Conference misery::feline_v1

    This is my opinion only.
    
    We have introduced puppies to  our household with cats and because
    the cats had claws they were able to defend themselves from those
    puppy teeth, and being that they were puppies they were fat and
    rolly polly not able to chase the cats like a half grown pup.
    
    If you decide to do this have your camera ready as there will be
    some great shots.
    
    Another nice thing the cats can always climb up to get away from
    the pup. It's kind of crazy for a couple of weeks but they can
    become great friends. When my daughter took her cat away to her
    house our Sebastian pined for Misti for a couple of weeks and up
    popped Mocha (a Ragdoll) on our front step. They became great
    buddies.
    
    Barbara
    

    We got Barley (our golden retriever) when she was 8 weeks old and
    the cats were 6 and 3 years old.  While the cats weren't exactly
    thrilled about having this new "beast" around, they tolerated her
    quite nicely.  When Barley got too rambunctious, the cats always
    managed to let her know without drawing any blood.
    
    What's even more fun is to bring a kitten in with a kitty lovin'
    dog, and watch them play together.  Provides for hours of entertainment
    :^) .
    
    Joy

      our first cat came along after we already had FIVE DOGS. She was
    thrown out of some B&^$#@*'s car in front of our house, and found
    her way into our basement through an old doggie-door. My wife had
    NO experiences with cats at the time, and expressed an opinion "I
    just don't like cats.." However, Julie's a very warm, loving person,
    and when this little white critter showed up..obviously needing
    affection, attention and above all, FOOD 'n WATER, she immediately
    asked me "what do I do". I sort of thought that Julie'd change if
    a cat had an opportunity to work on her awhile, so I told her "If
    you want to keep the cat, feed it and give it some water." Which
    she did. Within a week...maybe less...the cat was coming up the
    inside cellar stairway, and crying softly at the door to the inside
    of the house....NEXT Step in the plot!!!.....Julie heard the crying
    and again..."what do I do now"....so I tell her.."Let the cat in
    the house" Julie immediately looked at me like I was nuts, and said
    "Oh sure!!! and have the dogs rip her to pieces!!" I told her "Don't
    worry about the cat...worry about the dogs. Cats come pre-armed
    with five daggers in each front paw....if a dog gets just a little
    too close, there's going to be a flash, a "YIP" and a small amount
    of blood"  And with that, I opened the door and let "Miss Meow"
    into the "pack"
                  
      (Oh yeah....in about 15 minutes our Beagle got too
    close....."Flash"!! "YIP!!" and a little blood appeared on her nose...)
    
      Since then, We've introduced four more dogs and two more cats
    without a hitch.
      One of the cats was abandoned at birth by it's own mother, and
    our two Dachshunds found her...They both think of her as "their"
    cat....
      The other one has only three legs due to an encounter with a car's
    fanbelt at 6 wks... And the owner decided to "get rid of it". My
    friend asked if she could have him...and when he discovered how
    to manipulate a doggie door she gave him to us. (He hasn't got any
    claws on his remaining front paw because it would be dangerous to
    have him try to climb, and our house has no "escape" holes....)
    This guy was just recovering from his trauma when this lady's Bassett
    Hound gave birth to a litter. He literally ate, slept and lived
    with those puppies...and disciplined them also...when they were
    growing up, and I really think he believes he's a DOG!!
    
      Actually introducing cats/dogs is easier in most cases than
    introducing cat/cat or dog/dog. I'd just advise close scrutiny for
    a week or so...
    JM

    We introduced a 6 year old dog into our family about 4 months
    ago without any problems.  Before Zowie (the new dog) we had one
    dog and, of course, Tristan and Tenzing.  We held Tristan until
    it was clear they were both calm and there has been *NO* problems
    between them.  
    
    Be careful the first few days though, Tristan has my brother's
    golden retriever afraid to come in the house.  The golden ran at
    Tristan to try to play and Tristan, being deaf, didn't hear him
    coming.  When he turned around to find a huge dog inches away 
    from his face he retaliated with hisses and claws.  He then 
    stalked that golden through the house until the poor dog was
    behind my brother (safe at last!).  Now I just make it a point
    to hold Tristan for the first few minutes of a dog visit so he
    won't get surprised and everything is fine.
    
