# Introducing a kitten to a dog



## Passman86 (Aug 13, 2012)

Hey everybody, 

My girlfriend currently has a kitten that is around the 12 to 14 week age that she needs to introduce to a dog. Currently the kitten lives with her in her own place, but in December is moving back in with her mom who has a 5 year old dog, unfortunately I don't know the bread of dog, just that she's small, fast and a lot of fun. Now, the dog has lived with another category for about a year with no problems, so she is happy to meet the new kitten. 

Unfortunately, my girlfriend over the weekend decide to introduce them herself, on her own. The kitten was playing in the living room, minding her own business when my girlfriend appeared through the door with this bouncy dog. Immediately the cat went into arch mode and hissed like she was possessed. Thinking she was helping my girlfriend went over to pick the kitten up, resulting in a very very scratched and bitten arm. Later that day the kitten was happy again on her own, and playing with me so she seems okay for now. 

My question is, will this ordeal have any lasting effect on future meetings? They are going to have to meet as they will be living together by the end of the year. I've never been a cat or dog owner myself, but I have been round them plenty to know you don't just thrust them together for the first time they meet. 

Any advice on how to introduce them properly next time so there is no more destruction or injuries to humans or animals. 

Any help is much appreciated.


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## sbonnett76 (Apr 6, 2010)

Hi there,

We had a slightly different situation in that we have 2 x 3 year old cats and we brought a rescue dog into the home. We had been told by the rescue centre that Roxy (the dog) had been tested with cats and was fine - she clearly wasn't! Plus, our two cats had never really had much interaction with dogs. When we brought Roxy home 9 months ago, the cats relocated themselves upstairs and are only just starting to venture downstairs!

You have to be careful because there is SO much conflicting advice out there, a lot of what you do should be gut instinct. We have consulted three different behaviourists and all tell a different story! However, I'll pick out the key things from each of them, that just seem to make the most sense and you can use what you want.

 Cats need to know that they have safe places where the dog isnt allowed. If youre living in a house, dont let the dog upstairs. If you live in a flat, maybe put up a few easy to reach shelves for the cat to hop up onto and invest in a cat tree. 
 Never force the dog and cat together. The cat needs to develop its confidence and this wont happen if you throw them in a room together. 
 If the dog is crate trained, this could really help and if it isnt, it may be worth doing that before the kitten arrives. We have put our crate in the living room and if we see one or both of the cats make an appearance, we put Roxy in the crate (its also covered all sides except the front so she cant see the cats, but can hear and smell them) and encourage the cats in to get them more confident in Roxys company, but keeping all animals secure.
 Let the kitten and dog get used to each others scent before the big introduction. You can use a wet flannel and wipe it between the animals to transfer the scent and by letting them sniff each other through a closed door.
 When you reach the point of introduction, if you arent using a crate, keep the dog on a lead at all times around the kitten. The key is to nip any chase instinct in the bud and if the dog does show any sort of unacceptable behaviour, ensure it is corrected firmly and immediately. At the same time, if the dog is behaving well, reward it with its favourite treats. You may even want to consider a muzzle on the dog to ensure the kittens complete safety.
 We recently started to teach Roxy the watch command. Google it and youll find all sorts of information about how to go about it, but we use it to break her stare and focus her attention on us rather than the cats and the end result (when she makes eye contact with one of us) is her favourite treat.
 One of the most important things we found was to ensure that Roxy responded to our commands. As she was a rescue, she didnt just walk in the house and immediately see us as her masters. When she saw the cats in the early days, no food or encouragement would break her stare and it was so frustrating, which stressed us out and in turn stressed out her and the cats. So, we went back to basics and forgot about trying to get her and the cats living together and focused on her knowing that me and my husband were the bosses. We are now able to call her away from the cats, she plays the watch command and we can get her to sit or lie down around the cats. Bear in mind though, thats taken us 9 months and we are nowhere near having a happy household, but we have made progress and Im sure you will too.
 Having said all of this, you may find that the dog and kitten get on like a house on fire and all is well! I really hope that is the case, but if it isnt, as long as youre prepared to put in a lot of hard work and dont expect miracles over night, youll get there.
 I would definitely advise that your girlfriend continues with the introductions and doesnt wait until December. The older the kitten gets, the harder it will be to get it to accept the dog (and possibly vice versa) so although the kittens initial experience wasnt a great one, using this time now could be invaluable.

