Bailey isn't afraid of dogs..

[sarie]

Hey everyone I've been AWOL recently as I've been a bit busy as of late but for those of you who remember, I adopted a kitten (Bailey) back in December. He's now almost 7 months old, vaccinated, neutered and chipped.
He hasn't had any exposure to the outside world up until now as I was worried about his age - he's still pretty daft and full of kitten naivety.

However, with the beautiful spring weather we had at the weekend I thought I'd let him in the garden with me and my other two cats to start getting a taste of the outdoors and to gauge his behaviour outside and work out whether or not he's likely to be safe in the long term. My other two are 5 and 7 years old so both are pretty savvy with the outdoors these days.
All seemed well with Bailey - he was responding well to things he should be afraid of - noisy neighbours in their gardens, lawnmowers, doors slamming... even low flying birds had him running for the safety of the kitchen. I don't want him to be skittish but I'd prefer he were more nervous outside as at least I know he's likely to run first and ask questions later.

Unfortunately something happened that made me question everything late yesterday afternoon. We were all sat outside minding our own business when next door's friend brought over their big dog Skye. She's a big soft mutt, about the size of a Labrador. Totally harmless but a bit noisy. She came hurtling across the garden towards my fence barking ferociously when she spotted me and the cats and immediately my other two cats fluffed up and legged it inside in the blink of an eye.
Bailey on the other hand just stood there. And I mean literally just stood there, didn't even flinch. He didn't stiffen, didn't show any signs whatsoever of fear. As if that wasn't bad enough, he then started making his way over the Skye, despite her barking in his face! I've had cats since I was a child and I'm good at reading their body language and I can tell you he had not an ounce of fear in his body. He was showing all the signs of pure curiosity. He got right up to the fence and ended up rubbing noses with Skye, even when she was barking! Eventually even she was confused and just stood wagging her tail.

This is all very cute but what gives? As far as I'm aware he had no exposure to dogs before I took him on and he's certainly never met one in all the time I've had him. Aren't they supposed to be naturally fearful? Skye would never hurt him and neither would the other dog I know two houses down but there are plenty of dogs around who surely would. How on earth can I let him out if I know he's going to just saunter up to dogs like that? :/

Any advice? Other than cat proofing the garden... an idea I've toyed with on and off on here for the good part of a year. I'd do it if I had the funds but right now I genuinely have no prospect of being able to afford to cat proof. I really don't want to keep him indoors long term as he had such a lovely time outside but it looks like for the moment he's going to have to only go out when I can supervise him and prevent him from leaving the garden :/

[bobbys girl]

It is a bit worrying but not that unusual.

Years ago (before I met him) my OH had a cat (the name escapes me) who had no fear of dogs whatsoever (he did have a dog that the cat got on with). One fine day a neighbour's dog saw the cat sitting at OH's gate. Dog barked at cat, cat ignored dog. Dog charged cat, cat ignored dog. Dog ran up to cat and barked in his face, cat fluffed up to twice his size, swiped dog across face and sat down again. Dog ran off yelping to owner who complained to OH that his cat had attacked the dog! OH said ' have you any idea how ridiculous that sounds?'

It's not behaviour to encourage but OH said this cat seemed to know when a dog meant trouble and when it was all 'pxxs and biscuits'!

[Crewella]

I can understand your concern, it is a bit unusual. I think I would continue to let him out but remain watchful to see how he develops for now, until you have more of a handle on his reactions.

I guess it might just be that he's a clever cat, read the dog's body language and judged the situation (correctly) as not threatening. Animals do pick up on body language so much better than we do, even different species. Let's hope that's it.

[sarie]

Thanks ladies

I can just imagine a dog owner claiming their dog was attacked by the cat! Haha! Sounds like that cat knew just what he was doing! Reminds me of a funny video I saw yesterday of a dog barking at a cat and the cat just blanking it like it wasn't even there

I guess maybe Bailey will know the difference between a dog who means business and a dog who doesn't, at least I hope he will... I guess I was just very surprised that a cat with no previous exposure to dogs would be so unfazed, especially when even the local seagulls had him in a panic.
He's always been generally a very bold kitten (much bolder than any I've had previously) so I was a little concerned he might get himself into trouble out and about so I guess I do just need to keep a close eye on him and see how he reacts to other dog situations (and other situations too) as I know there'll be more.
His reaction to other cats is quite the opposite - he instantly puffs up like a racoon and starts spitting in their faces haha!

[Cussypat1974]

I concurr with Crewella. It could well be that he is FARnbetter than you at reading doggy body language! I have one cat, Batcat, who LOVES dogs. I mean..... He wants to BE a dog...... He plays with them, eats with them etc. so I worried about living beside a greyhound trainer! Not a bother to Batcat.... He knows the difference between HIS doggies and strange ones!
Animal behaviour is so complicated. And we read it in our terms. It is natural that a cat will read it in their terms eh! Batcat knows the difference, and it is not just that he knows the dog, because we adopted Harry dog after him. He also snuggled various rescues I took in, but not others. He reads them in a way I cannot.
But yes..... Be vigilant with any youngster! They think they know it all, but make many mistakes. Teenagers eh?