The tail of a dog and two kittens/Introducing two kittens to a dog
By Kat Hobbs
In my experience the idiom, “to fight like cat and dog” does not always ring true. I have known many households where cats and dogs have lived harmoniously and I had no reason to believe why my household would be any different.
I recently acquired two gorgeous 10 week old kittens, Eddie (Yoda) and Richie (Chewbacca) from Cats Protection. Prior to their arrival, our household consisted of my partner, myself and our three year old Border collie named Patsy. Patsy is a very energetic and spirited dog. However, Patsy is also a very obedient dog (she should be- I am a dog trainer!). She has also lived with cats previously, so I was not concerned about how she would react to the newcomers. My biggest concern was in fact how the kittens would settle in as Richie was the most timid from the litter. However, we hoped that his braver little bother Eddie would help to coax out his confidence.
When the kittens arrived Alison their fosterer immediately popped them into the crate which I had prepared for them. The crate contained everything they needed and was sprayed with Feliway to help relieve any anxiety. After about half and hour we let Patsy (who had been waiting patiently in the conservatory) into the room. As she sniffed the crate her tail was wagging and we told her, “good girl” to reinforce her good behaviour. Eddie seemed to take to Patsy immediately. This was a sign of things to come as Eddie is fearless of pretty much everything! Richie on the other hand was not so pleased to meet Patsy’s acquaintance and he would hiss whenever she came too close. Fortunately Patsy understood Richie’s request for space and she immediately backed off and looked the other way.Nonetheless there was definitely some work to be done.
Over the next few days, we carefully supervised all interactions between Patsy and the kittens. We always ensured that Patsy did not chase or behave boisterously towards the kittens. We did this by either putting her in a down-stay, by asking her to ‘leave’ or by distracting her with a toy. Patsy was rewarded with verbal praise and treats for behaving appropriately around the kittens. We also made sure the kittens had high up places that they could jump up to and out of Patsy’s reach. This included the sofas (as Patsy was only allowed up there when invited) and also a cat tree (which the kittens love!)
To help the animals become familiar with each others’ smell, we intermingled their scent by stroking one and then the other. We also swapped their bedding around so that they would associate pleasant things such as relaxing and sleeping with the other animals’ scent. To help desensitise the pets (especially Richie) to the presence of one another, we used chicken and other tasty food treats. Starting with the pets a few metres apart, we began to feed them tiny pieces of chicken. We gradually fed the pets closer together until eventually both kittens were eating pieces of chicken off of Patsy’s paw!This procedure was repeated many times during the first week, until we were satisfied that the kittens and Patsy were comfortable with each other.
Everything was going great, apart from the fact that every time Patsy barked the poor kittens would retreat behind the sofa. To overcome this, some more training was required. Again with the help of tasty chicken, we fed the kittens whilst asking Patsy to ‘speak’ (she knows how to bark on cue). Fortunately for the kittens, feasting on chicken seemed to far outweigh worrying about some cacophonous canine and after a few short sessions, the kittens barely reacted to Patsy’s bark.
After just one week, both kittens were completely relaxed in Patsy’s presence and did not seem phased by her melodramatic barking. This photo was taken 10 days after the kittens moved in. My advice to any dog owner considering getting a cat or kitten would be to first brush up on their dogs’ general obedience. It makes life much less stressful for all species if you have a dog that readily responds when you ask her to sit, lie-down, stay and leave.