Adding a kitten
We have a 1 year old female corgi and are seriously considering adding a kitten to our household. Can anyone offer any advice? I have never owned a cat before. Foxy has been nose to nose with the neighbors cat and I think she just wants to play with her. I really don't believe she would hurt it. I think they would be playmates for each other in time.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Caitlin Randolph on
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Give the cat a room. A place with high up things to climb on (Backs of couches, shelves, even a bed, something so the size is less an issue) and make sure your dog knows that this is the cat's room so the cat feels safe and the dog has boundaries. When you do greetings and meetings allow the cat to be on the bed and the dog on the floor in the cats' room. Hopefully this will naturally give them guidelines on how that relationship will work. Dog gets let into the cats room on your word. When you guys leave the house make sure to lock the cat in this room. Don't trust any solo interactions for a while. The reality of dog/cat homes that works is the cat is the boss and the dog respects the space. Giving the cat a room with a gate across when you are home or some free roaming is a great way for both animals to understand boundaries - its ok for the cat to avoid and its important your corgi knows to give space to the new pet. Some cats don't care about dogs and others it is totally instinctual. One of my cats shares a dog bed and the other one was hissing at dogs before we were ever allowed to bring her home, completely unprovoked. It worked though. My cardigan just avoided eye contact and gave lots of space from the scardy cat. They know how to live under the same roof and ignore if they have to.
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Permalink Reply by Linda on
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When you first bring the cat home like Caitlin said to have a room for the cat. Let them sniff each other under the door and get use to each other's scent. When you do nose to nose meetings and if Foxy starts to get too bouncy do a quiet correction and give treats when Foxy is greeting the kitten calmly. It may take a bit of time but they can become the best of friends or they can go thru life pretending the other doesn't exist.
I don't know if you plan on getting the kitten from a rescue or shelter but try to find one that has already been around dogs. There will still be an adjustment but at least the cat already knows what dogs are. We have had so many cats and dogs over the last 33 years and they have all managed. We had an Irish Wolfhound that was terrified of a 7 lb cat but treated the other cat like it was her puppy...they were the best of friends. My crankiest cat who wants nothing to do with the other 2 cats loves the dogs.
Oh..and a word of caution. Dogs think what the cats leave in the litter box are the best treats ever. So make sure Foxy can't get to the litter box.
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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Ditto...keep litter and cat food where Foxy can't get to them. I like to have my dogs drag a leash around so I can put a quick stop to a chase. Typically if you keep the kitten in a room and switch Foxy in and the kitten out for the first few days they get used to each other's scent. If that isn't possible just control Foxy while letting the kitten lead the interactions. I have always had cats and dogs, some love each other and some just tolerate each other. I never allow a chase unless the cat starts it.
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Permalink Reply by Jane Christensen on
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They do need their own room as suggested above...you will be in for a great and fun adventure once they adjust. We have several cats and almost always you can find one curled up on the couch with a dog...slow introductions and boundaries are the best:)
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Permalink Reply by Niki Firmstone on
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Lol matching tails! So cute
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This is adorable. Same tails!
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Good advice from Caitlin. I have two cardigans and they have been introduced to new cats added to the family. I gave them a room just for them, corgi free. They all share the rest of the house. But first I put the cats in a bedroom & corgis & cat could sniff under the door. Then had them separated where they could see & smell each other. Cats had access to upstairs & pick up corgi scent. Placed scratch posts & high areas they could escape to if necessary. Older corgi Holly, no problem they love each other. Younger girl, Amber wants to play & round them up. She has started to puppy play mouthing, snapping to herd. But Chester the cat sits under the table & won't budge. They spend the mornings together out the back now, taken some time but Chester is part of the pack.
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Don't know why but I could only see Caitlin's reply & no one else, until I posted my response. Good advice on here. Yes, I needed the leash on Amber but not Holly, she is more laid back, Amber is more excitable.
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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on
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Franklin's best friend is a kitten (well she's a cat now! Lol). Just make sure they can't interact when you aren't around if adopting a young kitten, if adopting a little older kitten (4-6 months) then he/she should be able to defend itself a little better. It took about a week for Bumble (my cat) to get used to Franklin. She was around 4 months when I adopted her and clearly had never seen a dog before so hissed and was very scared. She is highly food motivated (like a corgi!) so I was able to get them together using treats. Franklin has raised the most wonderful kitten in the world and they play and LOVE each other. I swear Bumble thinks she is a dog and will often join us on our walks around the property. I think a cat/corgi combo often works better than getting another dog as a playmate.
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Permalink Reply by Yuki & Ellie on
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Others have already offered great advice, so I don't have too much to add. Do you have a particular kitten in mind? If not, and if you're adopting from a shelter, be sure to ask lots of questions and interact with lots of the kittens before you decide on one. When we adopted our cat, Mochi, we played with just about every cat and kitten in the shelter (ours is a small, local shelter) before deciding on our Mr. Mochi-man, who was 3.5 months old at the time. He was the most docile, tolerant cat they had and didn't so much as blink when dogs were walked by the little play room.
Once we brought him home, we were careful to monitor all interactions between the dogs and Mochi and made sure to keep the upstairs gated off (giving him a safe place to escape to when he wanted to get away from everyone.)
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