I am having problems introducing our new staff to our cat!!! We have had our cat for years from my sister in law who gave it us because her puppy was terrorising it so it has'nt had any positive experiences with dogs in the past. Our staff is 17months old and is fantastic with the children. When we brought her home we showed her the cat, I was holding the cat, partner was holding our staff. She seemed excited and her tail was wagging madly when she saw it and we left it at that. Two days later the dog happened to get into the room with the cat and really went for her, cornering her and being really viscious. If I had'nt of pulled her away she probably would have killed the cat!. The cat is so frightened now to be in the house. We don't know about Fizz's (staff) past with cats but we also don't want o get rid of her but the cat definately can't go, it's part of the family.
Has anyone got any advice on how we can deal with problem????? Any advice would be greatly appreciated

We have this problem with Hudson , our 15 month old Malamute , he would LOVE to find out what is inside our 3 cats ;) Several times he has had his mouth around one or other of them ..he hasn't every bitten them though. We make him sit and stay whilst we give safe passage to the cats as they go upstairs ..there is a child gate on the stairs as Hudson isn't allowed up. He sits and watches ......and twitches with excitement ..but is definitely getting better. Is it possible to do something similar with your dog and cat ..is there a safe place where the cat can relax and know the dog can't get to?

Melody :)

Thanks Melody for replying to my question so quickly. The cat stays upstairs now and we make sure that the dog is downstairs. The only problem with this is that the cat had the free roam of the house before the dog came and I think it's really unfair but if we don't do this the dog would surely rip the cat apart. Since the dog attacked it I'm finding it hard to even coax our cat in now, but we will persevere, if all else fails unfortunately it's the dog that's going to have to go

I don't think that you should take that view ..it is very unfair on the dog.

Our Mal was socialised with cats from 8 weeks of age.......he just wants to eat them! So we have to make sure we keep them apart and have a safe place for the cat to go ..if you can do that then the cat will learn quite quickly that she can be safe upstairs. Our cats sit on the bottom of the stairs , yon side of the gate and meiow when they want to go out . They rarely risk a dash across the floor without a person being there :)

Put the dog in the kitchen , shut the door and entice the cat in with food or a treat ..then make sure she goes upstairs .

Melody

Melody, is Mal aggressive towards cats? The cat has learnt very quickly to go upstairs and keep out of the way but then wont come down again, even with a bit of enticement! I have to physically pick her up and bring her down for food. I understand that socialisation is a very important factor and it seems that everyones advice is to give it time. Obviously if ours has'nt been with cats before it is probably only in her instinct to go for it. Do you think our staff (Fizz) is too old for socialisation, she is 17months. I have also been told that because she is still quite young she will be able to learn to socialise.
We had a staff previous to Fizz (which some "@## stole from our garden) and he got on fantastic with the cat. He was two when we got him and did'nt know whether he had been around cats before but he took to the cat in no time. They used to play and chase each other around the garden, sleep with each other and even feed from the same bowls.

Malamutes usually seem to be okay with their own cats ..the house cats , but Hudson just wants to chase them :) They will chase and kill most small furry critters given half a chance . I do think it depends on the dog , the socialization and also the owners actions as to what a dog makes of cats. Hudson is a lot better than he used to be ...but I know he would have our cats given half a chance ..it is just a question of keeping them all apart :D

Melody

Our cat doesn't like the dogs, so downstairs is dog territory, upstairs is cat territory - we have a cat flap in the front door and a gate across the hall to ensure that they don't meet, although to be honest in our case I would be more worried for the health of the dogs than the cats if they met.

M.

Thanks for your reply, a lot of people have advised me to use a stairgate at the top of the stairs, the only problem is that we have children and for them to keep walking in and out of the gate at the top of the stairs would cause a safety problem. The only other thing I could do was to put the gate further along the landing. The other thing that I have thought about with the use of a stair gate is although it may keep the dog out, the cat can obviously get over it so regardless or not they will meet one day.

Hi,

Our gate is before the stairs, so dogs get run of living room and kitchen (and garden, back door normally open no matter how cold it is!), and the cat has clear run from stairs through hall to front door.