Good luck!


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## Quinzell (Mar 14, 2011)

This was our first introduction to the dogs. I'm not saying it is the right way but it worked for us. Our dogs were used to cats already (although our existing cats chose not to be around the dogs and we didn't want to push the matter).

The dogs had previously been fed, walked, etc and it was near the end of the day when everyone was winding down. We made sure that the dogs were calm and relax and then brought the kittens down. If the dogs hadn't have been as relaxed as they were, the meeting would have been cut short.

After this, we made sure that we brought the kittens downstairs to the living room every day for at least half an hour. After a while, they would start venturing onto the floor. Sometimes they would run back upstairs, and on these days we wouldn't bring them back down. We wanted to make sure that everything was in their own pace. After a while they would start coming downstairs on their own and actually would sit with the dogs rather than us  Nowadays, Tango, spends more time with the dogs than the other cats and Harlequin just does whatever she likes. All get on famously. In fact, since the kittens have been here MeMe (older resident cat) has started to come downstairs more too 

I don't think the kitten will be overly effected by her first introduction but just make sure that if she looks uncomfortable, you move her out of the situation. Cats are naturally curious creatures so once she doesn't feel in danger, she will be curious about the dog.


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## Alaskacat (Aug 2, 2010)

Hi, I'm not very good with dogs, but from the cat point of view they seem to have no problem adapting to a dog that ignores them. We relocated our multicat household to my OH's single dog household with no issues at all with any of the cats. However his dog is very old, deaf and doesn't have good sight. The dog never so much as looks at the cats and alllows them to curl up next to him and share his bowl.

I am sorry this is probably not much help, but as you can't train a cat it might help to do what others have suggested and ensure the dog is on a lead or muzzled or something whilst with the kitten for a good while, until the kitten is relaxed, then you are likely to get a less exciting reaction from the kitten which will hopefully be less likely to wind the dog up. 

I am happy to be corrected by more experienced people, but allowing the dog to investigate the cat in a dog pen or something safe might limit the dog's excitement.

Best of luck


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## ellsbells0123 (Oct 4, 2011)

Why don't you put the cat in its carrier and allow the to roam around, that way the kitten may feel safe and the dog won't get a claw in it's face. Do that for a little while, start giving the treats near each other and the cat shoud start to accept the dog.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Passman86 said:


> Hey everybody,
> 
> My girlfriend currently has a kitten that is around the 12 to 14 week age that she needs to introduce to a dog. Currently the kitten lives with her in her own place, but in December is moving back in with her mom who has a 5 year old dog, unfortunately I don't know the bread of dog, just that she's small, fast and a lot of fun. Now, the dog has lived with another category for about a year with no problems, so she is happy to meet the new kitten.
> 
> ...


Is the dog crate trained? If it is then, often one of the best ways, is to have the dog in a crate, and start with short periods bringing the kitten into the room and let it wander about, thay way the kitten is safe and less likely to run, which is usually the worst thing as depending on the breed of dog especially it can get its chase instinct going. You can also start doing very short sessions and buld up, so neither gets too hyped or stressed. Once they have gotten used to sharing space safely with no problems and are relaxed next step is to Have the dog secured on lead safely with one person so its under control, and have the kitten in the room for short periods like that, you can then build up the time, prasing and treating the dog for calm behaviour and ignoring the cat.

If the dog isnt crate trained, then you can try pre-crate training him/her but if you dont know how to do it seek advice.

Other option is to have the cat in a crate, bring the dog in on lead so at first you can keep control and a wide margin, and as they learn to relax (praising and treating the dog for good calm or uninterested behaviour, you can gradually get them closer with the dog still on lead at first.


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