Cat Intro Advice Needed For A Newbie!

[Guest tjedge2]

I'm sure this has been asked a million times before and I have tried researching it to no avail so here goes......

 

We just adopted our first greyhound, Peck, this weekend. 3 days ago, to be exact! We already are in love and are so happy with our decision. She is 7 years old and tested cat safe. We have 2 older cats (ages 9 and 11) and 2 younger kids (ages 5 and almost 3). She gets along beautifully with the kids. Their chaos doesn't affect her in the least! Unfortunately, I'm having some concerns about her and the cats. She has expressed far more interest in them than I thought she would, being "cat safe". They are runners when they're frightened. They're pretty typical scaredy cats and immediately took off to our bedroom and dove under our bed where they have been living since Sunday. We have tried letting them see each other. We have muzzled Peck and harnessed the cats and put them in the same room with one of us holding Peck and one holding the cat. Her ears immediately went straight up and she stands at attention. She doesn't lunge at them but if they do run away it seems to spark her interest all the more and she lets out a bark and even a couple of whines. Do I have any hope here? Is there any way she'll ever be OK with them? What do you experts suggest I do? Is there a link you can direct me to or any advice you can give me as to how to handle this situation? I've read quite a bit online but my cats don't seem to follow the rules. They will not sit quietly in my lap while the dog sniffs them or anything like that. They will run in defense. Right now they're living in our bedroom/bathroom and she's kenneled in the living room. I know I will never trust them to be alone together but will they ever be able to co-exist? Help, please!!

[OwnedBySummer]

When we got Summer on May 1, we tried the cat thing but, ultimately, I re-homed the cat. I wish you better luck! One suggestion which I got, which I think is a fabulous idea, is to pull the furniture away from the walls a little bit. Enough for the cat to get behind but not enough for the dog to follow!

[Guest Jubilee251]

Ah yes, we had the same issue with Molly. She had lived in two previous foster homes with cats before, so we knew she WAS cat-safe on some level. But she also whined when she saw the cat, her ears perked up, and she would try to give chase. She did the exact same thing as Peck. Flanders, our cat, had never seen a dog or any animal bigger than himself before, was scared to death, and lived under the bed for about a month. We panicked in the same way you did - "She is cat-safe, so WHY is she showing interest in our cat?"

 

First of all, we baby-gated the bedroom. That was the cat's safe space and sanctuary. When the cat crept out from the bed and sat at the gate, we would leash up Molly, muzzle her, and walk her over. When she stared at the cat or whined, we would distract her with a "Ah-ah!" or "TSSS!" or a tap on the shoulder. If she looked at us or away from the cat, we gave her treats and praise. If a dog is REALLY not cat-safe, they will lunge and have an unbreakable stare. If you can distract Peck, that's half the battle.

 

Rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat.

 

It took Molly about 2 months before she consistently ignored the cat. For the first few weeks, every time she saw the cat get up in the bedroom, she would run over to the babygate and whine. After a few weeks of working with her, she began to turn away more and more when we called her name or corrected her. And slowly - veryyy slowly - she began ignoring the cat. Now the cat walks right by her and she doesn't bat an eye. They are left alone during the day and everyone gets along.

 

And if it makes you feel any better, Jet, our new boy, was the same way. We wanted to foster-with-intent-to-adopt, and he'd never been cat-tested, so we brought him home to see how he reacted to our cat. He barked LOUDLY and FEROCIOUSLY at Flanders and immediately tried to chase. It scared me, but he seemed distractible so we decided to work with him. We officially brought him home a week later, and from the minute he stepped in the door, he suddenly had ZERO interest in the cat, and has never even looked at the cat since then. I have no idea what changed!