If your cat is like mine, she won't go where the dogs are - if dogs go to my Mum's e.g. when we are due to go on holiday, all of a sudden the cat will appear in the front room - she wouldn't dream of it if the dogs are anywhere in the house.

M.

Thanks again for your reply. I will try the stairgate approach but have you any advice on introducing them face to face? The cat has gone out last night and has not come back into the house at all today (not sure whether she will come back after what happened) I just don't want to be in the same situation as I was the other day with our staff attacking the cat, the kids screaming and crying and me in an absolute panic!!

Unfortunately, my advice on introducing them face to face would be .... don't. Hopefully someone with more experience of Staffs might be able to offer advice, but personally I can't imagine from what you've already said that you will ever successfully introduce them. I'd concentrate on making sure they're both safe and have personal attention.

M.

I agree with you on the safety and personal attention issue but surely if they are going to live in the same surroundings then they need to be familiar with each other in order to live in harmony.

I agree with Melody, our cat will sit at the bottom of the stairs and yowl if she wants a chat, but will not come near the dogs. She seems quite happy with the arrangement, is very aware of where they can go and where she can go. We feed her upstairs, so she doesn't feel threatened when eating.

If you are going to try, cat in a cage and dog on a lead would probably be the way forward - but if your dog is really still trying to eat her, all you're going to do is traumatise the cat, so unless things improve quite drastically I'd recommend you accept the situation. Sorry we can't be a bit more positive!

M.

M, I appreciate all of your advice you have given me today, it has certainly given me food for thought! My sister has just come in and the dog sneaked out of the front door, immediately saw our cat under the car and proceeded to chase it up the road full force!! Thankfully, Fizz can't jump 6 feet which the cat did and off she went. Because you mentioned the cat being traumatised, I am really worried that she wont come back now, she has been out all night and has'nt come back into our home and had positioned herself under the car all today (untill Fizz saw her).
I know cats will find a new home if they feel the need to but we have had her for so long that I would be so gutted if she did'nt come back. I know it's not Fizz's fault but I don't want our cat to feel like she has got no home because it has been invaded by another animal. I have given her loads of love and cuddles since Fizz attacked her but she seems in a state of shock. Will she come back round?

Hi Allyseddon

You might (probably) be lucky to find the cat is sulking and will come back in a while.

But please, if you feel you need to rehome your staffie then please do it through a reputable staffie rescue service - you can email me for details if you wish.

I agree with Alex - a fast, excited wagging is probably the most dangerous one of all - it means "oooh lunch!"

Try and stay calm, separate them both, get the cat in and put her upstairs...once she knows the dog can't get there she will calm down I am sure :)

Chloe

Alex and Chloe
Many thanks for your advice, I feel more reassured now after everybody's advice. This is the first time I have used this forum and everyone has been really helpful with my query and I appreciate it very much for everyone taking their time to read my problem and trying to help me out, want to give a big THANKYOU to you all.
We will try and introduce the dog and cat gradually now, I think I made the mistake by introducing them to face to face on their first day together!!! We never had any problems with our old staff so this is all new to us.

As with regards to the wagging, it was quite fast but it was the same style wag as when she see's our children or other people, in fact she is as friendly, affectionate and excited with strangers as she is with our family, which I found quite bemusing because our old staff was really wary of strangers espically when they came up to the kids, he was very protective over them. We did have problems with him fighting with other dogs, not so much dogs in general but with other staffs, I suppose he was using his territory instincts. Our bitch (Fizz) is exactly the same, but she goes for any dog. Do you find that staffs usually go for other staffs? It has been suggested to us that we use a muzzle on her when we take her out but I feel that this is unfair on her because if any dog attacked her and we were'nt with her (off the leash) she would'nt be able to defend or protect herself which is only a natural instinct. Do you think I am right? Also, with regards to the muzzle, I have thought about using one on her in the house when the cat is around, obviously she will probably still chase it but won't be able to bite it, what do you think about this suggestion?
Anymore advice would be gratefully appreciated. Oh yea, one more slight problem, we have only had her for a week and she still won't eat her food. Is this just due to her being in new surroundings? I am feeding her exactly the same tinned food as the rescue centre gave her but she will still rather eat the scraps off the kids plate (which they feed her under the table without me knowing). How can I get her to eat the meat from her bowl?

