How To Get Them To Get Along :(

uhmkyrstin

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So I’ve posted many times about my Dipper here and you guys always seem to help, so here goes my newest question.

I’m putting it in this section of the forums because it is mostly concerning my two dogs vs Dipper.. in a sense.

I have two boxers, Jax and Riley. Jax is around 80 lbs, while Riley is much smaller are around 60 ish. (more or less). They are both adults.

When I first resuced Dipper, I tried to bring him inside my house. Riley had a litter of puppies at the time, so when she met Dipper, she honestly didn’t really care much about his presence. She gave him a few sniffs and ran back to her puppies. I think this is because she was more concerned with her babies than anything else. Jax, on the other hand, was obsessed. I would try to let him meet Dipper, and he would get very very close, to smell him naturally. But then he would try to lick him- which I found odd. Thought maybe he would accept Dipper then. So I would keep Dipper close by for long periods of time as he slept, hoping Jax would eventually give up and I’d have some hope... but no. As long as Dipper was there, Jax was on watch duty. It scared me so I never let Dipper down.

When I would bathe Dipper, I would take him into the bathroom and after he was done, I would feed him (I would always bathe him either before breakfast or before dinner). So while he was eating, I would often go get one of his toys to play afterwards. (Dipper ended up staying in the camper we have outback, as it has heating and cooling for the different temperatures outside, suffient space, and lighting. I go there to play with him for hours at a time throughout the day, feed him, and clean up his litter, etc. We often take naps together and such as well so he is very socialized still.) While Dipper is in the bathroom eating, or bathing, my dogs noses can be found poking under the door. And that is where they stay until Dipper is back in the camper... then they go into the bathroom and sniff every. single. thing.

Now, these behaviors may not seem too extreme, and some of you may be thinking “doesn’t sound like your dogs want to eat Dipper... sounds like they want to get to know him!”

I wish. My dogs, especially Jaxon, think they are “cat hunters.” My neighbors have outdoor cats, which are more like community cats so they wander all around, and when I’m walking Jax I often have to straddle him and hold him back at his chest to not yank me into chasing a poor feline when he spots one. When the dogs used to have long leads that stuck into the ground for outdoor play, Jax chases a-many cats into the shed, though the cats fought back and Jax would end up just standing there, barking and growling.

Basically, long story short.... I would love to have all my animals together, I would love to have my Dipper with me 24/7. He’s my best bud, my right hand man. Has anyone every experienced something like this and successfully solved it? Does anyone have any tips for me? I know that there’s a chance they will never get along, and Dipper won’t have to deal with this forever because as soon as my family can get into a bigger home I will be able to keep him indoors in certain part so of the house where the dogs won’t be aloud. But if there’s any chance I could get them to love eachother asap, I’d like to try. I’ll attach images of my dogs, Riley is the fawn colored and Jax is brindle. + I’ll attach some of Dipper as well, incase you haven’t seen him or haven’t seen an update. Thanks in advance guys. (: Sorry I wrote a book!
 

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Columbine

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Wow, what a gorgeous fur-family :redheartpump::loveeyes::redheartpump: (I adore Boxers ;) ).

Dog-to-cat introductions can be tricky, especially if the dogs are cat chasers on walks. The good news is that they can learn the difference between family cats and cats outside. Essentially, from the dogs' perspective, Dipper has to become part of their pack. My lab has grown up with cats, but she definitely views 'her' cats differently from the rest of the cat population (who, in her eyes, are fair game...not that she's ever been allowed to follow through :nono:), right up to the point where she'll defend 'her' cats from any visiting doggy friends who get the wrong idea! I've also brought an adult greyhound into a cat-and-dog home, and trained him that cats are not toys or prey. Hopefully that gives you some hope :p

Start with reinforcing basic obedience training with Riley and Jax. You want a really reliable down-stay, recall, 'leave (it)/no' and 'watch (me)'. That last isn't 100% essential, but it makes life a whole lot easier - if you can get them to focus on you rather than Dipper (or any other cat/unfriendly dog/anything you don't want them to chase when you have told of them :devilish:), it'll be a WHOLE lot easier to call them off ;)
I teach it with treats or food. Take the food, show it to them, then move it to your eye, so they make eye contact with you. As you get the eye contact, click and treat. Repeat a few times, then add in the voice command as you move the food to your eye. Repeat again (until they're connecting the command with the action), then start using your hand and vocal command, but without holding the food (still click and treat when they do the action, though :wink:). If the groundwork is set, they should respond to the vocal and hand commands without the food to guide the action. You can eventually phase out the hand signal, but it can be helpful to stick with both in higher stress situations (like with Dipper or something else they REALLY want to chase). I hope that makes sense :crossfingers:
The better they are with basic obedience, the easier the introductions will be. The next step is to do early introductions just after the dogs have been walked. Tired dogs are less likely to go after Dipper than dogs full of energy and exuberance. All introductions at this stage need to be with the dogs on leashes, for the safety of all concerned. You want one person per animal, so each animal has someone's full attention (if you struggle to get two helpers, work with Riley and Jax separately. This might be better in the early stages in any case, as it'll be less intimidating for Dipper). The golden rule for all cat to dog introductions is to have the cat able to freely move about, and the dogs on leashes or otherwise contained (dog crates are fantastic for these situations, and I use them a lot during early introductions). To proceed from here, just use your judgment. If in doubt, go slower rather than faster - a Boxer could easily kill a cat without really meaning to, so cautious is always best. Using food as a distraction for all three animals can help build positive associations, especially as far as Dipper's concerned.

