# The animal versions of Bonnie and Clyde



## Colo (Sep 7, 2009)

We have a 10 month old puppy - Tibetan Terrier and thought it would be a great idea to get a kitten. We got a female rescue kitten at 4months old she is now 7 months.

She is lovely, highly intelligent but my gosh she is destrutive. The puppy was a piece of cake by comparison.

But together they are hell. They play non stop which is great. But their chase games are wrecking the house, the kitten loves to knock things down, and seems to enjoy the puppy then playing with the fallen object. She then joins in.

Toilet rolls are a nightmare, kitchen roll, anything. 

She has broken the iron, my TV, cups, my keyboard on my PC. 

It seems to happen when they are together. Like the twins from hell.

I'm worried she is bored. She hates going out. She seems to go out quickly, chase a fly and a bird but as soon as myself or the puppy are out of site she wants to come back inside.

Any cat training tips or is it a phase? I have owned cats before and it was never like this.


----------



## Anca (Aug 27, 2011)

Please ignore me, but I have to share my feelings, you are absolutely fantastic in describing the atmosphere in your home, god have I laughed enough for this entire week only reading here. :thumbup1:

Sorry, I know you're looking for advice and I have none. I had exactly the same situation about 25 years ago, just that I had a calm cat and the dog appeared afterwards in our lives, fact that changed the appearance of the flat. Perfect redecoration, no fee included. But it was not his fault, the "calm" cat got suddenly crazy and drove him crazy as well. I believe that when a dog and a cat become good friends, the combination is devastating.  

She would not let the dog sleep at night (as cats are nocturnal and find interesting things to do, don't they?), it was a never ending horse race all over the place, she would jump on the curtains, climbing like a monkey on them, rolling over, the dog would tear the curtains trying to capture her, no, nothing was in order any longer.

To me, as a child, it was so funny, it's true I wouldn't say the same now, as a parent and householder. 

The only thing I see that you might try is to separate them at times, but of course you can't do that for long periods. Hopefully for the objects they destroy, they will relax as time passes. They are still very young and playful. OR you have better chances with the dog to make him listen to you, if he is calm and obedient, the cat will lose her appetite for acting madly. I believe you'd better ask for some advice in the dogs threads, there certainly are possibilities to teach him not to respond to the cat's invitations.

One thing is for sure, your cat is not bored, so take this worry away from your mind. :biggrin:

Thank you for the lovely description, I've tasted each single bit of it.


----------



## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

Hi there

Does the kitten have lots of toys to keep her amused? If so, do you rotate them regularly? I find that the more toys they have and the more you change them, the less unwanted re-decorating they do for you. I wouldn't worry about her not wanting to go out. To be honest, I'd see it as a plus, as cats are much safer as indoor cats anyway.

Move the kitchen rolls out of her way, as it'll take months for her to break the habit of destroying them.


----------



## Anca (Aug 27, 2011)

carly87 said:


> Move the kitchen rolls out of her way, as it'll take months for her to break the habit of destroying them.


Oh, come on, we will miss all the fun now ...

totally agree to everything said, but I somehow feel a "vivid toy" catching her or to be caught is a lot more intersting 

now to be honest, it's the tv and other expensive apparatus that must be somehow protected, it's hard to believe someone has money enough to buy one every day, the only small problem I might see with the paper rolls is the cat (again the cat) might have a new idea at some point and would use it instead of the litter tray.


----------



## Colo (Sep 7, 2009)

Thanks for the replies, Anca I'm glad you enjoyed it lol 

I feel I should be angry about it and at the time I'm livid but it is also amusing. Obviously knocking down the iron and pushing the TV over are not brilliant.

It's pretty crazy. The kitten has loads of toys, I brought her some nice balls last week, but she thinks the christmas tree baubles are far more fun and knocks them off, plays football and then the puppy snaps them. It feels like I'm staying in a house owned by a cat and dog. I need to take control back.

There are so many films about naughty dogs, it seems kittens have good spin doctors who have covered up how naughty they are. If only the public knew 

I have started to seperate them at night. But they try to get back see see eachother. The kitten especially will hang around the door, trying to get to the dog.

But nights are much nicer with them apart. It's funny, I was worried they wouldnt get on before I got the kitten. 

I'm sure they will grow out of it.


----------



## Anca (Aug 27, 2011)

Hi Colo,
Yep, you are in some trouble there, it may look amusing for others but I imagine how "happy" you must be.


Colo said:


> It feels like I'm staying in a house owned by a cat and dog. I need to take control back.


Here you've named it right. To take the control back, it's easier to start with the dog, although the cat is the little devil , make him obey certain orders that help you deal with the cat, ie not to run through the house, I am sure it's not impossible. That's why I thought it would be best to explain all these in the Dog Forum if you can't deal with the situation, to ask how exactly you can calm the dog when he's distracted or determined by the cat to play frenziedly. If the dog will not respond her invitations to play in time, she will calm down too.

As for the cat toys and christmas baubles, oh, a cat doesn't need a dog around for making the perfect choice for herself, believe me  We tried to let ours around the christmas tree before and we have ended up by keeping the door closed there when we cannot supervise. They broke the (BIG) tree into 2 halves and one of them tried to steal one half, pulling like a dog from the branches. Now, if we are in that room and the cats are allowed in our presence near the tree, they try to climb and play with the baubles, so we use a water spray to make them leave and mind their business.

Secure in firm position any appliance, any object of value that can be broken (vases, statues etc.), store your important papers in drawers, away from the claws and teeth, your girl is still a kitten full of energy and plenty of ideas, when she is around 1 year old she'll not be that naughty any longer. It's useful to protect anything she might destroy or that could hurt her. If you've ever had small children, I'm sure you know what it's like :cornut:

Good luck!


----------