Hi - ok, here goes:

1. I can only speak regarding older, non socialised staffies (the only ones I have had) and I have found them to be "difficult" with other dogs. Sox (my bitch) hates other dogs outside the house, but tolerates Willis (my great dane pup) in it - so there is hope. My suggestion is not to muzzle her, but to keep her on the lead and not let her off until her recall improves. My staffie bitch can be taken anywhere off the lead, I only have to say "come" and she is by my side like a shot... she will also avoid other dogs. If I have her on the lead she is snarling and pulling like a dog possessed towards any other dogs. I would get in touch with a local training centre and get along to some classes. You need to start training her - and also realise she is going through her adolescence stage - so she will test you!
I had some good advice from a lady locally to me who is part of the rescue service - let me know if you would like her details and I will try to dig them out for you :) she is very helpful and will advise anyone.

2. The cat. Calm everything down, keep them separated and act normal for a while. Give it a couple of weeks.

3. Feeding. Hmmm... I'm not a fan of canned food... what have you got her on at the moment? Has she eaten anything? Sounds to me like she has had a big upheaval, and although she is thoroughly delighted to be living with you there is a lot going on underneath.... daft idea, but it might work...have you tried getting the kids to give her her dinner? she might see them as consistant if she has been taking food from them... i am of course assuming that she has no problems with food possession (my staffie is as daft as a brush - you could take fillet steak off her!)
Hope this helps
Chloe

Chloe, again thanks for your advice. When out for walks she's kept on a short lead until we come to a place here there are no dogs arounds. Her recall is pretty good seeing as we have only had her for a week, she'll come back on just one command. She does'nt seem to go very far away from me, think it might be because she is unfamiliar with the surroundings. She is quite obedient around the home, will sit, lie and get down on command and she definately understands the word 'no'!
Would really appreciate a contact number for the rescue service but don't go out of your way to get it though. I will contact some training centres in the meantime and let you know how we get on in the future.
Because the dogs home told me that she eats tinned food (she was'nt a stray, the owners were working long hours and found it was'nt fair on her - she had only been in the dogs home for 2 days when we got her) we have her on pedigree chum with a little mixer but she won't touch it, she has'nt even tried it!!!
I will try your suggestion about the kids giving her the food but it's not as if she takes a lot from them as it is. She's probably eaten maybe about 6 sausages since she's been here, a tin of stewed steak, corned beef and ham (not a very good diet is it but I don't want to force anything down her if she does'nt want it). She does'nt seem hungary though and does'nt beg around the table for food but I have noticed that she drinks a lot. She does'nt seem to rest very much but total craves affection and play (might have something to do with not having any company or affection where she was before). She seems pretty happy in herself but I don't want her to be ill. I have tried other tinned foods but she is still not interested!

Hi, it all comes down to socialisation as a puppy with a staff (or any other breed for that matter). I have a rescue staffie - we don't know how old she is but we suspect she is 4 or 5. She killed a Guinea Pig on day 1 (our fault, my 3 year old opened the cage), and I know that a cat wouldn't stand a chance.

Keep them separated for now... as Marina says above put the cat upstairs with a stairgate so they can see each other but not get to each other (make sure its fitted securely!).

I don't have cats so I don't know enough to advise you from there, but I am sure there will be more staffie-experienced people here to advise you soon :)

Hi, yes I agree with regards to socialisation. In our case I don' t think that our staff has ever socialised with a cat!!! When we first introduced them (obviously seperated) she was really wagging her tail which to us seemed like a good sign until I accidentally left the door open and she attcked the cat, and your so right, the cat would'nt stand a chance. It was lucky that I managed to grab hold of the dogs collar. I have seen on quite a few websites that it says to introduce the two over a period of a month with the dog on a short lead and the cat in cage.
Does anyone think that they will begin to acknowledge each other because orignally it was the cats territory and the dog is 17 months.

