Introducing a very small kitten to the resident terrier?

Cherry Blossom

Right so, I'm not a cat person at all but it looks like I have acquired a small kitten. Found it in the garden yesterday morning making a racket and none of the neighbours own it and I'm assuming someone must have dropped it into the garden over the wall :rolleyes: It has a few scratches on its face and ears so looks like someone else's resident pet had issues with it so they decided to give it us as it matches the dog. It appears very healthy and have no idea how old it is but I'd guesstimate 8-10 weeks. Have to decided to attempt to integrate it into the family rather than prise it away from the 4 year old who is delighted that no one owns it and has already named it. She's going around proudly displaying all her scratches telling people its where her new kitten has said 'hello' to her.

So far have been keeping the dog and cat with a closed door between them, but have no idea how or when to start introducing them. The dog by they way has a high prey drive, loves chasing cats and spent most of yesterday murdering her teddies as she couldn't get to the kitten. :eek:

Toulouse

I'm afraid some dogs are just not cut out for living with cats but you can try some introductions, take it really slowly and see how you go but never leave them unsupervised.

http://petcentralpawsitivepetcare.wordpress.com/2010/05/05/catsanddogs/

Cherry Blossom

Thanks for that! The house is already full of baby gates so I suppose that's a start, I'll start with the dog in the crate idea outside this evening after her 'big' walk. I'm under no illusions that it will take a very long time and may not work out at all but might as well give it a try and there is more than enough space here to keep them separate in the mean time. The 4 year old is terrified of the dog getting to the cat so no worries about her letting the dog into the same room etc.

JDxtra

It's very likely to be wild. Wild kittens don't generally turn into loveable cats. So, keep this in mind - especially when you have a young child and another animal. Probably not the best idea in the world to keep it.

mattser

Is this for real ?

toadfly

mattser wrote: »

Is this for real ?

Why wouldn't it be?

westies4ever

all i can say is good luck. I have two westies and not so long ago I found an abandoned kitten. I couldnt leave it so I took it home and contacted my local SPCA. While waiting for a fosterer to become available I had to keep the poor kitten (it had a nice bed and I checked on it regularly) in the shed and the dogs in the house. They would have ripped it in shreds if they'd got at it. There are probably exceptions but in my experience - terriers and cats dont mix!

planetX

JDxtra wrote: »

It's very likely to be wild. Wild kittens don't generally turn into loveable cats. So, keep this in mind - especially when you have a young child and another animal. Probably not the best idea in the world to keep it.

I don't agree - if someone dropped it over the wall its very unlikely to be wild. This is how some disgusting people who don't bother neutering deal with the result. I've had kittens dumped over my wall that made beautiful pets.
With the dog, constant supervision and separation until the kitten is grown up.

toadfly

I have a foster JRT that is brilliant with cats. Tilly (yorkie) met a kitten in the vets last year and they were playing away. Think it would be different at home not sure if she would accept a kitten but think the OP should at least try.

mattser

TillyGirl wrote: »

Why wouldn't it be?

A bit like saying " If I boil the kettle and pour the contents on my finger, will it hurt ? ". Talk about LOOKING for unnecessary trouble.

planetX

I had an terrier that was adult when I got a kitten - the hunting instinct is usually different inside the house. I would make certain the dog never gets a run at the kitten outside until it is grown up and they know each other from indoors.

mattjack

Very unlikely to work,terriers by nature chase and hunt small animals and if your terrier has been living with you a few years ,he,s going to be possessive and territorial at the very least.
I,ve a JRT myself,outside on walks hes friendly with other dogs and people,at home......forget it, if he does,nt know you.
Well done for thinking of the kitten and trying to look after it.

anniehoo

JDxtra wrote: »

It's very likely to be wild. Wild kittens don't generally turn into loveable cats. So, keep this in mind - especially when you have a young child and another animal. Probably not the best idea in the world to keep it.

Socialised early, wild kittens can and do turn into very loveable cats. If AJ is saying its around 8-10 weeks old i dont forsee any reason why it
wouldnt grow up to be an affectionate and tame cat.

mattser wrote: »

A bit like saying " If I boil the kettle and pour the contents on my finger, will it hurt ? ". Talk about LOOKING for unnecessary trouble.

What a random statement to make. This may or may not work, but she wants to try. Cats and dogs can and do live perfectly well together if given the right amount of time to adjust to each other.

mattjack wrote: »

Very unlikely to work,terriers by nature chase and hunt small animals .

One very relaxed cat and JRT who'd only met 2 days prior to this....:D

toadfly

That's such a cute pic Annie.

Sassy58

Congrats on your new addition.

In relation to terriers, it can be done - I have 2 terriers and they love nothing better then chasing cats and anything small that moves - OUTSIDE the house - INSIDE the house completely different kettle of fish - cats rule the house end of.

Once you do the introductions slowly and are prepared for alot of work and that there are going to be upsets along the way you will get to the stage where they may not be the best of friends but they will tolerate each other and live in harmony.

Someone mentioned about you crating your dog - do not do this - the dog was there first its the dogs house and nothing should be done to make the dog feel put out or caged - I would crate the kitten - the kitten is young. Let the kitten and dog sleep on a blanket - after a day swap the blankets over so that they each get the scent of each other - get one of the dogs teddies and put it in the crate with the kitten. I would do this for a few days before they meet.

