Sooty's a 12 week old black Lab and has chased the cat ever since we took her home. We can't leave the 2 of them alone. Is their anyone else that has this problem? If so can you advise me on what to do.

we have 6month old lab called Toby,
we have had Toby since he was 8wks old, he started running for our cat from the day we brought him home,
he still runs after the cat, but the cat isnt so bothered about him now, it is slowly getting better but very slowly, we just leave them to there own devices, as Toby gets bigger things are getting a bit better, Toby tends to just sit and watch the cat more now, i think he is slowly realizing that the cat [Tasha] is not amused and does not want to play.

As long as the cat can escape somewhere safe (usually upwards) there'll be no problem. Adult cats can deal with impertinent pups.
:)

Thanks. Only problem is the cats only just a year old and when the dog goes after her she rolls over on her back with her paws in the air and the dog chews her fur! I'm very close to the cat and miss her in the same room as me. She now sleeps in our 2nd bedroom all on her tod. Makes me sad.

awwww poor puddy. cant you get her one of those beds thats got a roof on. put it in your room. tell doggy no when he pokes his nose in, i have two cats one you could pick up by the tail and swing it round the room and it wouldent bother him(havent tried it b4 u ask:D) dog pokes her nose on him all the time she even licks his head ewwy!.
and i have another one and the dog knows her place:D a swift smack on the nose and shes told! nah hes actully very good with her , hes learnt that a warning without the claws dose the trick cuz she already learnt whats on the end of those paws!
Dogs scared to walk by the cat thou. cuz he is very playful woops:d
Kitty will get sick of the pup sooner or later and put him in his place .

We have exactly the same prob. Molly is now 4mths and our cat Charlie is not quite two years. Molly will not leave him alone. On Friday night they were chasing each other round til gone 11pm (using our bed as a spring board) and then they started again at 5.30 the following morning.

Molly has hurt Charlie a few times but Charlie has never once used his claws on her. In our case, like yours I think the cat is encouraging Molly to do it as he lies with his paws hanging over the bed/sofa on purpose.
It's like a comdey scene. Charlie lying on sofa, Molly leaping up trying to snap at him and him bashing her round the head.

We think Charlie entices her sometimes though as she'll be lying quietly and he'll sneak up on her. Also at bed time when they have their treats, Charlie gets his up on the unit so molly can't pinch them but we see him deliberatly dropping a couple onto the floor for her! So I think they're secretly best of friends.

My only concern is that whenever Charlie comes in for a cuddle he gets chased off by a very jealous Molly and I feel really guilty. Ih he's in another room we make a point of going in to him and giving him a cuddle away from Molly. We're moving to a much bigger place soon so we're hoping they'll settle down when they've got more room and aren't under each others feet!

Letting the cat climb out of the way is not the answer to the problem, it could lead to your pup growing up a cat chaser and we all know where that leads, under a car!.You should teach your pup a simple command such as no, leave or even leave that.This can be taught very easily. I would put your cat in a carry box the type that has a wire front so your pup can see in. Then make a very noisy rattle from anything that creates a loud noise when filled with marbles etc. Put your pup on a lead and your cat in the lounge in the box. Walk your pup into the lounge, when he makes for the cat shake the rattle by his ear while giving your command "leave" and at the same time pull gently on his lead. Try this once a day until you are sure he understands the command, you will find it will work in no time.

I tried putting my cat into its basket and trying to get my border terrier to "make friends" with him. It was a disaster. The cat freaked out as he had nowhere to run to and the dog attacked the basket as he seemed to sense this. I didn't try the rattle, but I will. I had my cat first (rescue cat) and recently got the dog (rescue dog). The cat accepted the dog from day one but the dog just wants to eat the cat. However, the cat is learning to live one step up from the dog, i.e. on worktops, top of cupboards etc and insists on teasing him! The dog is very very slowly learning that the cat lives here too. I have to keep them separate and the dog has got hold of the cat once (only shocked him) but I think we are slowly making progress. I don't have to worry about the cat, he's quite cool with the situation, the dog may never love the cat but I only aim for a truce! A "no" command and ignoring dog when he gets aggressive seems to work for a minute but I am going to try the rattle and see if that makes a difference to him.

have confidence that it will work itself out... my affie chased the cat incessantly initially, but after one or 2 scratches stopped it. dont let the cat avoid the dog, the cat needs to learn to stand up to the dog. when it learns that, it will show the dog who is boss, ...the cat is always boss!!:D my 2 now share a bed, cat washes dogs face. just takes time.:)

I'm new to this board, this is my first post. This is a topic near and dear to my heart. I have a 1.5 year old lab, Annie and two cats, Taylor and Phoebe. Taylor was my first cat and was established in the home before I brought Annie into the mix. I always discouraged Annie from chasing Taylor. It didn't work all of the time, but most of the time it did. Taylor is now 5 years old, and was very upset when I brought Annie home. She has NEVER liked Annie, until recently. I can't say that they will ever be friends, but after 1.5 years have learned to live together. We all sleep in the same bed now, Taylor has finally conceded and given up on having me all to herself again.

Best advice I can give, just don't allow your dog to chase the cat. Spend special time alone with your cat, even if it's for five minutes. They will appreciate the fact that you still love them and want to be with them and I think it also helps the dog understand that the cat has a status in the family as well.

