Am so hoping someone can help me! We have a beautiful 6 year old black and white cat called Lucy. She came to us as a rescue cat aged around 1 having been abandoned by her previous family. At the time we had a wonderful, gentle Labrador called Lottie, and although Lucy was scared of Lottie at first, she soon came round. I wouldn't have said they were ever friends, but they tolerated each other, and Lucy even began to chase and play with Lottie a bit in the garden.
Lottie died in the summer and we recently got Milo, a 3 month old cavapoo. However, Lucy is terrified of him. She won't go near him, and has retreated upstairs most of the time (where he's not allowed). He is very gentle but inevitably wants to play with her so when they've come across each other in the garden, he has chased her which has made her fear worse. We do our best to keep them separated / keep him on a lead or in his crate when she is near, but 5 weeks in we've made no progress with her being more comfortable around him.
To make things worse for her, we move house in 3 weeks time, and at the new house all the suitable places for Lucy's food and litter are near the kitchen where we will need to keep Milo. (At the moment we can keep her litter and food separate so she can eat in peace and without fear). So I really need to get her a little happier with him before then. I've tried bringing her into the kitchen when he's locked in his crate, and giving her treats when she's near him (saw a video suggesting this), but she's not been remotely interested.
Does anyone have any other ideas? We adore them both and Lucy needs to feel she can relax in her own house and return to our laps feeling secure and happy!
Thanks so much in advance for any help, and sorry for the long post!!
Cat terrified of new puppy - help!
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Mollycat
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Re: Cat terrified of new puppy - help!
Welcome to the forum.
Poor Lucy has quite a challenge on her paws at the moment doesn't she! A calm adult dog that was already part of the household is one thing, an energetic playful puppy being brought in after her is a whole different level. How did you introduce the puppy? I would separate them completely and go right back to the beginning and proceed step by step.
From natural horsemanship, Parelli I think - If you act like you have ten minutes it will take all day, if you have all day it will take ten minutes. The pressure of a time limit ie your house move won't be helping this situation. What is your plan for the animals while the move is happening? Lucy needs you to be calm and give her time and encouragement.
When you get to the new house, I would recommend settling her into a quiet room like a bedroom with as much familiar smelling stuff as you can and places to hide on the floor and up high, her litter and her food all in the one room and without the puppy. In a way it's an opportunity to start again between her and the pup. First she needs to settle in her one room and then explore the rest of the new house in her own time, and once she is settled all over the house and with the puppy you can move her stuff gradually to where it's convenient for you. She may never accept eating and littering in a vulnerable place and you could well find behaviour problems start to develop if you try to push her faster than she can handle.
Be sure to keep some of your clothes, bed sheets, towels and rugs and of course her own bed and scratch post or cat tree unwashed for a week or two to help the move, so that the scent of you and the old house as much as possible. Even her pet carrier can be left open in her room. PetRemedy plug-ins, you can use Zylkene as well, and I find catnip spray helps to identify her things as she will rub against it and that helps the scent transfer along.
But I would keep the cat and puppy completely separated from now until after the move, let poor Lucy deal with one trauma at a time.
Poor Lucy has quite a challenge on her paws at the moment doesn't she! A calm adult dog that was already part of the household is one thing, an energetic playful puppy being brought in after her is a whole different level. How did you introduce the puppy? I would separate them completely and go right back to the beginning and proceed step by step.
From natural horsemanship, Parelli I think - If you act like you have ten minutes it will take all day, if you have all day it will take ten minutes. The pressure of a time limit ie your house move won't be helping this situation. What is your plan for the animals while the move is happening? Lucy needs you to be calm and give her time and encouragement.
When you get to the new house, I would recommend settling her into a quiet room like a bedroom with as much familiar smelling stuff as you can and places to hide on the floor and up high, her litter and her food all in the one room and without the puppy. In a way it's an opportunity to start again between her and the pup. First she needs to settle in her one room and then explore the rest of the new house in her own time, and once she is settled all over the house and with the puppy you can move her stuff gradually to where it's convenient for you. She may never accept eating and littering in a vulnerable place and you could well find behaviour problems start to develop if you try to push her faster than she can handle.
Be sure to keep some of your clothes, bed sheets, towels and rugs and of course her own bed and scratch post or cat tree unwashed for a week or two to help the move, so that the scent of you and the old house as much as possible. Even her pet carrier can be left open in her room. PetRemedy plug-ins, you can use Zylkene as well, and I find catnip spray helps to identify her things as she will rub against it and that helps the scent transfer along.
But I would keep the cat and puppy completely separated from now until after the move, let poor Lucy deal with one trauma at a time.
Re: Cat terrified of new puppy - help!