If you are going to let them meet I would put the kitten in the crate and the dog on a lead the last thing you want is a dog charging at the crate - have something in your hand that the dog loves be it a treat or a squeaky toy and if he goes for the kitten try and get his attention so that he will associate the kitten with getting something nice (I wouldn't push the first meeting passed 5 minutes)

Oh and i also have a restricted breed who now thinks nothing of washing kittens and it is a must for every kitten coming into the house to get washed by her......I have had 100's of kittens through the house and todate the 2 terriers and the rottie haven't ate one yet so it can be done. Its comes down to the personality of the dog/cat and also how much work you are willing to put in.

Rabidlamb

No harm having a real dog around to keep the kitten on it's toes.
My missus rescued a 3 week old kitten during the snow, the mother had abandoned the siblings & she was the only survivor.
Had to bottle feed the kitten on formula for weeks, she was a lovely playful thing that jumped up on our old collie cross.
One evening the neighbour called in after coming back from hunting, the kitten escaped when I opened the door & went to play with his springer.
She was mauled to death in seconds, her lack of fear was her undoing.

anniehoo

TillyGirl wrote: »

That's such a cute pic Annie.

I know it makes me go "awwwwwwwwww" everytime i look at it

TOOYOUNGTODIE

i would not get too worried about it, the terrier will do nothing if you are there when introducing them and take it slowly for a few days. if you crate the dog and show more affection to the cat, the dog will see the cat as a threat.

I have a male patterdale terrier, known cat killers and not fur friendly. We had a stray cat dumped into the yard, and we introduced them very slowly and it worked.

What I cant understand is how our dog sleeps with and shares his bowl with our cat, and when I have him out and about goes mental at the sight of another cat. Does he know ours is off limits?

The Sweeper

I have a medium-large hunting breed who lives indoors with six cats. It takes time and patience and extreme vigilance. It's taken my dog almost a full year but he sees the cats as family and not dinner. (He does occasionally see the cats as a source of great mischief - he may yet grow out of that. Even as a pup he saw the cats as something to chase, and no amount of them smacking him in the nose put paid to that. That's his breeding.)

Just remember that inside the house and outside the house are two totally different regions - even when your terrier has adjusted to the kitten indoors, you must never allow them outdoors together without the dog on a leash until you're absolutely positive that the dog will not chase the cat. That could literally take months, years, or simply never happen.

Keep the terrier on leash for all introductions. Do not hold the kitten and present it to the dog for a sniff - not under any circumstances. The dog thinks you're giving him something and the kitten will almost certainly attack you or the dog or both when the dog comes to sniff him. That exchange - where you hold something out to the dog and that something goes bananas - can create problems it takes ages to fix.

TooManyDogs

I agree with most of the others that with careful and slow introductions it can work. Terriers have a similar reaction to rabbits and when I brought my first rabbit into the house 2 of my 3 dogs wanted to eat him. I used to let the rabbit out in the sitting room and bring one dog in on the lead and just sit on the floor with the dog. I'd correct the dog with a 'no' if the dog tried to jump at the rabbit. Initially the rabbit was wary of the dog and would stay on the other side of the room so it gave them a chance to see each other without being too close. Then the rabbit got comfortable enough to start running and again the dog would start shaking and want to kill again, gradually though they got used to the sudden movement. Eventually I was able to let them off lead and then have 2 in the room off lead and then all 3. Well one wasn't really a problem, he took one look at the rabbit, waited until the rabbit came close, had a sniff and then went asleep!!!! Then it got to the stage where I could let all 6 out with the rabbits, never unsupervised though.

Like the others said outside and inside are 2 entirely different senarios and training has to go right back to square one. Mine seemed to think that the rabbits were part of the pack cos I said so, and although they didn't like it they would defend the rabbits if another visiting dog sniffed at them

Cherry Blossom

OK, well the dog is safely enclosed in her own area in the back garden during the day, and I've bought a padlock so no-one can let her out when I'm not here so cat can have run of the house all day. I'm here the rest of the time and can keep control of the situation. Had brief introduction in the front hall which is sort of neutral and still in the house with the dog on a lead. Just a few minutes until I ran out of little pieces of duck, went as well as could have been expected so I'll just keep doing that for a while.

The kitten is very friendly, has obviously had lots of handling from somewhere although a little timid at first is now happily shredding the furniture :rolleyes: I think it may be a little older than I first thought, much more sure footed and looks bigger somehow now that a few decent meals have been demolished!

Cherry Blossom Girl

I also used have a Patterdale Terrier and found myself with a stray kitten. We introduced them gradually and things stayed civil for the most part. Our terrier was never a huge fan of the cat, he wouldn't attack it, just flat out ignored it most of the time. Once or twice the cat got growled at for trying to play with the terrier or for eating his food :rolleyes:
Our Border Collie on the other hand loved the cat, put up with the cat pouncing on her tail, trying to play with her, etc. They used to curl up together to sleep too
Keep at it OP, chances are your cat and dog could become great buddies

toadfly

Hows it going AJ?

Cherry Blossom

So well that I completely forgot about this thread

The kitten seems to be on a death wish though! Apparently Westie tails are just asking to be used as scratching posts. :rolleyes:

Cherry Blossom

toadfly

Ahh thats adorable

The Sweeper

Nice picture. Is the kitten all white with blue eyes? Just curious - lots of all white kittens are deaf. You might want to do some tests to make sure kitty can hear.

Cherry Blossom

The Sweeper wrote: »

Nice picture. Is the kitten all white with blue eyes? Just curious - lots of all white kittens are deaf. You might want to do some tests to make sure kitty can hear.

He has green eyes and is sort of white tabby , you can see visible stripes but its just different shades of white. Doesn't appear to have any hearing problems, certainly seems to know the sound of the food bowl landing on the kitchen floor anyway!