Creating a happy home for a cat and a dog
 

I'm hoping some one here can shed some light on the topic. I've owned a cat before. But now thinking of getting a kitten and a puppy.

I'm not sure if it's a great idea, I guess the question is should I get them both together or get one first and the other later. I met some people that said that getting them together is the best scenario. Is this really the case or does it greatly depend on the personality of the animals?

Any help is much appreciated.

Cheers,
Mike

Some dog breeds have a high prey drive, and regardless of whether or not the puppy and cat grow up together - the puppy may occasionally get overly excited when the cat is running/jumping and want to react. This doesn't at ALL mean that the dog would hurt your cat; however it does mean that you might need to take the proper steps in your home to give your cat access to places that your dog won't be able to reach.

Another situation is a cat that won't stick up for itself. Some cats are naturally quite timid, and therefore won't put a pushy dog in it's place - which at times, is all a dog needs to learn proper manners.

Generally, getting a kitten and puppy at the same time - or within a year of eachother - is the best way to ensure that both the puppy and kitten adapt easily and quickly to one another - but you still may find the need to teach your dog how to properly play with/treat your cat.

thank you for your reply, how does your labradoodle get a long with your cats? we were thinking of getting a mini doodle as well. How would you teach your dog to get along with the cat if the cat is timid and doesn't defend itself?

also a side question, I live in a fairly small sized condo 500sq feet. I'm a little worried that it might not be enough space for both pets, what are your thoughts?

[QUOTE=mdemi;959976]How would you teach your dog to get along with the cat if the cat is timid and doesn't defend itself?[/quote]

Lots of obedience training (for the dog :laughing:) and don't leave them alone unsupervised until you're confident the dog won't harm the cat. Here is a great article on dog/cat relations: [url]http://www.labadoption.org/wp-content/uploads/Cats.pdf#zoom=100%[/url]

Also, consider getting an adult cat from a rescue that is known to be dog-friendly, and vice versa.

[QUOTE=mdemi;959976] I live in a fairly small sized condo 500sq feet. I'm a little worried that it might not be enough space for both pets, what are your thoughts?[/QUOTE]

Provide lots of vertical space for the cat. Tall cat condos, cubby holes on bookshelves, etc.

Sorry but what's a mini doodle :shrug: All the doodles i've seen are 80 lbs or so. Why not look into rescues, they will know if dog friendly or vice versa. Try and stay away from high prey drive dogs. I have a boston terrier that loves our rescue cat, and a manchester terrier that wants to kill it even though it was raised as a puppy with a siamese cat. I would get them at the same time if you were to go with a new puppy and kitten. Make sure there is a nice high scratching post to get away from the endless bounds of energy of the puppy.

[QUOTE]thank you for your reply, how does your labradoodle get a long with your cats?[/QUOTE]

Bailey is a very young, excitable dog. While she would never hurt our cats, she loves to play with them if they are playing with one another or if she spots them slinking around the house. She did grow up with the cats, and they are all very good with one another. But because she's so much larger and heavier than our cats, we've ensured that the cats can get away from all of the dogs at any time with strategically placed cat trees, safe shelves for the cats, and baby gates which keep the dogs in and the cats out.