Edited August 12, 2010 by Jubilee251

[Guest tjedge2]

Thanks for the reply! Unfortunately, re-homing my cats aren't an option. We've had them both since they were about 6 weeks old and like I said, they are now 9 and 11. My husband is active duty Army and these cats have been everywhere with us, including our tour in Germany. I know it's only been a few days but I'm already feeling guilty about bringing in Peck and not only turning their world upside down but also possibly putting them in danger. I guess I was naive to think cat safe meant cat safe! That said, I do want to work with Peck and see if we can change her behavior. After reading your post, Jubilee251, I do have hope! Right now the only time she's getting with the cats is when she's in her kennel and we've brought them out to sit on the couch with us. I'm thinking this is sort of like the forbidden fruit thing, though. Maybe this is actually making her reactions worse?? I know it does when they run away. If they calmly walk away she's much better but when they run she lets out a bark and/or whine. She does puff out air from her cheeks some when she sees them and does quite a bit of staring but I have been able to break her concentration from that and get her to look at me. She inevitably goes back to looking at them but I have been able to get her attention so I'm taking that as a good sign. We do have a baby gate and will put that up at our doorway. Is the babygate really enough to keep a GH out? I have one of the metal ones so I know she shouldn't be able to knock it down or anything and can't get under it but I just want the reassurance that it will keep her out! We also have a muzzle. Do any of you recommend a certain type of muzzle? I just picked up what our local Petco had. Right now Peck will go to the bedroom door and wait for her opportunity to get in there so we're being very diligent about keeping the door closed. I do open it do the cats can come out but only when Peck is in her kennel. When she's out the cats are shut up but I do try to rotate this throughout the day so they each have time to be out and about. They don't really come out of the room, though. Not yet, anyway! Keep the suggestions/stories coming! I need all the positives I can get so I don't think this is hopeless!

[Guest cruzNhounds]

I found what works for us is NOT to place both dog and cat together in a room, instead we have the cat come to the dog. Everything is new right now, give it time they will live peacefully together. Golden Rule: Muzzle when out, crate when alone.

[Guest NeroAmber]

Hi! Don't lose hope! I felt exactly the same as you with my girl, Amber- and as she was used for coursing, she's used to not only chasing small furries- but killing them, too.

She was cat-tested as cat-trainable, and wow, did she need it! Like you, I felt that we weren't getting anywhere with her, but as above- the rinse and repeat method works !

We still aren't 100% there, and it's taken us just over three months to get to where we are now, but since I have seen such a change I know that we WILL get there...just not sure when!

When we started Amber would bark, whine, lunge, stare unblinking and pop-eyed and generally try her hardest to kill Tig- We kept Aber on her lead, with my partner holding it behind the kitchen babygate- with Tig in her carry-case. Gradually- very gradually we got them in the same room- then with Tig out of the case (but always being held). We tried to do 5-10 minutes three times a week, which doesn't sound like much, but it was stressful for Tig and Amber. That built up to 20 mins- with Amber muzzled but lose behind the kitchen babygate and Tig loose in my lap.

I'm lucky that Tig seems to be a natural 'one room' kind of gal- she was happy to stay in her 'bedroom', even with a babygate up- so she could be seen, smelt, but not eaten!

We used the same sounds as the people above- SHH! NO! HEY! Short, sharp sounds- and at first we used a water spritzer as it was the only thing that broke her stare, and therefore her concentration. Soon she started averting her gaze at the noise we made- the averted gaze got longer, until when she saw the cat- she looked away. (and now- initially at least- she'll walk away)

We still have a ways to go- I try not to carry Tig, as this sets Amber off- and we are on high alert when both are loose in the same room- Amber will be fine unless Tig runs- but even then, and very surprised we were at this- Amber will tense to chase, but will stop herself! Did NOT expect that! I mean, it's great and all, but a little unnatural!

So- don't lose heart, it WILL get better, don't feel guilty about the cats- after the initial two weeks of purely intense Amber, Tig calmed right down, and will now saunter happily past Amber with no fears. I don't know if I'll ever leave them alone- Certainly not now, Amber isn't ready- but maybe in a year or two when I know Amber better, and when the cat is really just another housing fixture to her.

If you have a crate, or can borrow one, that would be best- especially if the cats are used to being loose. Try waiting til Peck is asleep then letting the cats have a wander and a sniff, one other thing I did was tie a bundle of Tigs fur to Ambers collar to she HAD to get used to the smell, so that it was one less 'trigger'.

