| Title: | Meower Power - Where Differing Opinions are Respected |
| Notice: | purrrrr... |
| Moderator: | JULIET::CORDES_JA |
| Created: | Wed Nov 13 1991 |
| Last Modified: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 1079 |
| Total number of notes: | 28858 |
I am looking for some advice. We have a two year old female
tiger, Ashley, our only child (until our human baby is born
in September!) who goes to my moms to stay if my husband
and I go away for any length of time. We are going away for
the long weekend and she will be going to gramma's house to
stay but my mom just got a 7month old beagle puppy last month.
The puppy, Max, is adorable, friendly and fun but is still
in the wild puppy phase where he cannot easily be controlled
unless he is in the cage. He has never been exposed to cats
and Ashley has never been exposed to a puppy. My mom's
black lab was just put down two months ago and Ashley never
minded him because he was pretty old and kind of just layed
around and slept most of the time, poor old guy. So I'm
wondering if or how we can introduce Max and Ashley or if
we should just keep them in separate rooms. Ashley having
the run of the house and Max in his cage in the den when
he's inside is what we are thinking. Ashley is a sweet,
small little thing but can be tough and is very curious(and she has
claws!). I'm wondering if we should just let them make their own
decision since she can hide from Max easily. I just don't
want either one to be too traumatized (not to mention my
poor mother.) Sorry this is so long.
Any thoughts? (Ashley is indoor only)
Susan.
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 892.1 | some thoughts | ABACUS::MACDONALD_M | Once Upon A Dream | Fri May 26 1995 10:01 | 23 |
Well, the way I look at it you have 3 choices. Leave the cat at home,
keep the cat and dog separated to avoid all problems, (but the dog,
being a Beagle, will no doubt sniff the cat out and try to get into the
room to see what this new creature is) or try it and see what happens.
I suggest using the dog's crate for the cat (if it's big enough).
That way they get to see each other and get used to each other without
either one getting hurt or in trouble.
One thing you _don't _ want to do: If the dog becomes overly excited
resist the temptation to stroke the dog to help him to relax. you
know, Good puppy, (stoke, stroke) it's okay, (stroke, stroke) the
nice kitty just wants to be friends (stroke, stroke). What you are
unintentionally doing is rewarding the dog's excitable and undesired
behavior. Try to ignore both animals or keep the dog occupied with
it's own toys or a large bone. He'll soon forget about his guest.
They may become great pals!
MaryAnne
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