Hi Allyseddon,

When you say the stafford was wagging his tail - what kind of a wag was it? If it was very fast and high it was likely out of extreme excitment not like - if you see what i am getting at. I have 2 staffords and a cat - i knew that the older would accept a kitten as she was very laid back and listened to me completely... but even that was touch and go for a while. We got a pup when the cat was 2 years old - and they get on fie, though the cat still has to have somewhere to escape to else he would do her damage - not on purpose but because he wants to play adn he has a very high prey drive and chases anything that moves.

do you have a crate? i would put the dog int he crate and allow the cat to come and investigate - then do the reverse - stroke one animal thouroughly and then the other adn back and forth transferring your smell and their onto the other... and above all do not expect thejm to even be in the same room for months!

Be very careful,
#
Alex

We also have a Staff and a cat . The cat was a stray who we homed prior to getting our pup .
As this is the only cat that Gus ( our pup ) has met he sees her as apotential playmate rather than an enemy or such . We introduced them carefully - with the pup in a crate and let the cat sniff around . She initailly hissed and backed off but now they basically tolerate each other . We do always have to be aware when they are both in the same room as pup wants to play with her ( especially that swishing tail) but on saying "NO" he usually listens and comes away from her . On the odd occasion he has chased her but not in a threatening way but a playful way . Even so , even a playful nip could harm poor Noodle.
I hope it works out between them as i know i would hate to have to give up either of my two .
By the way , how long have they been in the same house ?
Lel

Lel, We have had the cat for nearly 4 years and the staffie just a week. The cat won't even come back in the house now, she is absolutely petrified. As I said before (posted earlier), I made the mistake of introducing the staff and cat face to face. Fizz (staff) iniatially seemed just excited to see her but the cat took an instant dislike (she has never had any positive experiences with dogs in the past). Unfortunately, the next day I left a door open and Fizz came into the same room as the cat, chased and pinned the cat into a corner and attacked her. It was awful, the children happened to be there as well and they were in tears thinking the cat was dead, I managed to pull Fizz off the cat and let the cat out, it has been since then that Whisk (cat) has not been back into the house.

Hi how old was your staff when you introduced it to your cat ( out of my 9 staffies only one of them likes cats only because she was brought up with them from 8 weeks old) If your dog was over the age of 6 month's then I don't think they will ever get on. I agree keep the cat upstairs and the doggy down stairs

Hi, the staff is 17 months old but because we got it from a rescue centre although we know quite a lot about her with regards to her behaviour around children and people in general, we don't know about cats. It seems to be that she has never socialised with a cat before and I am dreading the moment again of they come in contact with each other. I feel so sorry for our cat who roamed freely around the house when she wanted to. Now I can't get in the house because of her experience with our staff.

Ally
with regard to her not eating from her bowl but eating from the kids plates . Please try to ensure the children dont do this . Your Staffy must learn that she can only have food on your sayso - otherwise she will constantly be hanging around you at meal times .
Leave her meal down and if she doesnt eat it after a short time pick it up and feed her at the next meal .
She may be getting enough to fill her if the kids are feeding her but obviously its not the right food .
Maybe you are giving her too much and so she doesnt eat it all ??
Lel

Thanks for your eating advice. Our staff does'nt eat directly from the plates, the kids will just hand her a piece of sausage or something. She's very gentle when taking it from them and does'nt seem to wolf it down.
I presumed that if I left her bowl down with her food in it she would eat it when she was hungary but this is'nt the case. I have tried her on various tinned foods but she won't eat any of them. Maybe I should give her dried instead. Maybe it's just a case of her adjusting and having been the situation of an upheavel as Chloe says.
I think I will take her to the vets for a check up though just incase there is an unlying problem, maybe they will be able to give me some advice just incase it turns out to be a medical problem.
As I said before, we had a staffie previous to this one and everything with him was the complete opposite, he never stopped eating and was very regimental when he had it and was brilliant with cats. All this is new to us because we have'nt been in this situation before although we know how to handle staff's quite well. We have never had a bitch before either so did'nt know whether one of the reasons why she was like this is because she is a female.

Hi, take her to the vets and get her checked over, for your own piece of mind :)

In the meantime, keep her on the same food and mixer... how many times a day are you trying her?

Chloe

I have been reading these posts and i noticed that most people are saying keep them seperated, like you i dont think thats fair on the cat. I have 3 cats and 1 dog and i am getting a puppy in about 6 weeks. i have found that the best way of slowly intorducing animals to one another is through scent.