Anyway- good luck, keep going, don't lose hope! Peck WILL get there!

 

AH- Yes, as above- golden rule is that the muzzle is your friend. We use a basket-type kennel muzzle- the classic-looking type. Amber has reeeeaaaally got used to wearing it!

Edited August 12, 2010 by NeroAmber

[Guest cruzNhounds]

We get our Muzzles from the GEM store, fast shipping & great customer service.

http://www.gemgreyhounds.org/

 

ETA The Cats rule in this four hound house

Edited August 12, 2010 by cruzNhounds

[Guest Mom2Shiloh]

Really good advice so far!! Do not be discouraged!

 

When I got my first greyhound, Harley, I had a Lot of cats. My cats were used to my dogs (a young German Shepherd and, until May an elderly Shepherd/lab mix), so they didn't tend to run. At first Harley had a lot of "play drive" (in his case, that's all it was!) and he learned very early on NOT to Chase Kitties!! However, I always had a baby-gate (highly recommend Fisher Price as they are sturdy and lock in place rather than needing to be mounted.)

 

All I would add to the advice previously given is that after you are very comfortable with how they are getting along, I would Still have one room as The Cat Sanctuary.. you accomplish this by having the baby-gate up off the floor enough that the cats can come and go as they please, but the dog can't follow. I also suggest not holding the cat in your arms for two reasons .. 1. it makes the cat more interesting, and a 'fluffy lure', and 2. it scares the cat and you might get seriously injured if the cat panics and tries to get away from the dog. I knew of one new adopter who tried the "hold the cat up in their arms and bring it to the dog" technique and actually had to go to the emergency room because she was so badly scratched up. Letting them See each other safely (muzzle and baby-gate) is one thing, but forcibly moving the cat toward the dog just creates panic (in my opinion).

 

After Harley and the cats got used to each other, they slept on him (not next to him, on him). I'd never had a greyhound who was not cat safe (after introductions) in my house until last October, when I brought Agnes home. (Moot point because my last cat died of old age on 7/7/07.) Agnes is definitely 'keen'; she is not so intent that I can't walk her safely by a cat... she's distractable, but she will never be cat safe.

 

Good luck, be careful and be patient .. and repeat, repeat, repeat. And remember, if you brought a new cat into your home it would still, temporarily, upset the calm and peace -- all new additions need to be gotten used to (and I used to stress over every single one.) But time goes by and with common sense and patience, you turn around and find that harmony has been restored.

 

(edited because I should be sleeping by now and made many typos.. sorry)

Edited August 12, 2010 by Mom2Shiloh

[robinw]

Before I adopted Loca, she tested cat safe. When I brought her home, she tried to eat my cat several times. I tethered Loca to my waist with her leash whenever I was home so I could reward her when she didn't make eye contact and correct her when she did. She was muzzled when I wasn't home. It took over a month, but she and my cat ended up being best friends. It took a lot of work and absolute consistency, but it was successful. Can you do the same?

[Guest sophiesmum]

my advice is to make sure that Peck has been well exercised prior to letting the cats out of their room. When we first got Sophie home she was very excited and bouncy and the first day she did chase them a couple of times. They had never seen a dog before so they also just hissed and ran.

 

I found that once Sophie had been for a long walk and couldnt be bothered getting out of bed, that was the right time to re-introduce them. At first the cats would gingerly walk up and sniff her and run away, but eventually they became comfortable in the same room.

 

I remembered being really dissappointed that she had chased them at first as we were assured she was cat safe, but it turned out to be just excitement and interest, not an actual bid to do them harm.

 

So yeah make sure that Peck is tired and let the cats approach in their own time, dont force them to be in the same room at first. If I had taken the advice of holding the cat and letting the dog approach I would have ended up injured myself. Make Peck lie down and let the cats come in and out as they please. Have a water spray bottle handy and put Pecks muzzle on just incase.

