# How to stop my puppy jumping on the cats



## LJLilley (Jun 16, 2012)

I have 5 cats, all different ages the eldest being 7 the youngest a year old. When we got Tori we set up a room for the cats that Tori couldn't access, which they still use. 

The problem is if they come out of the room and venture anywhere else Tori jumps on them. She doesn't bite them, in fact she seems playful tail wagging frantically but my cats are less than impressed. The youngest cat is becoming withdrawn as Tori seems to take great delight in chasing then jumping on him in particular. The thing is when the cats swipe at her, hiss at her or growl at her she completely ignores the warning signs and keeps hounding them. I'm worried that my youngest cat is going to keep withdrawing from us all, that one of the cats is going to seriously hurt Tori or that Tori will hurt one of the cats.
This behaviour only started recently, before then she got along really well with the cats in general and knew to back off if they hissed at her which wasn't that often. Now our home seems to be filled with enraged cats and a playful puppy who ignores all the boundaries she used to know.

At the moment Tori is being clicker trained and doing really well but I don't know how to stop this. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.


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## Old Shep (Oct 17, 2010)

First thing you must do is stop the interaction *completely.* This is an accident waiting to happen! Either your cats will get hurt or your pup will. Cat scratches on dogs eyes can cause blindness.

How old is your pup and what breed is he? You will have to go back to basics. Does he know a "leave" command? If not, you'll have to teach him that. Then you need to slowly raise the value of what he has to "leave". This'll depend on your dog. Could be food, or a ball. Continue to up the stakes untill you are sure he'll leave on command. ONLY THEN can you introduce 1 cat (the quietest). Make a big fuss of the dog when he "leaves" the cat. Slowly increase his exposure till he consistantly leaves the cats alone. Make sure the reward is better than chasing the cats! 
This whole thing will take some time to complete. Weeks, maybe even months. Don't rush it or you'll be back to square 1.

That's what I would do. I'm sure there are other ways, too. Good luck!


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## LJLilley (Jun 16, 2012)

That's what I am afraid of. I will try to seperate them it's slightly difficult as our cats jump over the gate. 

Tori is 7 months old, she is a lhasa apso crossed with an italian greyhound. She's the same size of our eldest male cat and isn't expected to get much bigger. When we got Tori we taught her the basics early on and she knew 'leave' in regards to the cats. Now though she completely ignores us even when we have her favourite treats (chicken). 

Thank you for your reply and suggestions. I think we're going to have to scale it all back and begin again.


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