to hear how the OP is getting on.

[bunglycat]

Sorry, but i agree with Hippykitty and would never bring 1 dog into my home let alone two .
Its the cats home and thats final here !
I personally think it very unfair to bring 1 puppies into the same home as the cats , let alone 2 - only my opinion !

[Liz]

Our cats weren't overjoyed with the introduction of SKy last year but they had lived with Breeze his predecessor for the previous 9 years - one difference Breeze was deaf so responded to hand signals and really was an older dog - he also had bad arthritus from being 4 so he was slower!

Now it is a decision that we are glad we made as his best friend is a feral cat and the cats have accepted him although Blue the latest is still fluffy from seeing Sky stand up - lying down no problem!

The introduction of Sky was our choice and not the cats - they weren't consulted but we felt it was right for us and we may be getting Sky a brother later in the year so will go through it all again - we also ensured that we got Sky from a breeder with cats - Siamese so he had some cat sense but not as much as he has now!

[Kittybabe (Ruth)]

Agree with Helen, it is a huge assumption to make, we know nothing of the OPs home situation.  I'd also ask that the topic revert back to advise on introductions please as that is what the OP originally requested.  The puppy discussion is in fact on another thread which Helen split and posted a link to here, so please any discussion on that topic to be posted there please. Let's help a newbie out who came here in good faith to get advice.

[Tiggy's Mum]

I do think it's harsh to say they should have considered the cats before getting the pups, that's a big assumption to make.  The majority of new animals to any home will take time to integrate properly, they only got the puppies on Saturday and are just worried about upsetting the cats hence their post asking for any advice - the fact that the introductions haven't gone as smoothly as hoped doesn't mean they didn't consider their cats before making the decision to get the puppies.

[Hippykitty]

Is this the real thread, the one which got sidetracked with talk about pairs of dogs or not pairs of dogs? If so, here's my twopennyworth.

We often hear of adverts from the 'Tree' site, which I don't look at, which mention that someone has acquired a dog or dogs and it isn't getting on with the cat, so they seek to rehome the cat.

Please don't do this.

This may sound harsh, and a useless hindsight, but you should have considered the cats BEFORE getting the pups. Now that you have the pups, I hope you'll follow the advice of members below who know more about dogs than I do. Please don't rehome the cats as a result of this. It was their home first. If you do decide to 'give up', then rehome the pups, preferrably through a reputable charity, NOT THE RSPCA!

I hope all goes well and that you return to Purrs to read the advice given below.

[Tiggy's Mum]

I'm going to try and split this thread so the OP can hopefully get more advice on introducing his cats to the new dogs. 

Edit:

It worked! The puppy discussion has been moved to http://www.purrsinourhearts.co.uk/index.php/topic,17492.0.html

[Liz]

Em the food thing can be a problem SKy once ate 12 double bowls of cat food and then he discovered that why it is cat food went straight through him and he had a sore bum for a couple of days

We now can leave him to wander around and he avoids the cat food but he does eat Jazz's food so that usually results in one nippy jack russell attached to his hind end!

As I type this Sky is being vleaned by panther and Beijing the Tortie hooligan kitten is sitting on his back - Sky just sits there now and lets them get on with it still he is slightly drugged on Metacam currently having had his bits removed on Friday - all I can say is he now thinks he can play tennis again not for another 5 days according to    the vet!!!!

Our dogs are usually in a run through the day and the cats can be found taunting poor Sky though the window and the cat flap door to the garage!

[ems]

Hi!

Well we have just introduced an 18month old boxer cross called Gibson to our home with 2 female cats (aged approx 3 and 8 ) and we are still finding our feet with it all!  

When we first got him we kept him on the lead and let the girls come to him then as they have all got more confident we let them all out when we are in the house and keep them separate during the day (cats upstairs and dog downstairs). Not because we are worried abou the dog getting to the cats, quite the opposite! The cats are still hissing at him a bit but also getting nose to nose and "kissing" him  

They have all settled down a lot quicker than i expected, as i type i have a knackered just walked dog on the rug and a cat asleep on a chair each!  

Others on the forum have been full of useful advice, so i owe a lot of our "success" to them  

Now to find out how to stop him chasing birds/other dogs and eating everything in sight (food or not!)  

Best of luck

em
xxx

[Den]

I've not really got anything more to add, except I'm stunned you were able to buy two puppies together  I'm just going to say it, no responsible breeder will sell 2 puppies together 

One thing that could help is as well as keeping the puppies away from the cats, keep the puppies away from each other.

[Sam (Fussy_Furball)]

Hi and  to Purrs,

Sorry can't offer any advice as I have no experience of dogs but I just wanted to wish you luck and agree with Ruth ... make your your cats know they are still in charge and I'm sure in time they will have put the doggies in their place.

Good luck.

Looking forward to hearing how it all goes and of course seeing pics of all 4 of your babies 

Sam, Foxy, Zephyr and Rossi xxxx

[Liz]

We introduced our Border Collie Pup Sky nearly a year ago to the Clan Cats horror - the then 37 had various hissy fits but we let the ferals have a go at the dog - supervised but they did make contact with his nose and fopr about 3 weeks he looked like he had played with scissors and lost!

Now Sky's best friend is a feral kitten now nearly a year old called Panther and they just adore each other.

We also had a crate for Sky so we could put him in it and shut the door and show the cats they were still in charge, the crate now has a blanket on top of it and 3 of our "human Hating" feral sleep on top of Sky at night and during the day various cats can be found sharing his crate - if a cat who isn't keen on him is in the crate he goes and lies in his bed usually occupied by our 3 legged hooligan Maverick!

The crate is the best thing we did as it meant the cats could look see but a bouncy puppy couldn't be all waggy tailed and to interested. 

SKy has now lived with the Clan Cats and his sister Jazz a jack Russell for nearly a year now and has learnt the following

Not all cats like him no matter that he wants to be their friend
Not all our Black and white cats like him or are minature Border Collies
Our cats will stand their ground when he plays chasee outside and will chase back in a group!
Tiger our alpha male doesn't play with tennis balls no matter how many times you give him one - Tiger is 13 and diabetic
Sweetie our princess aged 17 will hit you for no reason and is allowed to!

All in all you have to make the cats in charge and we found feliway and Dap diffuser for the dogs gave off the right amount of happy phermerones but above all put the doh=gs in a crate or keep on a lead so the cats know that the nice pets you have got for them are well down in the pecking order. Our 2 dogs live with 40+ cats and know they are really at the bottom of the pecking order!  

[Kittybabe (Ruth)]

Hi and

Cats are very dominant creatures and their home is realy "their" home, not yours and certainly not those of the pooch variety

Its too soon to tell, cats can take a while to adapt. The important thing is to give them time, patience, and make sure you show them lots of love and encouragement so they know they are still the top cats in the house.  They need to know your affection has not changed just because you have pups in the house.

Also, let them find the dogs in their own way and avoid, if you can, making them try to spend time with cats. It might take a few weeks. A couple days and their disinterest is perfectly natural.

There are others with dogs and cats in the same home on the forum and I am sure they will be able to empart loads of advice.

Now.. the say you must post photos so we can drool over all of them!!!

[steveandbec]

Hi,

we have had 2 cats, both boys for 2 years now. We bought 2 cocker spaniels pups on Saturday and since then the cats have not been best impressed.

The dogs dont mind the cats in the slightest but the cats are very warey of the pups and seem to just stay up stairs or go out. They dont seem to be eating properly or being themsleves. We feel very disheartened that we are upseting the cats, and dont want them to run off.

What can we do????