    Try to find a calm dog - preferable one that has known cats
    before and you'll do just fine.
    
    Karen, Tristan and Tenzing.

    Thank you for all your replies - they all sound very encouraging.
    I was half-expecting to be told I was mad.
    
    If we do get a dog, (s)he will probably come from the dog's home;
    in other words, it will be a dog someone didn't want.  Have you
    any suggestions as to what type (I expect it will be a mongrel/
    cross breed) and sex (I prefer a bitch, Keith a dog) would be best;
    I have some idea about avoiding hunting and terrier types.
    
    Do dogs become protective of their "own" cats?  I'm sort of hoping
    that this dog will be a deterrent (not to hurt, just frighten) the
    neighbourhood tom which comes in through our cat door, beats up
    our cats, sprays all over the house, and goes through the kitchen
    bin.  Before anyone jumps on me, this is not the reason we're
    considering getting a dog in the first place!!
    
    Thanks 
    
    Helen.

    
    	Re: .5
    
    	As far a type of dog goes, I would not recommend a Husky mix.
    	This guy in my group has one and it HATES cats.  They have
    	a cat too so they have to keep them separated.
    
    	We had a collie/german shepherd mix, Tex, and a golden retriever
    	purebreed.  Both were very good with cats.  
    
    	Karen

     Re .5
    
      Are dogs protective??? You bet they are!!! We've only had ONE
    incident where any of our dogs ever actually BIT anyone, and it
    was one of my friends. He likes cats, so he was over at my house
    one day when the "orphan" that my two Dachshunds found comes wandering
    by... Harry reaches down to pick her up to pet her....not realizing
    that this cat isn't into being held unless SHE initiates the action.
    So she starts to struggle, whine and try to escape... Harry doesn't
    get the message, so I tell him...."Harry, let the cat go.." He says,
    "Aw, she'll settle down.." I repeated "HARRY!!! LET THE DAMNED CAT
    GO!!!" He still didn't get it....whereupon Willi, the youngest of
    my Dachsy', walked up to him and calmly chomped him on the ankle...
    
                He then let the cat go........
    
    
      Willi thought that he was hurting "his" cat.....
    
    JM

    Re .5  
    
    If you have reached the point of actually looking for a dog, I have
    a 11 month old 3/4 Lhasa Apso male who needs a home.  The landlord
    said he cannot stay.  He looks purebred, and is *very* friendly,
    and is good with cats.  My cats still run from him, but he is clearly
    trying to be friendly.  He is a real sweetheart, and I want him to 
    have a good home.  
    
         Info:   located in: Littleton, Ma
                 home phone: (508) 486-8568
                 DTN: 272-7245 
    
    Call if you are interested!
    
    Linda Lust

	re: .6  about Husky mix...

	We have 2 cats and at one point 3 dogs... 2 Alaskan Malamutes and
	a Lab-Husky.  The northern breeds have a reputation of not liking
	cats, however...

	No one told our cats and no one told our dogs!  Our inside-outside 
	cat used to visit the larger of the Malamutes in his kennel!  Climb
	up the fence, stroll around the top, leap in for rubs, washing, climb
	out, and piss off the other Malamute by NOT visiting her!  Nate (cat)
	was noted for his 'greased-back 50s look' thanks to the dog!  Inside, 
	both cats would stroll under the Malamutes (tickling the dogs bellies 
	in the process :-)), lie against them, etc.  Granted, from day one we 
	instilled in the Malamutes that *any* aggression toward the cats was 
	not acceptable and visa versa.

	The Lab-ski has been tougher to convince that the cats are not other
	puppies to wreasle with... he now just "gooses" them when they're not
	looking! :-)

	Have fun increasing your family!  There's never a dull moment when
	one cat starts chasing the other, then the dogs jump in, and naturally,
	we can't let them have ALL the fun! :-)

    Much more important than the breed or sex is the individual temperament
    and background of the dog.  Try to find out whether the dog has
    had any experience (good or bad) with cats and try to find out 
    whether it's calm in the face of new situations.
    
