[Cavendish]

Hi all, just wanted to share with you my new dog (Freddie), we collect him from a rescue centre this sunday. I can't wait to get him home, we have spent a small fortune on dog things, but i am sure he is worth every penny.
I have lived with dogs previously in shared houses but this is the first dog that will be part of my family, really excited, hopefully the cat won't mind too much??

[Bionic]

Cavendish
I know what you mean about spending a fortune on things. I did the same. Mine has got all the toys going and some more 

My cat and dog do not get on at all.  I thought that having the dog from a puppy the cat would find it easier but that hasn't been the case.  Cat doesn't understand that dog wants to play. If the cat moves fast to get away from the dog then he thinks the chase is on and it makes matters worse.

Its just best when the cat stands her grounds and spits and growls at the dog. He then knows his place. I'm still working on getting the two of them together properly but its been 6 months now 

I hope you have better luck than I am.

Enjoy your dog

Sally

[Cavendish]

Thanks Sally, we are quite worried about introducing the dog to the cat, but we have chosen him partly for his nature which seems to be extremely non plussed about things going on around him, apparently he came from a home where there were 12 cats and 6 dogs.
I know that our cat won't like it much but they will just have to sort it out themselves.

all I need to do now is take him for some training.

[doganjo]

Well done, keep persevering - the cat will be boss!

[Rosemary]

Pics in due course please.

We're brought adult cats and kittens into the house when we've had dogs and they do learn to tolerate each other. Maybe best not to try, just let them get on with it (while keeping them safe) - if you're trying, any tension may be picked up by the animals.

[Cavendish]

Tis true, thanks for the advice rosemary.

I must say that I really love this website, even though I dont have a small holding but desperately wish I did have one, this is the next best thing. lots of things to day dream over.

I shall upload pics when we pick Freddie up from the foster home. watch this space.

[SallyintNorth]

Freddie looks suitably dreamy - is he Labbish? 

As Rosemary says, if you can be relaxed about the cat(s)/dog(s) thing, they'll sort it out themselves.  Mostly no real harm will be done, and unless it's a particular temperament of terrier, I think it's very rare for the cat to come off worst.  

[Cavendish]

Hi sally, as far as we can tell his is lab for the most part, the foster carers are not 100% sure what the other part is but they did say that the old lady who had him used to breed dogs and that there was a husky in the house where she kept them, his brother which they are also looking after is bigger then freddie but has a more narrow and longer face.

at a quick glance you could mistake him for being a full lab, but look closer and you can see that his ears are not as floppy and his paws are dark brown, his also has a little tufft of white hair on his chest.

[HelenVF]

What a thoroughly handsome chap!  Good luck with him.

Helen

[YorkshireLass]

Awww...will you give him a little scritch behind the ears from me? 

[little blue]

aw, he's a real cutie!
He looks very relaxed, hope that's the case?!

If he's used to cats then thats half the battle ... the cat will just have become boss of him.
Unfortunately our rescue dog has a liking for the taste of cat rather than for cats themselves, we just can't have them together so they have to take turns   Its like a submarine - you can't open a door without checking the one behind you is secure.

But its not her fault, just part of how complicated she is

[jaykay]

He's lovely 

I brought a cat home as a child (I was always acquiring animals  )
Dad said 'it can stay the night, until we can find it a home'
Then Dad said 'it can stay the weekend, until we can find it a home'
Then Dad said 'if the dog can put up with it, it can stay.....'
We were all out one evening and came home to find the dog, the cat and Dad nose to nose on the floor in front of the fire  The cat stayed  and though tiny was always the boss 

You know your cat best, but I might keep the cat in for a while when the dog arrives, just so it doesn't leave home from the stress. But let it have a safe place at home that the dog doesn't go into. 

[Mammyshaz]

He is a handsome lad 
Sometimes a baby gate is good to separate two rooms or stop the dog going upstairs. This gives the cat a ' feel-safe' area where it can still observe the dog and a quick get away area if the dog gives chase.
Good luck with the introduction. Even the worst of terriers have been known to settle eventually given time and training.

[Rosemary]

When we got our first cat, he had the front hall to himself, with armchair, food, water and litter tray, with cat flap into the rest of the house, so he decided when he was ready to take on the dogs. Since then we have used a baby gate between the "cats' room" and the rest of the house - then the dogs and cats can see and smell each other but the cats have an escape.

The dogs would argue that it is they who need the escape 

[sabrina]

Cats are the boss here, no matter how hard Rascal tries they will not run away for him to chase and he always gets a smack if he does not take the hint. Now Barnaby waits in hiding to pounce on him and the number of times he gets such a fright, makes me laugh.