Phaeton Is Home!

[Guest ww_phaeton]

Well, Phaeton came home today! We were supposed to get him yesterday but ended up having to move it to this morning. He was a breeze in the car. Just wanted to stick his head out of the window. Re-introduced him to my cattle dog outside in neutral territory and then let him explore the house. Kept my two small (well, six month old) kittens in their room (kittens have a room and dogs have a room here) and didn't try to introduce them until he'd been here for a half an hour or so. The rescue gave us a muzzle but we kept him on the leash while introducing as well. He is very excited by them and whimpers and tries to get to them. The baby gate that keeps my cattle dog out of the cat room isn't really an obstacle for him of course and he put his paws on it once but we had control of his leash. We put the kittens away. Took some walks outside. Tried again with him in his kennel while bringing the cats into the room and he was trying to get through the bars at them and crying. I don't think he's being aggressive but we haven't really given him a chance to get too close. When the kittens are shut in the bedroom he is fairly calm and follows me around and likes to stand by me to be petted. He was pacing nervously and he would occasionally go sniff at the door of the cat room. I finally shut the door to his crate so he could get away from my very excited young cattle dog and he seemed to be napping. I tried letting the kittens out into the house but he saw them from the doorway and is staring at them intently and quietly whimpering. One has also ventured into the bedroom. He is staring at it and crying. I can't tell if he wants to eat him or is afraid of him but he is breathing very heavily... Edit: I have since shut the door and he has still been staring at it for the past few minutes and I believe he is shaking

 

Do you think he may be a cat zapper even though he was tested cat safe or have any of you experienced similar behavior when first bringing your hound home just due to the excitement and newness of everything?

 

Oh another thing he did when we first got here was hiking his leg to pee on a section of my couch. Really hoping that one doesn't happen again. Ha!

 

I read two books about greyhounds and did a lot of research on here but I am still feeling nervous about the first night and making him and everyone else comfortable. Thanks guys.

 

Edited February 26, 2011 by ww_phaeton

[TheFullHouse]

I don't have cats, but when I volunteered at the adoption kennel, those hounds that pulled on the leash, whined and became very vocal, were deemed as not cat safe. He may be cat workable though. You'll have to ask the experts around here with cats.

[Guest BlingDogs]

Congrats, I love his caramel colouring. Looks like he's pretty interested in your kitty

[PrairieProf]

Yikes. I think small kittens are also likely to be more alluring than an adult cat (which is what would be used for cat-testing). When my current senior cat goes, I'm going to get just adult cats because I'd be nervous about a kitten.

 

Has he had a chance to actually sniff the kittens (muzzled and on a short leash?). He's going to be very curious if nothing else until he really gets to check them out. Beth was very interested in my cat until she got familiar with her -- BUT she never whimpered or acted hyper-focused.

 

When he is staring and whimpering, can you break his focus if you say "leave it!" or "no kitty!" and give him a treat if he turns his attention to you? I'm not an expert the way some folks here are, but I know that being able to divert their attention is a central determinant of "cat correctable" vs. NOT cat-safe. If he won't be readily distracted from the cats, that's a very bad sign I'm afraid.

 

Be really, really hypervigilant about protecting your kittens.

Edited February 26, 2011 by PrairieProf

[Guest ww_phaeton]

Yikes. I think small kittens are also likely to be more alluring than an adult cat (which is what would be used for cat-testing). When my current senior cat goes, I'm going to get just adult cats because I'd be nervous about a kitten.

 

Has he had a chance to actually sniff the kittens (muzzled and on a short leash?). He's going to be very curious if nothing else until he really gets to check them out. Beth was very interested in my cat until she got familiar with her -- BUT she never whimpered or acted hyper-focused.

 

When he is staring and whimpering, can you break his focus if you say "leave it!" or "no kitty!" and give him a treat if he turns his attention to you? I'm not an expert the way some folks here are, but I know that being able to divert their attention is a central determinant of "cat correctable" vs. NOT cat-safe. If he won't be readily distracted from the cats, that's a very bad sign I'm afraid.