    Good luck,
    Karen, Tristan and Tenzing.

    re: .6
      I don't know if its huskies but my folks also have a husky/shepard
    mix who thinks cats are a mid-day snack.  Of course, my neighbors
    have this cute purebred husky and they also have cats.  Who knows?

re: a few replies here

Huskies, malamutes, samoyeds, etc. (the Northern breeds) will
sometimes chase cats, just as ANY OTHER BREED of dog. IT DEPENDS
ON THE DOG. More importantly, it depends on the dog's upbringing.
I don't think that any pup raised with cats will grow up to
chase "their" cats (except in play, of course). When dealing with
a dog older than 6 months or so, though, it really depends on how
the dog was raised. It's not that hard to find out how a perspective new
dog reacts to cats without endangering the cat--just make sure someone
is in control of the dog and that the cat likes dogs so she
isn't traumatized too much. Most likely, the dog will only be curious.

For what it's worth, when I brought a stray cat into our house,
our husky/shepherd mix barked and barked at her---the same way he
reacted when we brought another dog into the house. He was just
saying,"Hey--there's a THING in MY terriory." He made no attempt
to hurt her, and later stopped barking long enough to inspect and
sniff her more closely. He was rewarded for his openmindedness with
a swat on the nose! :-)

Personally, the only dog I'd hesitate to bring into a house with cats
is an ex-racing greyhound, because, sadly, many trainers still teach
the dogs to run by getting them to chase rabbits, and I'd be unsure that
a dog trained this way would comprehend the difference between the two
small furry fast-running things. But there are a couple people in the 
CANINE notes conference who have successfully (with no problems at all)
brought retired racing greyhounds into homes with cats, so even this
worry is probably unfounded--it can be done.

RE:  < Note 2054.12 by TALLIS::ROBBINS >
             -< You can't predict behavior based solely on breed! >-

> CANINE notes conference who have successfully (with no problems at all)
> brought retired racing greyhounds into homes with cats, so even this
> worry is probably unfounded--it can be done.

I'm one of those people in CANINE who have brought home retired racing
greyhounds and had no problems with them and our cats.  Actually, the
first one we brought home was viciously attacked by one of the cats at
their introduction and has been rather timid about them ever since!  The
second greyhound is more outgoing and thinks the cats are her friends,
but I routinely have three or four cats racing through the house after
each other and none of my dogs pay the slightest attention.  

A stand-in vet we used once took one look at the dog and said "all 
greyhounds are cat-killers you know" -- he has never seen the look of
terror on Cleopatra's face when she wakes up from her nap with a cat
closely examining her eyeball!  

It just depends on the dog, regardless of breed.  And to some degree it
depends on the cat --  my latest addition has finally decided that the
small dog is no threat but he still avoids the greyhounds like the plague!


Jan  who_will_always_have_a_mixed_household

RE: last

Jan--
I hope you didn't think I was attacking ex-racers. I was pointing out
that my own feelings about the subject were obviously wrong,
because I had evidence that it worked out right there in CANINE!
(In fact, the next time I'm ready to adopt, I've already decided
to adopt an ex-racing greyhound based on all the testimonials
in CANINE.)
You're right--they really are all individuals, and the cat's
behavior can have a strong influence on the dog's behavior.

--Debbie

Debbie,
  I certainly didn't think you were attacking ex-racers, sorry if my last
reply sounded defensive.  I was delighted to have the opportunity to talk
about how greyhounds CAN get along well with cats, thanks for mentioning it!
I've already gotten Mail from one person who wanted to know more, and like
any cat- or dog-lover I am always ready to discuss the wonderful qualities
of my pets.  

 Jan  who_has_a_pretty_full_house_of_loving_fur

    re:  retired racing greyhounds...
    
    Most retired racers are adopted through an agency such as Greyhound
    Pets of America, or REGAP.  I've talked to these people and they
    have the best interests of the dogs at heart.  All you need to do
    is tell them that you have cats and they will help assure that you
    get a racer who is likely to be good with them.  Often these racers
    are fostered prior to adoption and many of the foster homes have
    cats, so they are well able to help out.
    
    Good luck, whatever you decide,
    Karen.