Thanks Mollycat, that's really helpful and sounds like very good advice. During the actual days of the move I was going to take her to the cattery that she is familiar with so that she's not at home while the whole thing is being packed up as I think that would be very stressful for her, and then we can take her to the new house but with, as you say, her familiar things.
Assuming we manage all that ok, do you have any ideas for how we then reintroduce the two pets? What we did this time on the puppy's first day, was have them both in our arms and bring them together, but Lucy scarpered and that was that. Since then we've tried to keep them apart, but have had a few mishaps when Lucy has appeared in the garden when the puppy's been out there. We had thought all would be ok because Lucy had been so comfortable with our last dog, and because we assumed she would assert her dominance, give Milo a couple of swipes of her paw and teach him she's Number One Pet. But her fears resurfaced and it all went pear shaped! We've recently brought her into the kitchen a couple of times when he has been shut in his cage, been very loving and focussed on her and given her treats, but she's refused the treats and just pegged it to the door, so I don't think we'll try that again for a while. As you say, she's a lot on her paws!!
Assuming we manage all that ok, do you have any ideas for how we then reintroduce the two pets? What we did this time on the puppy's first day, was have them both in our arms and bring them together, but Lucy scarpered and that was that. Since then we've tried to keep them apart, but have had a few mishaps when Lucy has appeared in the garden when the puppy's been out there. We had thought all would be ok because Lucy had been so comfortable with our last dog, and because we assumed she would assert her dominance, give Milo a couple of swipes of her paw and teach him she's Number One Pet. But her fears resurfaced and it all went pear shaped! We've recently brought her into the kitchen a couple of times when he has been shut in his cage, been very loving and focussed on her and given her treats, but she's refused the treats and just pegged it to the door, so I don't think we'll try that again for a while. As you say, she's a lot on her paws!!
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Mollycat
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Re: Cat terrified of new puppy - help!
I have no personal experience of managing tricky introductions because my first multi animal household was walk-ins that the residents accepted, the second was driven by the cat himself and due to the two cats' characters it was best managed by them and there was never any issue. The third was bringing in a calm adult dog who had grown up with cats and knows how to submit to them in the right way, so that the sociable cat took to him in less than 3 weeks and the standoffish cat still occasionally spits and hisses or makes the dog go and sit in the corner but can also relax on our bed just inches from him.
There's some really good guidance online, this one https://www.petmd.com/blogs/thedailyvet ... _cat-13443 for instance I just disagree with putting the cat in a crate but the principle is pretty much the basic advice. A cat should always have access to its favouraite safe places and access should never be blocked. Also cats think differently to dogs. Cats need to explore in their own time at their own pace and with the option to run. For this reason picking Lucy up and taking her closer to the puppy or into the same room really isn't recommended, she could easily panic and hurt you in the struggle to get out of your arms.
Taking it slow in steps should awaken her curiosity eventually, it can take a long time but it's worth it. Once she is curious about the pup she will inevitably venture closer but run any time she chooses, this is where the crate or a leash is handy because the puppy can't chase her. Her food and litter need to be somewhere the puppy can't get to and where she doesn't have to run the gauntlet between safe place and essential feeding and toiletting, that is important.
Do you remember how long it took Lucy to settle in when you first brought her home? Chances are it will take a similar time again after the move, I think the familiar cattery is a great idea. I'm sure they will be fine given time to adjust one step at a time. Remember Lucy's relationship with you is one thing, she has to build a relationship with her new doggy friend completely independent of her relationship with her humans. She's not afraid of not being number one pet, she's afraid of this dog, which isn't the old dog she got to know.
There's some really good guidance online, this one https://www.petmd.com/blogs/thedailyvet ... _cat-13443 for instance I just disagree with putting the cat in a crate but the principle is pretty much the basic advice. A cat should always have access to its favouraite safe places and access should never be blocked. Also cats think differently to dogs. Cats need to explore in their own time at their own pace and with the option to run. For this reason picking Lucy up and taking her closer to the puppy or into the same room really isn't recommended, she could easily panic and hurt you in the struggle to get out of your arms.
Taking it slow in steps should awaken her curiosity eventually, it can take a long time but it's worth it. Once she is curious about the pup she will inevitably venture closer but run any time she chooses, this is where the crate or a leash is handy because the puppy can't chase her. Her food and litter need to be somewhere the puppy can't get to and where she doesn't have to run the gauntlet between safe place and essential feeding and toiletting, that is important.
Do you remember how long it took Lucy to settle in when you first brought her home? Chances are it will take a similar time again after the move, I think the familiar cattery is a great idea. I'm sure they will be fine given time to adjust one step at a time. Remember Lucy's relationship with you is one thing, she has to build a relationship with her new doggy friend completely independent of her relationship with her humans. She's not afraid of not being number one pet, she's afraid of this dog, which isn't the old dog she got to know.