Puppy and Cat Play Too Rough
 

I have an 18 week old mixed breed puppy and a four year old cat. They just love each other and play all the time. Now that the puppy is getting bigger (about 25 lbs now) the play fighting they have always done is getting a little too rough. I'm afraid the puppy will hurt the cat. She likes to grab his head and neck and pin him down. Sometimes the cat will meow and such but I don't think he's being hurt. How can I get the puppy to be a little more gentle with her brother?

How's your puppy's obedience going? Can you call her to come to you when they're playing? If not, that's something that should be worked on. I also wouldn't leave them alone together without supervision until you're confident the pup understands the boundaries regarding how rough she can play. It doesn't take much for a young dog to get over-excited and exhuberant, which could end badly for the cat even if that's not her intention.

Make sure your cat still has its natural defenses in the form of claws ie. don't trim the claws too short. Your cat will scratch if it's being hurt and that can help teach your pup boundaries. Also, make sure your cat has somewhere to run away to that's out of reach of the dog such as a high perch or a separate room accessed by a cat flap or blocked with a baby gate. Your cat running away will also teach your pup boundaries.

[QUOTE=sugarcatmom;1020213]How's your puppy's obedience going? Can you call her to come to you when they're playing? If not, that's something that should be worked on. I also wouldn't leave them alone together without supervision until you're confident the pup understands the boundaries regarding how rough she can play. It doesn't take much for a young dog to get over-excited and exhuberant, which could end badly for the cat even if that's not her intention.[/QUOTE]


+1 big time especially about them NOT being alone at this point.

We don't want to scare you but we've heard terrible stories on this very board of dogs that acted on instinct and unintentionally harmed (sometimes fatally) the family cat.

If I was in this scenario and the pets had no supervision, like SCM mentioned, in my absence they would be separated 100% of the time.

Only when I was 100% sure of both pets safety would I let them play in this way unattended. Sorry if this sounds alarmist, we really just want your whole family to be safe :goodvibes:

I'd be careful too..now Bayley plays with Noella, opposite to yours though. Bayley's 5 and the kitten is under a year. They play, being that Bayley's older she's learned that Noella is not a stuffy!! That and she tends to check in with me, and if it seems to be getting too rough and Noella squawks, game over!! Bayley knows that Noella has claws and teeth and respects them! Yesterday, Noella bit her on the nose, not hard but enough to let her know..enough already!! She also doesn't use her teeth but her head instead, sounds weird but she pushes her around with her head. She does groom her though, which is pretty cute.

I'd make sure that your pup has a really good leave it and learns that when Mom says stop that's it game over. I use ENOUGH! Mind you, Noella is a little poop and tries to keep the game going. When I'm not home though, everyone sleeps! As proven by my Mom who's home with everyone during the day..the silliness starts when I walk through the door. Damn I'm a bad influence on my critters!!