dogs keep attacking my cat

[kat003]

We have 4 dogs 3 little one medium sized. The little ones.. are beyond me. They actually aren't my dogs, they are my parents. Anytime they have a chance they will harass her and bark at her. Chase her until she finally is able to find a place to hide. I cant stop the dogs. She is almost traumatized after this happens. She will barely come out of her hiding spot. It happened again today and I fed her treats, picked her up and held her, kissed her hoping it would make her feel better. I don't know how to solve this problem because my parents will not admit its the dogs fault. I just don't want her to hate me or be scared after this happens, I feel so guilty for letting it happen. I left for a few minutes and come back to chaos.

 

[Mr. Meow]

Can you put up a baby gate in the doorway of your room? One that the cat can squeeze through, or jump over, but the dogs can't get by.

 

[kat003]

Can you put up a baby gate in the doorway of your room? One that the cat can squeeze through, or jump over, but the dogs can't get by.

We have a gate and the still get through, when someone accidentally leaves it open. And even if they do there is stuff in the way of the door but.. they still manage to budge through and get in.

 

[maggie101]

Or any where high they can jump? I don't know if they're old enough.

 

[Tagrendy]

I'm not much of a dog person, but I know dogs need to be trained to see the owners as alfa, it seems like they don't if they don't follow your command. Until then it might be dangerous to have the cat around them.

 

[maggie101]

Yes,train the dogs. Some pet stores like petco do it

 

[jefferd18]

Okay, something has to give, she can not go on like that. Yes she is traumatize and may start pulling out her fur as a result. She also just may one day decide to hold her own and that could mean an abscess on a dog's face from a good smack. Are your parents not around when this happens? If not, you may want to record it on your phone.
You may want to try to teach the dogs some basic commands like sit and stay. You can also say "no" in a loud voice whenever the dogs start to chase her and then pick the dogs up and put each one in a closed room.

 

[FeebysOwner]

If you have a room of your own with a door - forget the baby gate and close the door. Make your room her sanctuary with all of her stuff in there.

It doesn't sound like you have any control over the dogs, so take control as you are able by giving your cat her own place away from them.

 

[kat003]

Okay, something has to give, she can not go on like that. Yes she is traumatize and may start pulling out her fur as a result. She also just may one day decide to hold her own and that could mean an abscess on a dog's face from a good smack. Are your parents not around when this happens? If not, you may want to record it on your phone.
You may want to try to teach the dogs some basic commands like sit and stay. You can also say "no" in a loud voice whenever the dogs start to chase her and then pick the dogs up and put each one in a closed room.

They know it happens and get mad when I even tell them that it's wrong, i told them they need to learn boundaries but they got upset. I cannot control how they train or what they do with their own dogs.

 

[kat003]

If you have a room of your own with a door - forget the baby gate and close the door. Make your room her sanctuary with all of her stuff in there.

It doesn't sound like you have any control over the dogs, so take control as you are able by giving your cat her own place away from them.

Thanks once again, I will feel bad for not giving her freedom but will do it to keep her safe and happy.

 

[kat003]

Thank you for your concern everyone, I will be moving her into my room only for now and try to have a talk with my parents.

 

[game misconduct]

scruff the lil dogs give em a lil shake and tell em no you need to establish alpha dominance and they must see the cat as a pack member takes time but it can be done but a dogs first instinct is to chase if prey(cat)runs far as your parents go might want to point out regardless of fault etc are they ok with their lil dogs possibly losing an eye in the near future on the off chance they do corner the cat and she claws an eyeball blinding one of those yappy lil dogs cause soon as your cat figures out the barking is just noise she will be the one doing the chasing i seen it happen with my lil sisters 5 pound sh persian she terrorized a corgi and mini schnuazer till the day she died but was best buds with the 1oo pound lab we had at my dads growing up

 

[kat003]

game misconduct She is friends with our senior dog she will happily share my bed with him because he is so gentle and stays to his self which she likes because she can sniff him at her own pace. But the little dogs don't know how to act at all!! My parents get beyond mad when i try to discipline them. So I can't do much sadly. She has a few times hissed and hit at them, maybe it will take one of them getting hurt for them to see the problem.. or knowing them.. will want to throw the cat out.

 

[fionasmom]

I am not a little dog person but have owned GSDs for years. The dogs are out of control and have no alpha to follow, so you need to keep your kitty safe in your room and allow her relationship with the good dog. She will be happier knowing that she has a safe space rather than wondering when the next attack is going to happen.

 

[corvidae]

I think keeping her in your room is a great solution for all the pets’ safety!
Also I just want to mention, since several folks here have mentioned dogs needing an “alpha,” that those dominance theories about wolves were bad science when they were done, looking at stressed and unrelated captive wolves rather than in the wild where wolves live in family units. Neither wolves nor dogs are trying to “out alpha” their owners, and although it’s widely believed dogs need an alpha, that is a myth and not based in fact.
I would recommend positive reinforcement training for your pups- see if there’s a trainer that uses positive methods near you. Behaviour adjustment training (BAT) is also a fantastic resource for working with reactive dogs.

 

[kat003]

Thank you all once again, I have already started moving her into my room and she is at peace right now playing with her toys.

 

[FeebysOwner]

She looks like such a sweety!! Keep us posted on how this change goes. We are rooting for you and (did I miss her name) your baby!

 

[kat003]

She looks like such a sweety!! Keep us posted on how this change goes. We are rooting for you and (did I miss her name) your baby!

Her name is desa and thanks I hope everything goes well for me and her.

 

[cataholic07]

Wow.. sorry to hear your poor kitty is getting terrorized. The dogs need to be taught the leave it command asap. I would recommend taking them to a force free or positive reinforcement trainer to train them properly. I would not ever recommend going the alpha scruff/pinning technique as that can cause far more damage than good. The whole alpha theory is BS.

I would also recommend adding a lot of tall cat trees around the house for her or cat shelves. If she has access on getting up high she will be more confident.

 

[Purr-fect]

We have 4 dogs 3 little one medium sized. The little ones.. are beyond me. They actually aren't my dogs, they are my parents. Anytime they have a chance they will harass her and bark at her. Chase her until she finally is able to find a place to hide. I cant stop the dogs. She is almost traumatized after this happens. She will barely come out of her hiding spot. It happened again today and I fed her treats, picked her up and held her, kissed her hoping it would make her feel better. I don't know how to solve this problem because my parents will not admit its the dogs fault. I just don't want her to hate me or be scared after this happens, I feel so guilty for letting it happen. I left for a few minutes and come back to chaos.

I can lend you greg 21 pounds and arnold 23 pounds for a day. They each separately attacked a 100 lb plus burmese mountain dog. They hate dogs. Arnold twice ran a fox out of our yard. I think they can help right the balance....very quickly.

Seriously you must STOP this abuse......ASAP.