Advice On Combining Households

[fitzleigh1985]

This question is directed to anyone who has ever combined your cats with dogs. I'm going to be moving in with my boyfriend (it's still some months away as we prepare the house and sort out basic logistics). I have three cats. He has two dogs. I need tips on gentle introductions, soothing techniques, ANY advice really helps from those with prior experience.

My oldest has been around dogs before. Her first best friend was a dog before I ever adopted other cats. His dogs have been around cats before, no history of problems.

 

[shadowsrescue]

Here is an article that talks about introducing cats to dogs http://www.thecatsite.com/a/introducing-cats-to-dogs

The main thing is that the dogs are well behaved and will not chase or hurt the cats.  I have introduced my large dog to numerous cats.  I always start by allowing her to smell the room the cats have been in.  We next do some sight visits through a baby gate.  One person on one side with the cats and the other person with the dogs.  It might be best to do one dog at a time.  Offer treats rewards to all when they are first seeing each other.  Make sure the cats have tall places so they can easily get away from the dogs such as a cat tree or shelving.  Also take it slowly and don't rush them together.  Your hope is that the dogs are well behaved and have some training to listen.

 

[daishain]

Sounds like the dogs won't be causing problems directly. The main thing then is to ensure the first meetings take place in a manner that the cats feel safe.

-If you have time before actually moving together, bring some bedding or something else like it that would be saturated in the smell of the dogs in question, place it somewhere accessible, and give the cats a chance to get used to the smell. Be warned, if you have cats that spray, this move will invite doing so.

-Next step might be to have them in the same household, but separated by a door. Preferably one with a small gap at the bottom. Again this is a matter of getting used to the general presence of the dogs.

-First actual meeting ought to be done under controlled conditions. The cats should feel like the dogs can't get to them, and that they are not trapped wherever they are. A baby gate as suggested before could work well. Failing that, I might put the dogs in a wire crate one at a time before placing said crate in a room with the cats.

Main thing is to be patient and go slowly. There are some out there who advocate just tossing them together and letting them sort it out, but that is more likely to cause enmity than friendship, especially if some parties aren't used to the other species at all.