That's the dogs' needs, now onto Dipper! For him, you need to make sure he has safe places high up, so he can observe the dogs without feeling threatened or in any danger. After all, a cat's natural reaction to a dog is very often to climb a tree to escape :winkcat: By providing high places in your home, you're allowing him to follow his instincts. Opening up vertical space could be a huge help in any case, as it will ensure he has safe refuges (and even escape routes) for when the dogs get too much (in my house, my girl finds my lab's exuberance a bit much at times, and often retreats to a high place to observe in relative peace). Keep meetings short to start with, so Dipper doesn't get too overwhelmed, and make sure to give him plenty of interactive playtime to decompress and work through any stresses in a healthy way.

Above all, stay calm, stay patient, and accept that it may well be quite some time before you can have all three animals together unsupervised.
How To Safely Introduce A Cat And A Dog
Introducing Cats To Dogs
Caring For Cats And Dogs
 
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uhmkyrstin

Mama to a Purrfect Kitten
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Young Cat
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Messages
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Location
Louisiana
Wow, what a gorgeous fur-family :redheartpump::loveeyes::redheartpump: (I adore Boxers ;) ).

Dog-to-cat introductions can be tricky, especially if the dogs are cat chasers on walks. The good news is that they can learn the difference between family cats and cats outside. Essentially, from the dogs' perspective, Dipper has to become part of their pack. My lab has grown up with cats, but she definitely views 'her' cats differently from the rest of the cat population (who, in her eyes, are fair game...not that she's ever been allowed to follow through :nono:), right up to the point where she'll defend 'her' cats from any visiting doggy friends who get the wrong idea! I've also brought an adult greyhound into a cat-and-dog home, and trained him that cats are not toys or prey. Hopefully that gives you some hope :p

Start with reinforcing basic obedience training with Riley and Jax. You want a really reliable down-stay, recall, 'leave (it)/no' and 'watch (me)'. That last isn't 100% essential, but it makes life a whole lot easier - if you can get them to focus on you rather than Dipper (or any other cat/unfriendly dog/anything you don't want them to chase when you have told of them :devilish:), it'll be a WHOLE lot easier to call them off ;)
I teach it with treats or food. Take the food, show it to them, then move it to your eye, so they make eye contact with you. As you get the eye contact, click and treat. Repeat a few times, then add in the voice command as you move the food to your eye. Repeat again (until they're connecting the command with the action), then start using your hand and vocal command, but without holding the food (still click and treat when they do the action, though :wink:). If the groundwork is set, they should respond to the vocal and hand commands without the food to guide the action. You can eventually phase out the hand signal, but it can be helpful to stick with both in higher stress situations (like with Dipper or something else they REALLY want to chase). I hope that makes sense :crossfingers:
The better they are with basic obedience, the easier the introductions will be. The next step is to do early introductions just after the dogs have been walked. Tired dogs are less likely to go after Dipper than dogs full of energy and exuberance. All introductions at this stage need to be with the dogs on leashes, for the safety of all concerned. You want one person per animal, so each animal has someone's full attention (if you struggle to get two helpers, work with Riley and Jax separately. This might be better in the early stages in any case, as it'll be less intimidating for Dipper). The golden rule for all cat to dog introductions is to have the cat able to freely move about, and the dogs on leashes or otherwise contained (dog crates are fantastic for these situations, and I use them a lot during early introductions). To proceed from here, just use your judgment. If in doubt, go slower rather than faster - a Boxer could easily kill a cat without really meaning to, so cautious is always best. Using food as a distraction for all three animals can help build positive associations, especially as far as Dipper's concerned.

That's the dogs' needs, now onto Dipper! For him, you need to make sure he has safe places high up, so he can observe the dogs without feeling threatened or in any danger. After all, a cat's natural reaction to a dog is very often to climb a tree to escape :winkcat: By providing high places in your home, you're allowing him to follow his instincts. Opening up vertical space could be a huge help in any case, as it will ensure he has safe refuges (and even escape routes) for when the dogs get too much (in my house, my girl finds my lab's exuberance a bit much at times, and often retreats to a high place to observe in relative peace). Keep meetings short to start with, so Dipper doesn't get too overwhelmed, and make sure to give him plenty of interactive playtime to decompress and work through any stresses in a healthy way.

Above all, stay calm, stay patient, and accept that it may well be quite some time before you can have all three animals together unsupervised.
How To Safely Introduce A Cat And A Dog
Introducing Cats To Dogs
Caring For Cats And Dogs
Oh my gosh thank you SO much!!! I’ve tried to research stuff about it and it usually brings stuff up simailar to what you said, but I’ve never found anything as extensive as this. I really appreciate it, i’m excited to try these methods! :rock:
 
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