 

Im no expert (Sophie is my first greyhound too) but this is what we did and it worked out fine.

[GeorgeofNE]

Thanks for the reply! Unfortunately, re-homing my cats aren't an option.

 

 

 

Good!

 

Let me just say first, three days is WAY TOO SOON to be OVERLY concerned that it won't work.

 

Your cats are no doubt freaked out. The dog is behaving really well, but is probably on system overload.

 

What you need is a fool proof cat "escape route." What I mean is that you need some way to split them apart so that if you fail to be vigilant and some how they end up in the same space, and the houndie gives chase, the cats can escape. I used a baby gate in the hallway between my main living area and my bedroom, where their litter boxes used to be (I've since moved). I mounted the gate about 8 inches off the floor so they could get under it quickly, and he could not follow them.

 

Groups typically say "cat trainable" or similar verbiage vs. "cat safe." The testing that is done is not always very real world--I'm not sure how your group does it, but if the group had, let's say, a big old "bomb proof" cat who has been around dogs its whole life, it's not going to be afraid, it's not going to run, and what is there for the dog to react to? Skittish cats darting under furniture are a lot more interesting than one sauntering lazily across the room!

 

Don't give up hope! For now, if they were my cats, I would let them be. Don't force the issue. Don't leave the dog unmuzzled if she's not closed away from the cats (see suggestion on baby gate). If she gets too interested, use a command like "leave it" or "no kitty." If that doesn't draw her attention, then many folks have good success with a squirt bottle of water.

 

Be prepared for many, many changes in her behavior and demeanor over the next few months. And please--don't let down your guard with the children either.

Edited August 12, 2010 by GeorgeofNE

[Guest Jubilee251]

For now, if they were my cats, I would let them be. Don't force the issue. Don't leave the dog unmuzzled if she's not closed away from the cats (see suggestion on baby gate).

 

Agree. Let the cats acclimate at their own pace. EVERYONE is adjusting right now - with time, everything will settle down. We got one of the babygates with a cat-door at the bottom. Something like this.

 

And like everyone else has said - there is a difference between cat-safe and cat-trainable. And cat-testing is not a fool-proof art, unfortunately!

[Guest gecko_foot]

Groups typically say "cat trainable" or similar verbiage vs. "cat safe." The testing that is done is not always very real world--I'm not sure how your group does it, but if the group had, let's say, a big old "bomb proof" cat who has been around dogs its whole life, it's not going to be afraid, it's not going to run, and what is there for the dog to react to? Skittish cats darting under furniture are a lot more interesting than one sauntering lazily across the room!

 

I agree 100% with this! That cat sounds like mine...never met a stranger...

 

If your cats have never seen a dog before, it will take them a while to get used to the dog - especially if the dog is showing interest or giving chase. I have actually just introduced a kitten to my household, and my greyhound Tumnus is the definition of cat safe - he was fostered with 7 cats and has never batted an eye at my manx cat. He and the manx will drink together out of the same water bowl. But even he will eyeball the kitten when she and my manx play. It's nothing that worries me, but it's still enough that Tumnus gets a reprimand. The kitten isn't quite sure what to think of the walking tree, but she has come close enough to sniff him.

 

As others have said, muzzle your grey when you are there, and crate when you're not. You want to use the basket (kennel) muzzle and not the nylon muzzle sold at petstores. Just be careful, take things slow, and it will all work out one way or the other.

 

 

Good luck!

Edited August 12, 2010 by gecko_foot

[Guest Wasserbuffel]

Your girl sounds like she'll do fine in time. If she's distractable, that's a great sign. My adoption group impressed upon me the importance of keeping my girl muzzled and leashed during the introductions. The night she was brought home, she showed a lot of curiosity and even lunged at one of the cats. Several people with the adoption group thought I would be returning her that weekend for trying to eat the cats. In her case it was just the novelty and excitement (she's also only 3). The next morning, I let her approach one cat (she was leashed), he lunged and slapped her and after that she wanted nothing to do with the cats. I have seen them run accross her face as she's laying on the couch and she barely even bothers to follow with her eyes.

