Kittens and large dogs....

[Janeyk]

our very first cat Penny was a kitten when we adopted her and I always remember going to choose her and her siblings had all been rehomed.  Penny was all alone so we adopted her (apart from the fact she adored the fosterers great dane and followed him everywhere, she seemed to have latched onto him.)  All her life she wasn't at all fond of other cats, she tolerated our Squeaky but I often wonder how she would have been with a dog.

[blackcat]

This does rather sound like the ideal opportunity to whip out photos of Shadow (labxrottweiler) meeting Smidgen (14 week aby cross) and subsequent shots of Smigden lying on top of Shadow. But I will refrain from doing so. It depends entirely on the temperament of the dog and the level of training it has received. As your friends dogs are of a fairly friendly (aka Doofus) breed, and are being shown, then they will have obedience training which will put the cat in top position in the household sooner rather than later.

[JackSpratt]

Thanks for the input. Just didn't want to say she should rule out a kitten if she fell for one! I don't think she'd mind it being a fully grown cat either to be honest.

[heather-kitty]

Well we had already got 3 of our cats where we got Daisy, our boxer dog as a puppy. The cats at first were like, "what on earth is this creature?" but they soon enough adapted to accept eachother. If the dog was to take anything too far with the cats, they would put her in her place with a swipe to the face!
Then we adopted Tootie when he was an adult cat that had never lived with another cat or dog before. Again, he adpted and they all got used to eachother!
For instance, this was Tootie and Daisy chilling out together the other week!


I can't really answer the question of getting a kitten with a big dog, as all of my cats were adults when the dog was introduced to them.

Heather

[Liz]

Our Border Collie Sky's best friend is a black feral now aged 1 Panther adores Sky and washes his head and paws most nights and Archie who is 11 weeks old is now sleeping in Sky's crate with him - the door is open

Sky is very gentle with all the cats and knows who will play nice and the others that won't -

Please picture 20 leaping ferals and a Border Collie playing laser pen in our lounge!!!!!

[Den]

There is no reason why it wouldn't work with a small kitten. It's not the size that counts it's the temperament. Flat Coats are stunning and have wonderful temprements.

If it were me I'd have no reservations what so ever, just make sure the kitten has somewhere it can get away to until it's bigger and can defend itself  You'd be surprised, a little kitten can hold it's own against a big scary dog anyday 

[dabs]

This breed of dog are pretty placid, but I never leave dogs and small kittens alone, till I am sure that puss is big enough and can give a well deserved slap across the dogs nose when needed. 

Provided that the prospective owner can supervise the new arrival and not leave the kitten alone for a minute till they are a good size, then it should not be a problem. What also needs to be taken into account is are the dogs used to cats. If not then I would suggest and older cat who can give a whack from the word go.

I foster cats and even when they come in as dog haters, they leave as dog lovers. 

I just leave the kitchen door open and the dogs are so used to the various feline changes in the house they just ignore any new arrivals and cats make up their own mind if they want to venture in the kitchen or not. They always do eventually and learn to ignore the dogs. Even so one of the dogs has been clouted across the nose with a well aimed whack for getting too close.

As used to cats as they are, I never leave them alone with kittens.

[JackSpratt]

....can they be friends? I have a friend who trains dogs for Crufts and shows her own. They are stunning flat coated retrievers,and are lovely creatures.

She recently expressed an interest in rehoming a cat; she quite likes them and her partner prefers cats to dogs! (She had her babies when they met.)

Is it safe to mix a small kitten with larger dogs? Or is it better to get an older cat that can hold its on a little better? (Having said that, Astryd could probably do serious damage to a dog if she felt the urge!)