Saturday 22 October 2011

Dogs and Cats

It is an interesting concept about cats and dogs living together and many people struggle intergrating the two different species. I really do think it comes down to the individual animals themselves. My boy dogs quite like cats and my girl is scared of cats. Gunny doesn't give a toss about dogs - he thinks small dogs are a new interactive play toy for him, while Hammerford is quite reserved around new dogs and takes a few days before she is brave enough to go back to her regular routine.

Essentially, I have found in my situation that you manage the dogs and let the cats do as they wish. Keep it low key, never drag out the cat and hold it in your arms for the dog to sniff. Unless you want some nice deep scratches up your arm and down your back.



The three dogs with a kitten that I babysat over a weekend a few years ago. It had been dumped a the vet clinic. I've often wondered where that cat is now...

I was doing a Kong TM demonstration last weekend with Gunny the Bengal and for the first time since I started doing these demonstrations, I was worried for his safety. An entire male staffy spotted him and I saw the change in the dogs demeanor. His body became tense and his hard stare never left Gunny. Now, Gunny is a pretty cool cat and he doesn't run from dogs, and running is the trigger for most dogs. However, I wasn't going to chance it with this one. In that instance putting a visual barrier between the two was the fastest and easiest thing to do. Thank goodness for shopping aisles.

Many dogs came through that day and another two in particular struck me. One was a fabulous smoochy Greyhound, who didn't give a fart about my cat - he was such a nice dog. Another dog gave his guardian a huge surprise.

A customer come in through the shop doors and spotted Gunny, "Oh no, he hates cats" she says. So, I give them some room and she shortens his leash and takes him into the store for some pet friendly shopping. I'm watching this dog, and this sweet Border Collie mix is delibrately noticing everything but Gunny. You can almost see him thinking "There is no cat here... yep, definately no cats..." This dog's body language gives me no concern.

A short while later she get to the checkout, and remembers she needs something else and hands the leash over to a staff member. Gunny spots the dog and he decides he wants to investigate. With his tail held high and confident he struts up to this big black fluffy dog. They sniff noses, then Gunny turns around  and the BC mix takes advantage of the sexy kitty butt for a sniff. You couldn't hope for a more perfect dog/cat greeting. As she was coming back the owner sees all of this and is gobsmacked.To see that your dog is not as bad as you thought, but this is one specific situation with a very special cat.

I take great stock in what the animals tell me, whether it is my animals or someone else's. I do know that my animals instincts are normally good. I love my critters and would never delibrately put them in a lose/lose situation.




On to the Saturday Pet Blog Hop (which is actually Sunday, but I wasn't able to complete it Saturday evening).
Happy Saturday, and welcome to another installment of the Saturday Pet Blogger Hop! You’ve found the right place to connect with other pet lovers. Whether you are a seasoned blogger, one who loves reading pet blogs, or if you’re just thinking about starting your own blog – there is definitely something here for you. Acquaint yourself and enjoy – this is your resource, so use it as you see fit! Of course, you have to follow the rules, so let’s get to that. Get those links in and have fun.
  • Link up your pet blog name and URL using the Linky Tool below. You only need to add your link once to be seen on all the Saturday Pet Blogger Blog Hop Linky Tools for that week. Note that if your blog is not pet related your link will be removed. Also note that only one post per blog is acceptable, and links promoting giveaways that are unrelated to the pet blogger hop will be removed. This is a community building exercise and not a promotional vehicle – please treat it as such.
  • Grab the “Saturday Pet Blogger Blog Hop” button above and include it in your Saturday Blog hop post so that your readers will know what is going on. *Note – posting is optional. Feel free to just link and follow.
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This is a Blog Hop!

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5 comments:

jet said...

That kitten is very cute. The boys are too busy with their pash session to notice her!!!

Barbie play bowed to a back-arched white kitty on our walk the other night. I think she initially sees cats as tiny dogs. She certainly seems to treat many of them in the same way.

Desma said...

how beautiful is Barbie!

Anonymous said...

I live with cats and we get along great! But a cat outdoors is not the same as a cat indoors. As long as the cat acts like a friend, he's a friend. If he runs, he's prey.

Desma said...

Definately, there can be a big difference between 'my cat' and 'not my cat'. You are right in saying a running cat is a different ball game.

jet said...

True, running cat is temptation to chase for both Bender and Barbie. They both have prey drive. Thing is that Bender is also territorial so he would be chasing a cat out of his yard whether it was running or not. He ran a cat up a tree once and spent all afternoon jumping on the tree and barking until I got home. I had to grab his collar and drag him inside so that the cat could escape!

Still, I am very confident that both of mine would be very polite with confident a cat like Gunny.