 

In my case, the cats are very used to dogs visiting the house even though I have never owned one before. So, like GeorgeofNE said, they weren't as interesting as a cat skittering around in fear.

 

Give the kitties some time to learn that the dog is harmless. Make sure the dog is harmless to them through your careful control of their surroundings and all initial interactions.

 

Be prepared to return the hound if she becomes too intense and does decide that the cats are too great a temptation. It won't be a failing on your part if that happens.

 

 

[Guest tjedge2]

Again, thanks for the replies so far. It’s helped tremendously and I feel better about the situation now. I still have some doubts but I know it’s very early inthe game and it will just take time, patience, and consistency. Just to fill in some more details, my cats have never been around a dog so this is totally new to them, too. I know what cat the organization used to test Peck and it’s the same cat they use for every dog so it’s used to it by now. Used to all the dogs and the whole process. I think it pretty much sits there quietly, unlike my 2 that run like the wind when they sense anything out of the ordinary.

 

We put the baby gate up at our bedroom door. Our bedroom will now be their sactuary since they can get under our bed and she can’t. However, Peck is trying to crawl under the gate! I didn’t expect for her to do that. It’s several inches off the ground and I don’t think Peck can get under it but I’m worried if she really wanted it bad enough maybe she’d squish herself under it! My husband is afraid to lower it any more because he’s worried she might try to jump over it then. Aahhhh!!! If it’s not one thing it’s another! She can get under it up to her shoulders but I think her shoulders/chest are too big to fit through. Right now the cats won’t come out from under the bed so Peck can’t see them but she knows they’re there and she just goes to the gate and stares intently....when she’s not trying to get under it! I have been able to distract her some but not every time. I assume I should only let her stand there for a few minutes at this time? After a while then should I let her stay there longer? I’m sure she’s on system overload with all the changes going on and I don’t want to stimulate her all the more with letting her get worked up and excited at the prospect of a chase.

 

Thank you all again for the wonderful advice and words of encouragement. You’ve helped ease my mind a bit. We’ll just take it one day at a time and go slow. Veerryy slow!

[Guest Javasmom]

Patience is the key. CALM patience. What everyone is suggesting is true. Allow the cats a sanctuary (for us it was also our bedroom), and I was told to allow the cats to defend themselves. when I adopted Java, I had one shy cat and one aggressive cat. The shy one would run, of course, and the aggressive one would try and stand her ground but hiss and growl at Java like nobody's business. Java still wanted to chase both. So, I did the muzzle, leash and crate thing for a long time. I too rewarded when he gave up staring at the cats to pay attention to us. I also taught him "NO CAT!" That was useful for other things as well, such as poor bunnies and squirrels that ran across his path on walks. Java had to be re-cat trained with every new cat that he lived with as well. When I moved out here to CA, I met my boyfriend who also had a cat. Again, I cat trained Java. I think he just wanted to play with them, but that is a theory I never wanted to test.

[GeorgeofNE]

We put the baby gate up at our bedroom door. Our bedroom will now be their sactuary since they can get under our bed and she can't. However, Peck is trying to crawl under the gate! I didn't expect for her to do that. It's several inches off the ground and I don't think Peck can get under it but I'm worried if she really wanted it bad enough maybe she'd squish herself under it! My husband is afraid to lower it any more because he's worried she might try to jump over it then. Aahhhh!!! If it's not one thing it's another! She can get under it up to her shoulders but I think her shoulders/chest are too big to fit through.

 

Trust me--she CAN get under it if she's gotten that far.

 

When I tried this the first time, I got home and found George on the OTHER side of the gate, and scratches in the carpet under the gate. That darned dog army crawled under it!!! And it wasn't very high off the ground! The cats only really need about 5 inches--also, you can use TWO cats if you think she'll jump it. Bear in mind she CAN jump it if she gets it into her head to do so. However, if she's that intent on getting the cats--you may have a problem, so let's hope she's not!