I tend to find a couple of old towels wash them and then put one in the dogs bed and the other in the cats, after a week put the dogs in the cats and visa versa. This way the dog is used to the scent of the cat and wont be quite as intregued to get on top of it to have a sniff. Then i change the bedding back again so they can smell their scent and the new pets mixed together. Then i tend to slowly introduce things one by one, leave some dog toys in the cats room and visa versa so that hopefully when they can finally meet (might take some time) they think they already know one another and maybe your dog wont be quite as intent on ripping the cat to shreds.

Also you should establish some good commands and repremand the dog if it goes near or growls or does anything towards the cat. You could as a last resort ask an animal behaviourist to come in to your house and see why the dog thinks the cat is for eating, hopefully they will be able to give you some sound advice.

Roxanne

Hi
I'm not sure if you are familiar with staffies, but once (like most other dogs) they are onto something no command on earth will get them off - esp[ecially a rescue at this age - i know from experience...! This is just my experience, and there may be others who disagree. Its way too risky for the cat unless you are 100% sure. And I wouldn't trust my staffie with anything small and furry because she simply doesn't listen when she gets that close!!

The advice has been keep them separated until ally decides what to do...
Chloe

Hi,
The only problem I have with the scent suggestion is that our staffie now knows the scent of our cat and this makes her worse!! If she smells the cats scent upstairs she goes tearing up there, bounding all over the beds, grabbing at the kids teddy bears and trying to force herself under the bed (dead funny site seeing the back-end of our staff, legs out to her side trying to get in and out from under the bed).
I have decided, like most other people have advised me, to keep the cat upstairs and the dog down. I know I did say that this seemed unfair to the cat but first and foremostly it is for her own safety and she knows this. She is quite comfortable staying up stairs all day and lolling about on the beds in the sunshine (she did this anyway - bit of a lazy cat is Whisk). She knows that the dog can't get her up there and she seems to be most comfortable and relaxed with this decision. She does tend to stay outside for longer now though (because obviously she know's the dog is in the house) but once she is in she just trots upstairs, wraps herself up and snuggles down into our quilt. The only thing I am worried about is, is that she will go out and not come back-EVER!! I dearly love my cat and would be so gutted if she just dissappeared one day and never to be seen again. I give her loads of fuss and cuddles when she is upstairs she has knows I still love her and hopefully, she knows that the dog won't get in the way of our friendship.

The dog in the meantime does'nt need all the fuss and cuddles.....she gives that to us, never had so many smoothering lick before in my life. It's really cute when the kids go to school in the morning and they each give our staff a kiss goodbye, in fact I don;t even need to wash their faces clean in the norning coz Fizz will do it for them.

Even though we have only had her a week it has'nt taken long for her to adjust to our voice commands. I thought it would be wuite an ordeal as her previous owners probably commanded and recalled her in a total way. I am really pleased with this process, The second day we brought her home and let her off her load she did'nt seem to go very far away from us. She came back to me when I recalled her, sat on command but it;s a shame that I cant get it to eat 'on command' and 'dont rip the cat apart' command!!! Life would be so much easier would'nt it.
Maybe I should train my cat to 'beat up the dog' on command then our staff might back down - shame, no such luck!!!

To give the cat added security, I would install a stairgate at the bottom of the stairs. Then it would be no danger to the children, and the dog would be kept well out of the cat's territory, as well as being lowered in status if there are areas of the house where she is not allowed.

A friend of mine owns 9 dogs, most of them rescues. she has two cats, and they never meet as most of the dogs would trear them apart.

The cats have the hall and upstairs, and come in and out of the house through an upstairs window, that is above the kitchen roof.

With the reaction and age I would think it best to keep them entirely seperated.

If the dog is confined to living room and kitchen, gives the cat the rest of the house, seems fair enough.

You could feed her in the bathroom, and keep her litter tray there if the bathroom is large enough.

Ok with regards to feeding !!!

