Big or small dog better for cats?

wannahelp

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I would like to get a dog. It's been a year since I had to eithanize my 15 year okd Brittany. I'm concerned about my cats, especially the female, as stress could exacerbate her health problems. I'm trying to determine whether a bigger dog or a smaller dog, would be easier for her to accept.
If I get a smaller dog, my male would probably want to play with it. I wouldn't want to deprive him of a playmate, since my female wants nothing to do with him.
However, it would be difficult to teach a dog to play with one cat but not the other. If I get a bigger dog, I will probably train it to just leave th cats alone, as I'd be afraid of them getting injured. At the same time, a bigger dog may be too intimidating.
It's a dilemma, as usual.
 

catwoman707

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It all depends on the dog's behavior with cats, when too young they are spunky and fearless and want to play, but super young like a puppy is okay and cats tend to sense their age and won't feel intimidated.

Although an adult dog regardless of size who is used to living with cats always will not show too much interest at first too which helps the cats not see him as a threat and will accept soon enough.

My 218 lb Great Dane and teeny tiny kitten were the best of friends :)
 
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Kieka

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I think that as long as you get a puppy the cats will adapt. 

Large or small the dog would see the cat as dominant or learn not to mess with them. Also the cat wouldn't be shocked by a suddenly large dog. My sister has a pit bull who respects her cat without problems. But she also has a dominant cat who swipes at the dog if it misbehaves. 
 

lykakitty

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Any dog can be trained to live with your cats however you want, it's just a matter of putting in the work and managing all the animals while you're training. The good thing here is that dogs don't generalize, they learn very specific instances. While that's a pain sometimes I think in your case it'll be a benefit if you want the dog to be alllwed to play with one cat and not the other. Socialize the dog to both, obviously, so they're good around both cats but if the dog tries to play with your female, either let her tell them to knock it off (if she'll do so nicely, usually by ignoring them and/or swatting/hissing if they get too insistent but not going overboard and scaring/hurting the dog) or immediately distract the dog with somethijg they can play with, like their favorite toy, and giving them a quick 1-2 minute play session (or more, if you have time). This will teach the dog that trying to play with your female doesn't get them anywhere, but going and getting their toys will. Depending on the dog this could take anywhere from a couple days to months to drill into their head but it works wonders once they figure it out. I used this to get my puppy to stop trying to play with our 14-year-old cocker spaniel, who wouldn't tell him off for bugging her but also wouldn't play and it made him start barking at her like crazy, and within about 3 days he'd completely stopped. And then, if you feel comfortable with it, let the dog and the male play as they like (supervised at first, of course, to make sure neither gets too rough with the other and they learn each other's limits).

I think the size of the dog should much more depend on what breed you want and that works with your lifestyle than what your cats want. No matter what it'll be an adjustment period and as long as the dog isn't cat reactive or aggressive (which can be trained out, but you'd really need someone who knows what theyre doing and a LOT ot time and effort, and arrangements to keep everyone safe and happy in the meantime) they'll get used to each other. Just do proper introductions and supervise them until you're comfortable with them being together without you there, and be sure to use only positive training methods or you could have a huge problem on your hands. I've seen people try to use forceful methods (choke collars, shock collars, yelling, etc.) to get their dogs to leave their cats alone and ended up with dogs terrified of cats that turn aggressive on them and hurt them.
 
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