Edited August 14, 2010 by GeorgeofNE

[Guest Wasserbuffel]

Trust me--she CAN get under it if she's gotten that far.

 

Truer words have never been spoken. My hound wriggled herself under a chain link fence. I witnessed the whole thing and I still can't quite figure out how she did it. It's like she morphed momentarily into a pancake and slid below it. She was quick too. I wasn't terribly far away, but couldn't reach the fence in time to stop her. (The fence has since been staked down.)

 

If I were you, I would use the umbilical cord method with your hound for a good long time. Keep the hound leashed to you any time she isn't crated. She may be workable, but you must be extremely careful in the next few weeks or so.

[Guest jaws4evr]

Well, it has been three days, so it's still really early.

 

We have two cats of around the same age as yours <3 kitties!

 

The fact that you can break her concentration is a good sign.

 

A few things may help you. Keep crating the dog, and allowing/encouraging the cats to come out. Let the cats approach the kenneled dog in their own time though, you know how cats are about being forced. The more this occurs, hopefully the cats will become "boring" to the dog.

 

In our house cat manners are VERY important. Any over strong attentiveness towards the cats (in our house this maniphests as play, which is still firmly disaloud), it is interrupted with a loud HEY!, and/or a shot in the face with a water sprayer if it's handy. A lot of people try to use only positive reinforcement, ie only work on positive feelings around the cats and ignore the bad ones... in our house though cat manners keep everybody safe, so strong corretions do happen.

 

Muzzling the dog with any muzzle, basket muzzles like the ones most adoption groups give out should help. The dog could still do damage to the cats with one on, BUT it would hopefully give the cats time to run to a high place before dog jaws could get ahold of them.

 

A babygate may or may not keep the dog in, it depends completely on the dog. ours treats all barriers as if they were made of iron, but some will just push or leap so that's going to be up to you!

 

There ARE cat safe hounds out there, so if this one happens to not be the one for you, she and your cats will ultimately be safer and happier if you find the hound another home. It is still really early yet so watch for any improvement, keep on with the muzzling and paying great attentino to her body language, and good luck!

 

Oh and if one of the cats is brave enough to give hound a good hit with paws/claws, it might go a long way to teaching hound to steer a bit clear.

Edited August 14, 2010 by jaws4evr

[Guest tjedge2]

Just an update......it seems Peck is getting better around the cats. She still shows interest and her ears perk up.....and she stares at them....but she is distractable just about every time. There are also times when she’s in her crate and they venture out to the living room and she will just lay her head down to go back to resting after watching them for a couple of minutes. So I think there is hope! We’re still taking it slow. I think I might have rushed it yesterday when I let her in the bedroom, leashed of course, and her and one of the cats had some paw-to-face time. It all happened so quickly and I can’t be sure if Peck really wanted the cat or was just trying to sniff under the bed and Mira let her know that wasn’t acceptable. Either way I decided to back off some and we’re back to just standing at the gate now. We’ll go with that for a while before venturing back into the bedroom.

 

GeorgeofNE – Thanks for the tip on getting under/over the baby gate. She’s made no attempt to jump on it in any way and I certainly won’t be leaving her to roam free when I’m not here. (Not only because of the cats but because of the 2 accidents she’s had in the house so far!) Anyway, I wasn’t sure she could get under the gate and as much as I’m not happy that it’s possible I’m glad you told me it is so I can be even more aware of where she is at all times! I don’t think 2 gates would work very well for us right now since that’s our bedroom and it would be a huge pain to un-do 2 gates everytime we wanted to come and go. But I might check into a taller gate. It’s about 7.5 inches off the ground right now and I’m afraid to lower it much more. One of my cats is bigger and I want to make sure that if for some reason they need to getunder it quickly that they can and won’t get stuck trying!

