Introducing Dog and Cats

ORIGINAL: TinaK
I am guessing it's breed-specific,

Yeah, my cattledog mix is funny about objects ... she is only slowly coming around to playing with toys ... it's like she is so respectful of my stuff that she's afraid to touch things. There are a few things she'll pick up like socks and tissues, but she doesn't counter surf, jump on couch, take shoes or remotes, or assume any such privileges. She's almost too polite!

Oh, but once we're out of the house, she'll take any paper or food in her mouth, sniffs everything, jumps on people and walls ... like out there everything is hers!

I'm working on counterconditioning her with cats. Instead of avoiding cats I see, I approach them and ask Ixa to "watch". We've also practiced "watch" with hamsters at Petco, and I'll try the cats there, too.

Liesje, Do you know where the dog is coming from? What's her temperament like? Have you owned a dog similar to this before (in size, etc.)?

<< It's that dog, GSD (smaller side), 3 years old, trained in obedience and agility, not very hyper, a tad skittish (desrcibed as "not very brave") because a man beat her, "is familiar with cats and ignores them", spayed, comes from working lines (father worked, mother did agility).

She is coming from her breeder, who has shown her to UKC champion, done obedience training (clicker and operant conditioning), and agility.  She was bred once and is now spayed.  From what I gather, she was already adopted out our purchased by someone who beat her.  I don't know how, but she's now safe back with her breeder, who is giving her to me.

I've not owned my own dog before.  My two oldest cats have lived with a Bichon for a few weeks, but other than that, they don't know any big dogs.

<< It's that dog, GSD (smaller side), 3 years old, trained in obedience and agility, not very hyper, a tad skittish (desrcibed as "not very brave") because a man beat her, "is familiar with cats and ignores them", spayed, comes from working lines (father worked, mother did agility).

That's a good information to know. If she had history of abuse, I wouldn't get all the armor out right away (the prong, etc.) - you might or might not need it. Due to her history, she might have negative associations with these objects. Personally, I wouldn't use a prong without taking some face-to-face advise from a good trainer.
If she's not accustomed to a muzzle, introduce it to her before meeting the cats - it might take some getting used to - some dogs don't care, others hate it.
Have you taken her on walks? How driven is she? Again, these are the things you'll learn about her during your vocation.

I haven't walked her yet and I don't get her until July 28.  I'm dying!!!!

Based on what I've read about her breeder (who has her own training program) I doubt they regularly use a prong or any kind of muzzle.  They do all clicker training and positive reinforcement methods.  I also learned today that she's quite small for a GSD, so I'm hoping that means I can control her without needing a prong or a muzzle.  Muzzles make me uncomfortable because 1) you can't see the dogs mouth and have more difficulty "reading" it's behavior and 2) I want her to be able to sniff at the cats without having discomfort on her face.  That, and I've never ever used one so she'd probaby sense I am nervous and uneasy if I have to muzzle her.

Can she sniff the cats through a baby gate or other barrier?

ETA: yeah, I'm a little worried about the prong, too. If she's been doing clicker, and is already chill with cats, it seems the prong would introduce an edge to meeting the cats that would be tense and sharp - not relaxed and "no big whoop."

Can she sniff the cats through a baby gate or other barrier?

This is what I'm really hoping to accomplish.  Our new rental will be a split-level tri-level, so the bottom level is a large den/living room in the back.  In the middle are three steps up to a hallway that goes to the kitchen and dining room.  I was thinking of getting a baby gate for this and putting the dog in the big room and the cats up higher.  The cats can easily jump over the gate and go down, but the dog would have to jump over three steps plus the baby gate to get up.  When I'm at work, the cats will go in the basement and the dog will have the big room or her crate if she prefers.  If she CAN jump it, I'll double gate it (stacked, like Dutch doors) and cut a cat-sized hole in the bottom gate so they can run out if she goes after them.

I read a article about this, but now I can't find the article.  It said to wrap the cat in a towel and hold it in your lap and have someone hold the leash of the dog.  Have each animal at opposite ends of the room and if they are both calm move a little closer.  If they aren't wait till they are.  And eventually you move till they can smell each other.  Don't know if this really works. 
 
Our cat had our dog cornered when we brought her home.  I felt so bad for Harley. 
 
 It's gonna take some adjusting from all the animals.  Luckily cats are forgiving and will get used to the new addition.  I'm just waiting for those pictures of Chop giving your kitties a tongue bath.

Can she sniff the cats through a baby gate or other barrier?

Personally I wouldn't do that. I think this might increase dog's level of excitement: "there is pray jumping about, and I can't get to it", and work up to frustration. You defiantly need to have an escape rout for cats - baby gate is a good idea. I wouldn't force-hold the cat - she trusts you! If the cat decides to jump over and have a good look from a safe place - fine. I'd start the intros as a matter of fact, possibly with one person around to help out if there's need.
Again, I think you'll have a much better idea on what approach to take once you get to know the dog. So, don't plan too much at this point, I'd say... []

I found that article.
[linkhttp://www.canismajor.com/dog/dogscats.html]http://www.canismajor.com/dog/dogscats.html[/link]
 
 

ORIGINAL: Harleygirl

I read a article about this, but now I can't find the article.  It said to wrap the cat in a towel and hold it in your lap and have someone hold the leash of the dog.  Have each animal at opposite ends of the room and if they are both calm move a little closer.  If they aren't wait till they are.  And eventually you move till they can smell each other.  Don't know if this really works. 

Wow! I actually did something like this about 30 years ago. I think I got the original idea from James Harriot's "All Creatures Great and Small".

I had a semi feral kitten which a friend gave me. My GSD was absolutely reliable and a very gentle dog, but the cat hissed, spit, and hid every time they were in the same room. I let this go on for about a month while the cat grew to trust me.

One night, I wrapped the cat in a towel and got my GSD up onto the couch next to me. All three of us just sat there for a bit, and then I let the dog (Annie) lick the little kitty's face all over. The cat's expression went from "OMG!" to "okay, fine...I'm getting a little wet here folks...".

Well, let me tell you, when I let the cat loose she came bounding out of that towel and she and that dog were the best of friends for ever more! It was really amazing!

Now, I don't recommend doing something like this without extreme caution, control of the situation, and really knowing the dog...but it worked very well for me, this particular cat, and my GSD. []