While canines and cats are well-known for not getting alongside, canines and cats residing collectively are literally doable and quite common. If you’re trying so as to add one other member to your pet household whereas already proudly owning a pet cat or canine, you’re in all probability questioning what’s the easiest way to introduce them to one another with out inflicting any hurt.
What you don’t need to do is introduce your canine and cat to one another with out supervision and with out both pet leashed. Do that, and also you’ll be setting them as much as fail.
Instead, take your time and observe these steps to learn to introduce canines and cats to one another.
Step 1: Make Sure Your Cat and Dog Have the Right Temperaments
While it’s tempting to seize the primary canine or cat you discover on the shelter, you will want to pair your canine and cat up by character compatibility.
If your canine is aggressive and identified to pin, chase, growl, lunge, bark obsessively, or typically manhandle cats, then it is best to rethink pairing your canine with a cat. Similarly, shy cats shouldn’t be paired with canines who like to chase, as a cat who runs away can exacerbate your canine’s aggression and additional terrorize your cat.
The identical will be mentioned of the reverse. If you might have a cat who shows aggression round canines, equivalent to growling, swatting and hiding, then it is best to think about retaining them in a dog-free atmosphere. If you might have a canine who would not like tough play or to be chased, then an lively cat who enjoys pouncing and working about could be a foul match.
Generally, when introducing a cat to a canine, you might be on the lookout for two pets of an identical temperament. You desire a canine who’s mild-tempered, light, and good at following instructions. Your ultimate cat could be one that’s calm and assured and isn’t liable to working away.
The finest strategy to discover a canine or cat that’s good across the different is to search out one which was raised with the opposite. Adult cats and canines who’ve by no means had a companion earlier than can have a tougher time adjusting to a unique species working round of their area. But a cat who grew up round canines and vice versa.
Additionally, if both your canine or cat is aged, anxious, or simply laid again, then a peaceful companion might be your finest guess.
Step 2: Separate Your Dog and Cat From Each Other
Ideally, you’d need your pets to satisfy exterior of the house for his or her first interplay, however shelter insurance policies usually received’t permit it. However, this step will not be needed and you’ll go straight into bringing a brand new cat residence to your canine and vice versa.
When you first deliver your new pet residence, it’s essential to maintain them separated in numerous rooms. One pet, normally the cat, ought to have their very own room that the canine can’t entry that incorporates their meals, toys, scratching posts, and litter bins. Your canine can even should be saved remoted in his personal space of the home the place he can have entry to his meals, water, and pet door.
Over a interval of some days, you’ll be able to cycle via letting both pet have free reign over the home whereas the opposite is confined. This will permit both the cat or canine to research the opposite’s scent and change into used to it. It’s useful to additionally deliver blankets lined in your canine or cat’s scent into the opposite’s remoted space. Both of those strategies permit your pets time to acclimate to the opposite’s scent in a protected atmosphere.
It’s very important to verify neither animal has free reign of your property whereas there isn’t any one to oversee. Any unsupervised interactions, even via doorways, can traumatize each animals.
You will know that your pets are prepared to maneuver on to the following step when your canine will not be obsessively making an attempt to succeed in the cat (equivalent to obsessively digging or barking on the separation barrier). Meanwhile, your cat can have resumed regular consuming and litter field habits.
Step 3: Make Supervised Introductions
You can now permit your pets to work together with one another in the identical room so long as they’re intently supervised. Keep your canine on a leash always. If nobody is residence or round to oversee, hold your pets remoted.
You need to encourage your canine to stay calm and ignore your cat. Along with punishing any damaging habits in direction of the cat, reward your canine for ignoring them as effectively.
If both pet behaves questionably, equivalent to hissing or swatting, then give them each a break and check out once more one other day.
Continue this step for so long as wanted till each your canine and cat are pleased and relaxed close to one another. We advocate taking it sluggish and giving each pets a minimum of a month to acclimate.
If both pet reveals any indicators of worry or aggression, return to step 2.
Step 4: Start Unsupervised Interactions
Once each of your pets are calm and cozy round one another in a supervised atmosphere, you can begin permitting them to spend unsupervised time round one another. Don’t begin this step till you might be certain they’re each prepared.
What If None Of These Steps Work?
We advocate in search of skilled assist. A canine or cat behaviorist will be capable to offer you pointers as to the easiest way to introduce your pets to one another. However, there are additionally some canines and cats who can’t reside with one other pet. In these instances, you would possibly need to think about discovering a household who would like to have your pet reside alone with them.