 

Jaws4evr – I need to break out the spray bottle more. I’ve been trying the treat method and it’s been OK so far but I might have to use the spray bottle some. We’ll see how it goes over this next week. As you can read above one of the cats was brave but that didn’t seem to deter Peck a lot. Of course, I pulled her back quickly so I’m not sure what she would have done had I not. I didn’t want to find out! I need to get one of the basket muzzles for her. We’re in KS, only about 20 min from Abilene (Greyhound Hall of Fame!!) so I’ll likely make a trek out there this week to pick one up.

 

Thanks again, everyone! I appreciate it more than you know! Giving Peck back isn’t much of an option now since my whole family is in love with her and we’re willing to do what it takes. But the cats have to remain safe, too, of course!

[Guest cruzNhounds]

Good girl Peck, you deserve a OR

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

You have received a lot of good advice so far. Let me say I am a cat tester for two groups as well as a foster parent, so I have a lot of different hounds, and up until recently had two cats. One cat was a runner, the other a fighter. It was perfect when I tested. I would bring the new hound into my house (remove all other hounds). Muzzle the hound, keep on leash and have my wife bring out the runner cat. The hound would get to sniff the cat, depending on the reaction (sometimes you know without a doubt that the cat would be a snack) the hound would be allowed to sniff longer or attempted to be distracted. After that test, the cat would be put down, and encouraged to run (seems like a bad idea, I know, but there is a method to the madness). The hallway would be closed off except for the bathroom, where the "fighter" cat was waiting. Running cat would duck into the bathroom with hound following (hound is still on leash with me holding, and allowing the hound to follow, but not "chase"), as soon as the hound entered the bathroom, it would meet Slate. Slate gives a warning meow, followed by a hiss then the boxing begins if the hound still has his muzzle in Slate's vicinity. This is the ultimate test for a hound. If it backs off from the battering of claw-less Slate, then workable, if it gets more excited by the battering, not safe. I have tested probably just about 75 hounds or so using this method. Two have surprised me. Both didn't even follow my running cat, but were more interested in sniffing around the house. Both times when they were then put into my house for fostering, they had different ideas in mind. It is very obvious when a hound is not cat workable. I would say your hound is very workable from what you describe.

 

There are two methods that I use, the correction method (loud voice, or squirt bottle depending on the hound), and positive reinforcement. The latter basically is when the hound and the cat are in the same room, if you call your hound's name and he/she looks away, I give a treat. Continued positive reinforcement creates a much more trustworthy hound in my opinion. You usually cannot begin with the positive method as a running kitty is a very strong motivator to your hound. What you can do is to have the hound muzzled (at all times when out of crate - and don't use a muzzle that you buy at a pet store, use a "basket" muzzle or otherwise called a "turn-out" muzzle as these are designed to allow the hound to eat and drink while wearing the muzzle) and on a leash that is being held by one person. The second person brings in the cat and shields the cat from the hounds view until in the room. Then the person with the cat sits on the opposite side of the room holding the cat in your lap. The person with the hound can have treats ready and call the hounds name. When the hound looks away from the cat, treat. Repeat this several times daily with both cats. Also, realize that should the cat run, the hound will probably be interested in following, this is where the squirt bottle or loud voice comes into play. With daily reinforcement, things should begin to relax. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to post them.

 

Chad

[Guest tjedge2]

Hey everyone! I wanted to pop back on here briefly for an update. Huge thank you's to all of you for your wonderful advice. It has helped immensely! Peck is now pretty much ignoring the cats. She glances at them when they walk by but no longer shows much interest. The baby gate is still up and the cats still hang in the bedroom for the most part but they do venture out quite a bit. Peck has been hissed at quite a bit and that seems to have shaken her some. Also, one of the cats has charged her and ran her out of the bedroom on more than one occasion! I guess they're claiming the bedroom as their turf. Poor Peck just hangs her head and then goes to her crate.....pretty defeated most of the time! But I'll take that any day over the other possibility! Thanks again for everything. You all helped me tremendously when I needed advice and I'm glad I found you!

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

Great news. Dont hesitate to post some pictures and hang around. Being a new greyhound owner, I am sure there will be other things that may come up from time to time.

 

Chad

[Guest LindsaySF]

Glad to hear the update.