Any tips how to get a dog used to cats?

IrishHomer

Hi everyone,

I have a new dog he is a 10month old male border collie I got from my local dog pound.

I am nuts about him he is an absolute dote brightened up my life so much.

Anyway I also have three cats and he is not used to cats and he sometimes gets freaked out and other times he gives them a big chase around the yard and garden.

I am thinking of getting a crate and putting it in close proximity to the cars in a small room for sessions to see will he become more relaxed with the cats and vice versa for the cats to get more relaxed with him.


Any tips or advice greatly appreciated.

Odelay

Yes, please. Same situation here. Any advice appreciated.

anniehoo

Are the cats allowed in the house? If so, that's where id start with first. Being a Border collie, it's in their nature to chase/herd so he needs to actually create a relationship of mutual respect with the cats for them to become a non interest to him and vice versa.

Start with the cat who gets least freaked out and introduce him to him/her when the cat is in a crate and feels secure.The dog will get used to their scent and learn some of their mannerisms just by observation through the crate. Start small, a few minutes at a time and build up from there. Only when the cat is comfortable let him wander around inside and if your dog starts to get hyped up, dont scold him,just distract him with a fun game. Reintroduce to the room when he's calmer. Sniffings ok, but if the cat freaks out and the dog reacts,just ask him to calmly sit, let the cat relax and reward the good behaviour. Repeat,repeat,repeat until both of their body language is relaxed and calm.Remember cat and dogs body language are the opposite (tail wagging in a cat=angry;happy in a dog etc) so it'll take time for them to learn the lingo. Any sign of stress or anxiety in either animal stop and continue the next day. You cant force this, its on both their terms and you just have to be patient.

Introduce the other 2 cats the same way. Once they've sussed each other out and they dont run from him, there will be no thrill in the chase for him as hopefully there will be no chase.

Reward positive behaviour in all animals & distract and stay calm with beahviour you dont want. Good tips here

DBB

HI OP,
I would do as Anniehoo says, but I'd reverse how you do it: a cat should never be trapped in the presence of a dog they're frightened of. The dog needs to be in the crate, not the cat. Spend a few days getting the dog settled in the crate, then bring the most confident cat in for a very short period of time, rewarding both cat and dog for any good behaviour. The cat can also be in another crate if you like, but the dog should not ever be able to approach a cat whilst the cat is effectively trapped.
Ideally, every time the cat comes into view, chicken, or something else truly delicious, should rain down on the collie from above!
Gradually build up the amount of time the cat spends in the room, and gradually introduce the less confident cats: it is really important that the cats are quite sure that if the dog's in the crate, they're safe.
With time, when all are more confident/better behaved, the dog can come out of the crate but be kept on his lead if there is any danger of him coming into contact with the cats.

anniehoo

DBB wrote: »

I'd reverse how you do it: a cat should never be trapped in the presence of a dog they're frightened of. The dog needs to be in the crate, not the cat..

Yeah now that i think of it, i completely agree with doing it the other way around