When ever we get silly and feed our GSD food from our plates she stops eating her food ...so as a rule we dont give her any of our food now EVER! and as far as getting her to eat her food .... it may sound silly but it does work trust me ;) ... first of all amke sure it just you and her in the room she is to be fed with no distractions then put the food bowl down on the floor and kneel beside the bowl and then make it look like you are eating out of the bowl (make sure it is her food ..obviously ...and of course dont actualy eat the food) make some interesting noices wich show you are enjoying it and i promise you she will come and have some ...if she thinks its good enough for you then its good enough for her :D
Also you may want to put your dog in a different room when your eating so that the kids cant sneak her any food without you knowing ....also it will give her the message that she is not welcome to eat your dinner .

As for the cat situation ...... first of all trim your cats nails (the point of this will become clear shortly) then the trick is to wait until your dog is asleep and then go get your cat and have her on your knee for a fuss (try putting a harness on her so she cant freak out and run away) then when your dog awakes she will see whats going on and yes she will be intreeged and yes she will want to come and see ...... let her get about a foot infront of you and the cat and then command her to sit ..or lie down . if she does not obey then you need to give her a stern NO! if that dont work then you need to jump up (i know it sounds like a painful thing to do with a cat on your knee this is why the trimmed nails) make sure you dont let go of the cat at all .... and make a lot of noise shout at the top of your voice if needbe to scare your dog and she will forget what she was doing ...and if she dont forget than she will soon learn that approaching the cat without your say so will result in an unpleasant experience. then ignore her and keep fussing the cat .... and if your staffy moves recorrect her and continue fussing the cat ...eventualy your staffy will get board of trying and leave you and the cat alone ....and eventualy also you will be able to shorten the distance between them ...but it does take time and you wont be able to do it in a day

few point to remember though
about the cat and dog situation:
1 dont restrain your dog wilst you have the cat with you or she will think it must be good if she has to be restrained !!! (my dads staffy was the same and then if you took the lead of she was a different dog and soon stopped being so agressive)

2 I know it may add a little stress to your cat ...but she will soon learn that you are protecting her and then she will more likely want to come home :)

about the food situation:

1 while ever your dog is being feed your food from the table she will think it is ok and the longer it goes on the harder it will be to stop her doing it

2 tinned food and mixer is fine ...she just needs to learn this is her food and the only food she will be getting ... i think the only time your should change a dogs food is if it is causing health problems (i.e diabetic...over weight ect ect) otherwise your dog will also quickly catch on that if she refuses it she will get a change and you will spend the rest of the dogs life changing her food all the time.

I hope i have given you some useful advise ...and i have given you it all based on experience having grown up being the main carer of the family dogs and then having 3 of my own ... and i have had staffy experience 4 times over as my dad had 2 and he used to breed them and also my grandparents dog was a staffy to whom i also cared for alot. However i am no expert and niether are most on this site so if you are worried about any situation and you feel that none of the advise given is suitable then you need to speek to a staffy expert and then go from there.

best of luck jo x x x x

ps sorry its sooooo long winded

Jo,
Thanks for more advice, I have loads so far and intend to carry out a few suggestions.

Situation with cat:- Dog still agressive when she see's her, chases in hot pursuit and goes for cat, cat scared, traumatised escapes. Cat waits for about six hours (making sure everything is all clear), sneaks back in and upstairs out of the way till the next day!!

Situation with staffie & food:- she is still not eating any food from her bowl. Have mixed with gravy for enticement, added a few sausages, bits of ham and chicken for encouragement - still not worked!!!! She would rather eat old maltesers that she finds under the sofa which the kids have dropped. I got the impression that if she was jungary that she would eat from her bowl as this is the only food I put down for her, but no, still not going there!!!

Any other suggestions?

well done for separating them - your kitty will be happier and your staffie will calm when she knows she can't get to the cat.

i would not, under any circumstances, trim your cats claws. if the dogs gets to her then it is all your cat has as a defence. in my experience, there are no second chances with staffies, and while those it has worked for i have a lot of admiration for, i think that fizz is a little too set in her ways!

feeding - your staffie clearly thinks she is a human (so does mine) and wants human food from her new best mates :) don't worry - i promise you she will eat when she is hungry. try and keep the titbits to a minimum, but I am confident she will chill out and start eating when she needs it.

best of luck - am so glad to hear you are persevering :)