Dogs and cats
Most cats and dogs can learn to live at peace with one another, given time and clear, intelligible ground rules. Every cat comes to terms with the presence of a dog at its own pace. You cannot make it love the dog, and any effort in that direction will inevitably increase the tension between them.
When you introduce the cat to the dog, make certain of two things: first, that the cat has a safe refuge it can retire to, and second, that the dog’s movements are restricted.
A safe refuge for your cat may be a high shelf, or a table, or a separate room with a gate across the doorway — a gate the cat can slip through in either direction and the dog cannot. If your dog can jump the gate, use a long hook and eye and open the door just far enough for the cat to pass and not the dog.
A guaranteed safe place lets the cat relax and collect itself without the stress of a dog that might come up to it. Make sure the cat is not cornered when it meets the dog. Being cornered brings out the very worst in any frightened animal. A line of retreat, on the other hand, lets the cat feel safer and braver.
Restricting the dog’s movements is essential, and that always means a collar and lead. Simply holding the dog, or relying on verbal control, is not enough: a dog that has launched itself after a cat is hard to manage. Most dogs will be curious about a new cat, which is entirely natural, but in some dogs curiosity can turn quickly into aggression. Practically any dog gets excited when a cat runs from it. That is particularly true of breeds developed for a certain level of aggression — some of the working and guarding breeds, and terriers. It does not mean they cannot make friends with a cat quickly. It only means that a thoroughly excited dog does not always make the right choice.
In an ideal world you would have been training your dog steadily for a long time already. The world is not ideal, so there is every chance you have not done much training, or have let it go altogether. Take it up now. This is the moment when you absolutely must have verbal control of your dog, and with it the dog’s respect.
Scratched eyes
A cat can do a dog’s eyes serious damage, although — touch wood — it has never happened with ours. Most cats scratch a dog seriously only in self-defence, so if you arrange things so that the cat feels safe and always has a line of retreat, such accidents become rarer.
The problem is particularly dangerous for short-nosed dogs: boxers, pugs, bulldogs, Cavaliers and the like.
Be especially careful with dogs of that sort, and with all puppies, since a combination of an irritable temper and an undeveloped muzzle puts them at greater risk.
If you are introducing the cat to new animals, or have any reason for concern, be sure to clip its claws. Control and training of the dog go without saying.
Bringing a cat into a household that has a dog
Shutting the cat in a room set aside for it lets cat and dog smell each other under the door. Put down two blankets or towels for them to sleep on, and every few days swap the towels over, so that each animal grows used to the other’s smell. If they refuse the bedding, simply rub each animal with a towel and swap those over instead; the effect is the same. Let the cat get used to its new home and learn to feel easy in your company before you try introducing it to the dog. No more than one stress at a time, please.
If your dog is used to a crate, splendid: put it in the crate for an hour or so each evening. That gives the cat a chance to explore the house without worrying about being chased. If your dog is not used to a crate, shut it in a room and give it some special toy to play with. If the dog barks and scratches at the door, you plainly have training to do — a dog like that is not going to be put off by anything. The last option is to put the dog on a collar and lead and keep it beside you. It is the least good of them, because the cat then cannot come to you for company and may well bolt the moment it catches sight of the dog. But if it is the best you can manage, it is better than nothing.
You will do your cat another good turn by having the dog sleep in your room beside you, leaving the rest of the house free for the cat to explore. Those explorations give the cat confidence, let it pick out good hiding places, and get it used to the dog’s smell.
Any chasing of the cat by the dog must be stopped at once and in the most decided way. It cannot be allowed. Much as we should like to give you detailed instructions for that process, they are very long ones, and the scope of this site does not allow it. Suffice it to say: get help.
Kittens in particular
Kittens are fragile little balls of lightning. Even the gentlest dog can injure a kitten by accident with an over-energetic paw. Supervision here is absolutely essential — the strictest supervision — until the kitten is bigger, sturdier and better able to look after itself.
Bringing a puppy into a household that has cats
It makes sense to limit the puppy’s access to the rest of the house, so as to avoid damage and the chasing of cats as far as you can. Put it in its crate whenever you cannot supervise it directly. When the puppy is with you, keep the door shut so that it cannot wander off through the house. When you take it into another part of the house, keep it on the lead; then you can correct it if it starts after the cats. Make it plain from the first day that you will not allow it to pester the other members of the family. If you are not sure how to go about that, or if you run into difficulties, ask a good local trainer for help. Ask vets and the local animal welfare societies for a recommendation — they usually know who the best professional in the area is.
THE USUAL PROBLEMS ARISING BETWEEN CATS AND DOGS
The dog steals the cat’s food
This is not hard to stop. Either feed the cat twice a day in a separate room the dog cannot get into, or shut the dog up while the cat eats. If your dog is walked morning and evening, put the cat’s food in its bowl immediately before you set off, and take the bowl away the minute you get home. It is painless and simple. Here is a trick: when you come back, keep the dog on the lead and correct it if it makes for the cat’s bowl. Have it sit instead, and give it a treat if it sits patiently. Dogs grasp the bargain quickly and will soon be sitting decorously, waiting for their treat.
Raids on the litter tray
This is a genuinely disagreeable but practically universal problem between cats and dogs. The best thing is to keep the tray out of the dog’s reach. With a small dog, an effective trick is to keep the litter tray in the bath. Provided you do not forget to take it out before you have a shower, it is a splendid answer to a most unpleasant problem.
A loop of thick rope over the door handle, with the other end tied to a nail driven into the door frame, works well. The best method of all is a long hook and eye: ideal, because the door cannot then swing shut by accident and the dog cannot easily push it open. Fitting a cat flap is rather more work, but it is another excellent answer — there is no reason at all why a cat flap should not be used inside the house.
The dog plays too roughly
Many young and thoroughly nice dogs simply play with cats a little too roughly. That is really their own affair, so long as nobody is hurting anybody. Most cats set clear limits for themselves. But if your cat has been declawed, if it is exceptionally patient, or if it is being roughly handled during a friendly romp with an enthusiastic but slightly witless dog, you should step in and take the cat’s side.
One trick that works well is to make the dog lie down. A dog playing from a lying position is usually gentler with a cat than one that jumps and launches itself from a standing start. Insist that the dog lie down as soon as the game begins, praise it when it does, and before long it will start lying down of its own accord as soon as it feels playful.
The other possibility is to stop the game altogether, with “Leave it!” followed by “Come!” and “Down!”. That answers better if your dog gets completely out of hand during play. If you find it hard to make the dog obey, look for a good local dog training class. I know it may seem incredible to you that such control over a dog is possible, but we promise you it is.
The cat stalks the dog
Some cats amuse themselves by stalking the dog and pestering it in every way they can. Dogs sometimes get thoroughly worked up about this, so you had better step in and take the dog’s side. A jet of water is the right correction for a stalking cat: it changes the cat’s behaviour without frightening the dog as a siren, or an empty can full of coins, would. Say nothing to the cat as you squirt it — then it will associate the correction with the act of stalking the dog itself.
The dog pushes in between you and the cat
There is one firm and strict rule in our house: no animal is to interfere while we are spending time with another animal. Once that rule is established, all pushy behaviour stops. Any animal that tries to poke its nose in between one of us and another cat or dog is told “Go away!”, quite unambiguously. Whoever does the interfering is never to be stroked, never petted and never spoken to. It does not take them long to work out that each will get a fair share — only not all at once.