 

Be really, really hypervigilant about protecting your kittens.

 

He had a chance to sniff at them a little bit through the cage bars but that's it. I didn't want to push it too far yet. I knew about the distraction thing (been watching them do a lot of cat testing on the show dogtown by national geographic - thanks instant netflix!) and we were able to get him to turn away from standing at the baby gate to the cat's room and come to one of us instead but he went right back to the gate again after a few seconds. He isn't really interested in treats or toys right now even when the cats aren't around. I am going to work on it more when my boyfriend gets home from work because I want to have extra hands around for this. Should I lock one of the cats in the room with us and the dog on a very short leash? Otherwise they are going to run off. They want nothing to do with him. Can't say I blame them right now.

 

My significant other and another friend who owns two greyhounds said to just give it a few days but I am worried it will not work out and everyone will be even more miserable. Especially P if he gets used to being here. Of course it's no good for anyone if he is a cat zapper though. I know he wouldn't be happy and neither would they

[buddibear]

When we took our first cat safe foster to a prospect,no go. Now this 3yo boy sleeps with my fat old persian. The catch was the young couple had a kitten and never saw a dog. Brought in the muzzled,leashed dog and up the curtains went their cat AND my dog! We called our coordinater and discussed plan #2 with another dog. I suggested a poodle!

[robinw]

My bridge angel Loca tested cat safe but in reality she was a big time cat zapper. I bought a long leash and whenever I was home I attached the leash to my waist with Loca on the other end. I praised her whenever she ignored the cat and corrected her every time she made eye contact. It took about a month, but it worked and she became good friends with my cat. If you have any doubts about Phaeton with your cat, try doing the same thing and see how he reacts. If he's interested, do what I did.

 

btw, he's beautiful!

[mychip1]

I got JJ and Dustin right from the track - so they were not cat tested. My bridge boy Jack used to chase Irwin a bit, but very much only to play, and Irwin knew it. Dustin is a peach...but JJ, well, his prey drive is still in tact! He is slowly getting better but I do a couple of things to keep everyone happy. (I knew that the set up of my house would allow for this - so I wasn't terribly worrie.) Have several baby gates - placed high enough off the ground that the cats can get under them and into another room...or in my case down to the basement or up to the second floor - that way he has peace and quiet. Also, when I am not home, they are muzzled....(it also protects them in a number of ways...but it certainly serves to help out the cat if I'm not around). JJ has gotten a bit better - but I'm not sure I would trust him with the cat yet. Either way...don't give up on Phaeton. You may need to be creative!

Edited February 26, 2011 by mychip1

[Guest sheila]

perhaps you could try putting something that the cats have napped on in his crate so he can get a sniff of them w/o spooking the cats with a forced introduction. Maybe do something similar with one of the dogs blankets for the cats.

[Guest ww_phaeton]

I am very upset right now. I thought the only problem was with P and the cats. He and my dog seemed to be getting along very well. I've been observing my dog all day though and he is incredibly possessive. He is taking all toys (even though there's two of each - but of course not something a dog cares about I wouldn't think) and snapped at P for so much as sniffing at one. I corrected him with a firm no. We also have a spray bottle but try to use mostly positive reinforcement. I have been making sure to give my dog the same amount of attention all day as I am giving to the new dog so that he doesn't feel so insecure. I had to leash him to me at one point because whenever Phaeton tried to lay in his crate he would run into the crate and jump on him and Phaeton would get up again and stand around pacing and crying. We never let my cattle dog use the crate before as I didn't want him to think it was his.

Well, I gave each of the dogs a milkbone. I held my dog's collar while Phaeton finished his milkbone crumbs and then Phaeton walked away so I let my dog loose because the treats were all gone. He runs over to the spot where Phaeton's crumbs were and sniffs and then runs over to Phaeton and sniffs his nose and then growls and bites him! Not hard I suppose because Phaeton didn't yelp (or get aggressive - thankfully!) but I was so surprised and so was Phaeton. I've never seen my dog snap at or bite anyone. He is usually very submissive to other dogs at the park and friend's houses. I knew he'd be different at home but I never expected to see aggression. I know food can bring that out in dogs but I thought it would be fine since the food was gone. Guess I was wrong...

