How to introduce my dog and two shelter cats?
Mandy needs advise asked:
We have a small friendly, active dog 5yrs - 12lbs (female). We are in the process of adopting 2 cats from a shelter. They are 2yrs old. Today they are being spayed. Tomorrow they come to their new home. They will be indoor cats. The cats do not know each other. Since the cats are recovering from surgery, I know we will have to be careful with them. Any suggestions on how to introduce the three of them? Is it better to introduce the two cats first while they are recovering? Or just wait a week and introduce them all? I know they will be aware of the others with their sense of smell being so good. We also have birds and covered fish tank and lots of plants. We are hoping this will all work out. Thank you for any suggestions.
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We have a small friendly, active dog 5yrs - 12lbs (female). We are in the process of adopting 2 cats from a shelter. They are 2yrs old. Today they are being spayed. Tomorrow they come to their new home. They will be indoor cats. The cats do not know each other. Since the cats are recovering from surgery, I know we will have to be careful with them. Any suggestions on how to introduce the three of them? Is it better to introduce the two cats first while they are recovering? Or just wait a week and introduce them all? I know they will be aware of the others with their sense of smell being so good. We also have birds and covered fish tank and lots of plants. We are hoping this will all work out. Thank you for any suggestions.
May 12th, 2009 at 7:01 am
with mittens and muzzle! lol
good luck with that
May 13th, 2009 at 3:14 pm
You should definately introduce the 2 cats first prefferably straight away, they will get used to each other but it will just take a little bit of time because when we got our second cat we introduced them and spent equal amount of time with each cat so 1 didnt feel left out, then to introduce them to the dog carefully bring them into the same room but just let them check each other out and if they are doing good praise them but when they start to get a bit aggressive then separate them and try again later it will finally work out just remember not to favour one or another.
May 13th, 2009 at 4:53 pm
The 2 cats will be a bit vulnerable after their surgery; they need peace & quiet for a few days. Keep the dog away, but let him smell at the door of the room where the cats are so that the animals become aware of each other. Their initial interactions need to be carefully supervised; on no account leave them alone together, even if they seem to be getting on well. This is a stressful situation for all of them & they need time to adjust. Don’t punish them if there are ‘accidents’ on the floor of if they don’t get on - they will be stressed & they need time. Give each of them some quality time so that no one feels left out.
They should have seperate areas to which they can ‘retreat’ & they should be fed seperately (at least until they settle down.) Give it time & lots of tlc & I’m sure it will all work out. Don’t expect too much too soon. Good luck.
May 15th, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Make sure the dog is calm when you introduce the cats. Take the dog on a long walk or exercise him so he is tired. Then have your mate hold onto the dog and you take one cat at a time and put it in front of the dog and let them smell each other. If the dog doesn’t’ react excited then the cats may feel no fear from him. You must do this for several days. It’s hard sometimes introducing grown cats to dogs. But it can be done and they can all live in harmony. Don’t let your dog show any aggression towards the cat. The cats will feel fear and retaliate. Try to spend a lot of time with your pets for a week or so that way you will see how they react to each other and if you see any bad behavior your there to stop it. I have 2 dogs and 2 cats. They sleep together eat together and my cats act like their the dogs some time. I call my Persian Snoop Dogie because he likes my rotti the best and they eat together every night and Snoopy sleeps by his side. Bandit cleans Snoopy all the time and Snoopy loves it. Both my cats were kittens when I brought them home so it was easy for me because the Kitty’s didn’t know to fear the dogs it’s going to be different with you because the cats are grown. They may have a fear of dogs already. Just be patient with them and you can have a happy family.
May 18th, 2009 at 3:41 am
You’re going to want to keep the dog away from the cats for at least a couple of days. They’re probably going to be a bit out-of-it tomorrow….just imagine if you had surgery, and one day later being bombarbed by an active, obnoxious stranger. I’m not saying anything bad about your dog, just that most dogs probably seem obnoxious to cats.
Make sure both cats have a quiet place to rest…..and since they’ll be in your home for the first time, keeping them confined to one room might be a good idea. I don’t necessarily mean together, either. One cat in one room, another cat in another. They might do fine together, especially considering the surgery, but you don’t want to risk it. If they have issues with each other, the stress of it won’t be good for them so soon after surgery.
I’d say keep the cats separated for a couple days, keep the dog away from both for a couple of days, and then start to allow short periods of interaction between two, then two, then all three. I’d introduce the dog to one cat, then the next, then introduce the cats (without the dog)….then introduce all three. Just don’t do this too quickly.
Cats shouldn’t be encouraged to play or jump for at least 7 days following surgery. Use their physical condition as a guideline and read their body language. I’m sure you’ll do just fine.
(I would suggest introducing the cats to each other first, but I’m not sure this is the best option. The cats may take to each other, then stand united against the dog.)
May 18th, 2009 at 8:54 am
Great!!!! I would wait a week and introduce them all, but I would make sure someone is around for a couple of days, or a week after that to make sure everything is ok. Best of luck to you.