I just found these forums and I am desparate for help.
4 years ago I took in a little female stray kitten. She was barely weened and probably just a couple of months old. She is now a whopping 4.5 pounds, healthy and active. It was a long road in the beginning because when I found her she was pretty sick, thin, and ear mite infested. A few months of some TLC and she got better. When she got healthy, I named her Sassy....because...well...she was, and always has been. She likes to think she is alpha but when it comes down to it, she just growls and hisses a lot.
Now, over the course of the 4 years since, I have introduced a nuerotic Dachsie (wiener dog) puppy, now 2 years old. Introductions went well and they became playmates....on Sassy's terms. Then, last year I brought in a lab/wiemeriener mix, also a puppy, now 1 year old. That introduction took time and they still don't get along...tolerate is more the word. Two weeks ago I felt sorry for a 6-7 month old bengal kitten trying to get in my back door. I took him in (I call him Fozzy) and he is also now part of the zoo.
Now, Sassy, the first stray I rescued has always been snotty, often hiding in one room and only coming out for any duration when the dogs are in their crates. This was how things went for a long time. Since the new kitty was brought in, Sassy refuses to come out of the bathroom. I have had to set up a second litter box and food/water dishes because she will not come out. When she does, if she catches even a glimpse of Fozzy she tucks tail and runs. I should mention that she has never walked around the house with her tail anywhere but down. Fozzy on the other hand never puts his tail down. The problem is compounded by the Dachsie and his unrelenting instinct to chase. He still thinks Sassy is his buddy, however often gets a face full of claws. This didn't happen before the new kitten came in....at least not as often.
Fozzy, the new kitten is nuetral and gets along, even playing with both dogs. He attempts to play with Sassy, but Sassy will have none of that. Ears back, tail bushed, growling/hissing, the whole nine yards.
How do I get Sassy over her superiority complex and get her to be a more civil family member?
4 years ago I took in a little female stray kitten. She was barely weened and probably just a couple of months old. She is now a whopping 4.5 pounds, healthy and active. It was a long road in the beginning because when I found her she was pretty sick, thin, and ear mite infested. A few months of some TLC and she got better. When she got healthy, I named her Sassy....because...well...she was, and always has been. She likes to think she is alpha but when it comes down to it, she just growls and hisses a lot.
Now, over the course of the 4 years since, I have introduced a nuerotic Dachsie (wiener dog) puppy, now 2 years old. Introductions went well and they became playmates....on Sassy's terms. Then, last year I brought in a lab/wiemeriener mix, also a puppy, now 1 year old. That introduction took time and they still don't get along...tolerate is more the word. Two weeks ago I felt sorry for a 6-7 month old bengal kitten trying to get in my back door. I took him in (I call him Fozzy) and he is also now part of the zoo.
Now, Sassy, the first stray I rescued has always been snotty, often hiding in one room and only coming out for any duration when the dogs are in their crates. This was how things went for a long time. Since the new kitty was brought in, Sassy refuses to come out of the bathroom. I have had to set up a second litter box and food/water dishes because she will not come out. When she does, if she catches even a glimpse of Fozzy she tucks tail and runs. I should mention that she has never walked around the house with her tail anywhere but down. Fozzy on the other hand never puts his tail down. The problem is compounded by the Dachsie and his unrelenting instinct to chase. He still thinks Sassy is his buddy, however often gets a face full of claws. This didn't happen before the new kitten came in....at least not as often.
Fozzy, the new kitten is nuetral and gets along, even playing with both dogs. He attempts to play with Sassy, but Sassy will have none of that. Ears back, tail bushed, growling/hissing, the whole nine yards.
How do I get Sassy over her superiority complex and get her to be a more civil family member?