 

Sorry for all the venting just feeling incredibly frustrated and inadequate right now

[christinepi]

We have 4 cats, all never having had to live with a dog before. When we adopted our grey one year ago, they were very scared, would sit under furniture, and spit and hiss if he got too close. So we kept them in one side of the house, and Tracker in the other, separated by a baby gate. They'd see each other, but couldn't get to each other. We brought Tracker into the cat room almost daily, and always muzzled and on leash. He wanted to get to them so badly. He'd pull and whine, play bowed and barked--he was just totally confused as to what these things were good for. The cats didn't quite act like prey, since they wouldn't run away in a panic, but they, to his great frustration, wouldn't play with him, either. And this hissing thing really didn't sound reassuring to his ears. After two weeks or so, he, in his excitement, accidentally got too close to one of the cats and got whacked in the nose (he had his muzzle on). He was STUNNED and ran back to "his" room where he tried to get over this humiliation. From then on, he was still dying to play with them, but kept a respectful distance. After ca 3 months we stopped using the muzzle, because news had spread to all cats that this monster could be kept in check with lots of blundering and bluffing and if all else failed, slicing his nose, but that they were essentially still rulers of the house. But we'd never let him be unsupervised with the cats, still. After 6 months we removed the baby gate and all is well, and we don't watch him anymore. They just avoid each other. They will probably never develop warm feelings towards each other, but so be it.

 

I guess why this all took so long was because all our cats have never had to deal with a dog before, so they had to overcome their own impulses to run. If your cats are used to dogs already, the process should go faster. So yes, it may take months, but all could be well eventually. I would keep a muzzle on your dog for now, until it's clear they're getting used to each other. Of course, sadly, it could also be that that might never happen, and that Phaeton is just not safe. I wish you, the cats and Phaeton the best of luck!

Edited February 26, 2011 by christinepi

[Guest ww_phaeton]

perhaps you could try putting something that the cats have napped on in his crate so he can get a sniff of them w/o spooking the cats with a forced introduction. Maybe do something similar with one of the dogs blankets for the cats.

 

Thank you I will try that. The cats have a blanket I can use. Right now all the animals are in separate rooms and I'm losing my mind a bit.

[robinw]

How did you introduce your dogs to each other? I always introduce outside during a walk or on neutral territory. Do you have muzzles for both of your dogs? You can try muzzling them. You might also want to hold off on giving them treats and toys when they're together, or anything that can provoke competitiveness. That includes removing the toys from the environment for the time being.

 

It's still the first day. I know how overwhelming everything feels now because of my experience with Loca, but take a deep breath or two and smile. I'am sure you'll receive lots of good advice, but I'm serious about the muzzling and not doing anything that might induce possessiveness. I'm also asking RobinM to post a great article about what it's like for a greyhound to go home for the first time.

Edited February 26, 2011 by robinw

[Guest ww_phaeton]

How did you introduce your dogs to each other? I always introduce outside during a walk or on neutral territory. Do you have muzzles for both of your dogs? You can try muzzling them. You might also want to hold off on giving them treats and toys when they're together, or anything that can provoke competitiveness. That includes removing the toys from the environment for the time being.

 

It's still the first day. I know how overwhelming everything feels now because of my experience with Loca, but take a deep breath or two and smile. I'am sure you'll receive lots of good advice, but I'm serious about the muzzling and not doing anything that might induce possessiveness.

 

We introduced them outside in the yard. I'd read that that would help since it was neutral. Things did seem fine at first.

