The dog needs to go

Pouncecat1

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My mom adopted a puppy about 2 years ago. I knew immediately the dog was a bad match. She would stare intently at the cats and snap at them. My mom said i was over reacting and she was fine. This has been a source of tension between us and we had several arguments, but my mom was determined to keep the stupid dog.

Yesterday evening, I put the dogs outside and was carrying some items in through the door from the truck. Our other dog barged through (she's fine with cats). I was telling the puppy to stay and had my back to the Christmas tree by the door. My cat went running out right under puppy's nose and she bolted after him. I dropped everything and ran after them. Puppy was running and snapping at my cat. I went to grab her and slipped on the wet grass. One leg went forward, the other landed under me. I was laying on the ground in agony watching her run after my cat. My cat ran under the car and she was trying to belly crawl after him. I started screaming for help because I could not get up.

My dad ran and grabbed the dog, cat ran in the house. He's fine by the way. I don't think she made contact- he was lucky.

I'm pretty sure my foot is either broken or very badly sprained. I can't walk or put weight on it. I'm maxed out on over the counter pain medication (Ibuprofen and Tylenol) and it's still hurting. I'm going to the doctor on Monday. There's no point in urgent care if they just tell me to use RICE. And the idea of a cast on my very painful foot sounds even worse.

My mom still wants to keep the stupid dog. I think this is unreasonable. Am i wrong? I told her when she got the dog we would do a 8 week trial. My one requirement was that the dog gets along with the cats. Then tonight she let the dog in off leash and the dog went straight for my cat again. This time i jumped in front of him and dragged her to her cage. Not fun when you can only hop on one leg.

I've asked repeatedly for them to put a catch rope on her, or keep her on the other side of the house, to use the other door. To not let her run out of control. They let her run loose nearly every time they let her in. My dad can't catch the dog to walk her in because she runs from him, so he just opens the door and in she charges. My mom always promises to make changes but never does. The dog will be good for a while and they will let their guard down. Oh yeah, the dog is great as long as the cats don't run, she's not excited, she's not over tired, she's on a leash, or she doesn't see the wrong cat. She hates my favorite, sweetest cat and that is the one she went after. She doesn't seem to bother the meaner cat as much.

My dad said the accident was my fault for putting the dogs outside and trying to carry stuff in the house. I suppose that was a bad move, but i had no idea the cat was by the door. I feel like they chose the dog over me. It was an accident, but it would never have happened if they had gotten a nicer dog.
 

Maria Bayote

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Your post reminds me of the dog we used to have - whom everybody hated, but I fought for that fella, until he passed away from cardiac arrest after 2 years of his short life. When he passed this earth my heart was broken.

I believe the dog can also sense your 'dislike' on him. Did it undergo any behavioral trainings? Was it chasing your cat an aggressive one or just trying to play with the kitty? In my home country I have 3 dogs and a cat, and sometimes one of my dogs would chase my Pepsi and bully him; and other times it would be the other way around.

Give it time. Try to be more accepting of this dog. For all you know once you give him the same dosage of love and attention you give to the other pets in the house things would calm down a bit, or for the better.

Goodluck.
 

furmonster mom

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The dog obviously has a high prey drive (when prey runs, catch it!).
I hate to say it, but if it's been two years with no change or resolution, I don't see anything changing soon.
Since it's your parents house and their dog, you are under their "rules". You can continue to try and work around the situation, or work your way to removing yourself and the cats out of the situation entirely.
 

maggie101

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Gosh,so sorry this is happening to you. Wish I had a solution. Can you put in shelves on the wall? Anywhere he can jump high. Or a cat tree where your cats like to run he mosf? Would your dad be willing to clicker train the dog to sit or come to him? He might like it.
 

neely

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First, I am sorry about your foot/leg and hope you get the proper medical treatment tomorrow. Second, has the dog had any obedience training? That would be the first step. Second, when the dog is outside and someone is in the yard with her they should make her sit before opening the door and the human should enter first. Then reward her with a treat, she'll get the hang of it. Your idea about letting her in a different door on the other side of the house makes sense. 👍 Just out of curiosity, what breed or mix of breeds is the dog? It's instinct for some breeds more than others to herd and/or chase which is why obedience training would help. You can also have a dog trainer come to the house. In addition, a serious sit down talk with your parents can't hurt since it's important to be consistent, i.e. everyone has to stick to the same plan and follow through with commands or the dog will fall back to her own devices.