My friends told me before I got Annie that it would take about a year or two before they learned to live with each other. I thought they were crazy, but they were dead on right! Taylor has finally learned that I still love her and that Annie is here to stay, wether she likes it or not. We are all living a much calmer peaceful existence now.

As for my new kitten Phoebe, she and Annie are best friends. They sleep together every night and I don't know what they would do without the other. I guess Phoebe never knew a world without dogs and she has the best of both worlds with a sister dog and a sister cat.

Hang in there, it takes time, but as long as you enforce the rules, things will work out.

Hi, my 1 year old ESS likes to chase both my cats. Things are just starting to get better now and the cats are learning to stand their ground.
Last week, walking back home, I accidently dropped the lead when Oscar unexpectedly pulled. He had spotted a cat and chased it down the round until the cat fled up a tree. His recall is usually very good but this time he had no intention of stopping for me! Will have to do some extra work on this but luckily noone was hurt this time (although my neighbour isnt speaking to me despite several apologies!)
Rachel

I enjoyed reading everyone's postings about their puppies and cats. I too have 2 rescue cats (aged 8 & 7) and boy it was shock to them when we brought our 8 week old terrier cross home - he's now 5 months. At first he didn't know what the cats were but as soon as they ran - he followed. He's now learning not to run straight after them and will sit for up to 3 minutes (usually with me speaking soothingly to him) and just watch. One of the cats (Soooty) has got the puppy (Rustie) sorted out and now the cat joins us for our evening walk, following us around the block and teasing Rustie ("you can't catch me - you're on the lead!"). My other Cat (Arthur - yes like the Kattomeat Arthur) is far more sensitive and has spent most of the summer living outdoors - only venturing back into the house at night. I feel very guilty since he was always such a home bod. He needs to take a swipe or 2 at Rustie probably. I hope they will sort it all out eventually and I hope it doesn't take 2 years!

Hi everyone,i too have a problem with my pup and two cats,in fact i asked for help here when we first got Lola,that was four months ago ,Lola is nine months old our cats are brothers and almost eighteen months old one of the cats Charlie has sussed Lola out ,allthough Lola still chases him they do play in fact Charlie shares his latest catches with her, frogs birds mice ...etc etc etc but Enzo (the other cat)is a completley different story we still have to feed him seperatley and he also only comes home under cover of darkness, Lola seems to have a real problem with him and the cat just takes off at the rate of knots, we also still have a real problem with Lola scenting (i think thats what it is ),she pees a tiny bit where ever the cats have laid)its weird because there is no smell she just marks the carpet ,i have tried everything to clean it ,and the marks are easily cleaned ,but no matter what i use she goes back to the same places ,i have to admit its driving me crazy, its a shame as in every other way she is wonderful ,still we are not going to give up ,who said having animals was easy !Regards Sue xx P.S.I am going to try the rattle !you never know it may just work !! watch this space .

Does she have a favourite treat? Be it food or a toy? Try this exercise to train her to leave the cat, we did it for dog aggression but it may help you too as it is used to train dogs to 'leave' pretty much anything.

My little dogs fav thing in the world is her ball, she will do ANYTHING for that ball
Well, a behaviourist we saw spent ages working with two balls, Ruby on the lead. We had to roll a ball in front of Ruby, keeping her fav one behind her. When she went for the other ball we held her still and gently said 'off', repeating it until she loosened the lead and turned away from the other 'rogue' ball. As soon as she did this she was rewarded by her fav ball being given to her. We repeated this exercise many times until she came to recognise that the word 'off' ment she was going to get a reward. You could do the same exercise with a fav snack or other treat.

Next step was to hold her infront of a door where she could see other dogs walking past. As soon as she saw one and started to bark and pull we would gently say 'off', as we did with the ball exercise. Then as soon as she stops barking and turns away from the other dog, reward with the ball, or treat. Keep on doing this and the dog will associate the word 'off' with her special treat. This hopefully will condition her that when she sees another dog, if she ignores it she may get a reward

So far, it is working a treat for us. I always carry her ball in my pocket, and have tried it a few times on our walks, it takes time and patience but it DOES seem to be working!

Hopefully this little exercise may lead to a quiet life for your cat!

Hope this may help you, and good luck!

Helen

Hi, I have that problem too. My westie has always chased the cats but they seem to let her and even lye down in front of her and let her pull their ears! Ouch! When the cats see her they rub noses and everything. Then came my two dobes and the cats well they hate them. Obviously they are much larger and more of a threat. Now I have 3 cats living in my bedroom all fed up and everyone has to be separated. To top it all two of the cats dont get on so it is a nightmare. My husbands friend is thinking about taking one of our cats as she seems to want to live a solitary life. I am reluctant to let her go, but then she could be much more happier with a person on their own. We used to have 7 cats. Started with one stray who decided to have 6 kittens in my bedroom. Then the stray left when our westie arrived. Great! Thanks For the 6 gifts! lol. My mum has 2 of them and a couple who live in our street have another, who went there all by herself, I guess she didnt like dogs either. So we were glad that they were all settled and happy. Now we have to sort something out with these 3. I think I will let her go as he seems a great bloke and could offer her a lot of love and he has no dogs.