Good luck, I hope the problem can be worked out for humans and animals. :goodluck:
 
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Pouncecat1

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My foot is fractured and sprained. I won't be doing anything for a minimum of 4 weeks.I'm guessing the doctor was underestimating the healing time because soft tissue damage doesn't show up without an MRI. According to the doctor i should be able to walk on it, but i can't even put my foot on the ground passively, forget about walking.

i told my mom when she decided to keep that dog that it was an accident waiting to happen. One slip up and the cats would get hurt. My parents are like "it was just an accident." It's not an accident when I told them 2 years ago, the dog hated cats and would go after them if given the opportunity. An accident would be if i walked outside calmly and slipped on the driveway. Not an accident when the dog is chasing the cat which i knew would happen if the cats ever got outside.

My foot is badly injured because i landed on it at full speed and crushed/fractured the bone in the middle of the foot.

They could have had any dog in the world as long as it got along with the cats. Instead they insist on keeping the monster. I think this is going to ruin our relationship. It would have been worse if my cat had gotten injured or killed. But they don't care. If you are going to keep an animal they need to be able to co-exist. Instead the house is a jail for the cats and god forbid, they ever sneak out. I hate living here.

I just had a job lined up too. I can't work outside with a broken foot, so that is the end of that. I'm totally depressed. Already cancelled my vacation i was planning... Can't do anything with a broken foot. I can barely make it ten steps on the crutches...

I'm ready to take a baseball bat to my bedroom. It would be so nice to smash something to pieces right now.
 
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Pouncecat1

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Cats are fine. I moved them into the bedroom (in jail). I don't think they will be happy locked up but at least they are safe. I expect they will start beating on the door and begging to go out.
 

maggie101

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Glad your cat's are ok. Foot injuries can take a long time. I sprained and fractured my foot day before Thanksgiving.
 

Elphaba09

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As others have asked, has the dog had any obedience training? It really is unfair to blame the dog. What kind of dog is it? Is it getting the right amount of exercise for its breed? With proper training, all should be well.

My friend adopted an abused 2-year-old half-black lab who was found tied to a light pole in a parking lot. She had been returned to the shelter three times for her "wild" behavior before my friend adopted her. She is now a calm (Except when she sees me!), sweet, service dog who lives with six resident cats, who she used to chase, and a revolving number of foster cats. When she is not working, Sadie is very high energy and needs to run around, but she is so good with all the cats that they play with her. Some even sleep near/on her.
 

1 bruce 1

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Unfortunately, my first thought is it depends on who owns the home you all live in is the one who decides what happens with the dog.
Secondly, I would suggest talking with a very experienced trainer (no Pet-store trainers, people who are experienced in training and handling dogs of all breeds) to evaluate what is actually going on. It's very possible this dog is just young, hyper, and over-excited, hence the chasing and snapping out of pent up energy. They need someone in person with experience to see if this is real aggression towards the cat or just over the top pushy play behavior in a dog that doesn't understand that cats don't play like dogs. Since the "meaner" cat probably doesn't tolerate any BS from this dog, the shy one is now the target because she will run. I'm hopeful this is just an untrained, out of control dog that needs some manners and training. Since she backed off the cat that sounds like stood up for itself, it makes me hope that a little work would do wonders, but that's on your parents, not you.
Since this dog has been with your parents for 2 years and they can't even catch the dog to take her for a walk, it tells me they have done nothing in the way of basic obedience, let alone house manners, which is inexcusable in 2 years time. It's not the dogs fault, but your parents need to step up and take responsibility for the animal they chose to take into their home. Also, at 2 years old, as I'm sure you know, this dog might have a lot of pup in her, but a 2 year old dog is an adult dog, not a puppy. If this dog got loose and chased a child this way, people on the street wouldn't be so forgiving and your parents might wind up with a lawsuit, a fine, etc. So they need to think about that.
Most dogs want to learn and do the right thing. If you all could get a few books or watch a few videos on how to teach some basic manners to a dog by using kindness and rewards, they might be surprised at how quickly the dog learns to be good. I think a lot of dogs want to do the right thing, they just don't know what that is because the owners don't know how to teach them. If at all possible, talk to them about signing up with an obedience class and tell them to ask the trainer on what to do about this. Teach the dog no, stay, and leave it. Exercise the dog.
I'll be in the minority of most folks on the internet and say we have plenty of critters and if a new dog shows true aggression towards any of the other dogs or cats, they're out. If it's an ignorant dog that has no intent to harm, just doesn't know how to interact with cats, that's fine. But any dog that would attempt to hunt down and hurt or kill our cats at first glance is out the door, and that's the end of that discussion.
 
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