 

We have a muzzle for Phaeton. We never purchased one for my cattle dog as we've had him since a puppy and it was just never necessary. He's never so much as growled at another dog until today. Thank you for the advice I'm going to pick up all of the toys and won't be giving out any treats for the time being. I'd already planned to feed them in separate rooms of course. I know I just need to be patient and give it some time; I am just stressed out from being pulled in separate directions and feeling bad about having to lock up the cats. Can't we all just get along, guys? lol.

Edited February 26, 2011 by ww_phaeton

[robinw]

Just keep reminding yourself how new everything is for both you and Phaeton, as well as the other residents of your home. Things will get better. Try not to be so hard on yourself, Phaeton and your other dog, ok? It's still only the first day .

[Guest sheila]

sounds like your cattle dog is trying to establish a role as head of the pack. I'm not much of an expert on those kinds of things other than I understand it's often better to stand back and let the dogs work it out amongst themselves. I do agree with robinw that removing toys and holding off on the treats for now.

One thing I have done whenever I have brought a new dog home is to find time in the first few days to take them both for long walks together. I walk my dogs both on the same side and keep the leashes short so they have to walk side by side. This seems to give them a controlled way of getting used to each other while also exercising and relieving tension. Good luck!

[Guest ww_phaeton]

Thanks everyone. I will keep you posted on how things are going. I really appreciate all the advice. This is my first time with all of this. I feel really guilty about locking my cats up. I'm really hoping they and Phaeton can learn to get along. Fingers crossed.

 

For now the dogs seem to be behaving. I have two shadows wherever I go.

 

 

Looking totally innocent, right?

[Batmom]

Yep, looking innocent, and they ARE! All this is new and a bit unsettling to them (and your cats) too.

 

I understand your frustration. I think the first 3 weeks my angel Zema was home, I lost 10 lbs and gained a headful of gray hair. And I don't even have cats! I exaggerate, but that's what it felt like, especially the first few days.

 

My advice would be, do your best to keep everybody safe, and don't worry about the rest. Potty accidents, a growl here and there -- likely all water under the bridge with just a little time.

 

Hugs and best luck.

[mychip1]

Continued good luck! Don't feel too bad about the cats. As I said, my Irwin was out of sorts for a bit...but he has figured it all out.

 

As far as the other dog, I would suggest that you muzzle both dogs. Having a muzzle for just one will leave him vulnerable. As I said, mine love each other, but they are muzzled. They are adorable!

 

 

[Walliered]

Muzzle both dogs. No toys at all. Food bowls in different rooms or at least feed P in his crate with the door closed. I am saying this from experience. My first hound is very jealous and has been since the second one came home. It has been about 6 months now and I still keep them muzzled. Also, if I am out of the room for more than one second, I put one dog in crate.

[TheFullHouse]

No toys for now, no treats fed in the same room and definitely feed them in separate places. You first dog is claiming his right to your home, it's been his home and now he's going to have to share. He's basically showing your new greyhound that he's the boss. Your new hound is totally unsure of what's going on and basically is not willing to stand up for himself yet. Give it some time. Once both dogs start to accept the new living arrangement, you may find your new boy will be more willing to stand up for himself and when he does, he will put your other boy in his place. I usually let new ones figure it out on their own but I do not stand for one dog bullying another. Wait a few days and see if things don't relax a bit. I do suggest a muzzle for your original boy. It will give you a little peace so you can relax some because the more nervous and stressed you get, the worse things will go. The dogs will pick up on your stress. It's okay to put your new hound in his crate for a few minutes of peace and quiet during the day to give everyone a break. Give it time. This is the hardest part of getting a new dog.

[Guest ww_phaeton]

 

We tried re-introducing the cats to Phaeton when my boyfriend got home. Could not distract him from the cats. Lots of whining. My boyfriend had him on a leash muzzle on. He sniffed the cats a few times over the gate. Then the cat came in the living room but he could not be distracted from it. I held the cat to let him sniff him and Phaeton tried to bite him. It was definitely aggressive. I am a little heartbroken right now.

 

We have the cats out and Phaeton on leash. He refuses to be distracted, doesn't seem phased by our firm "no's" and is panting and licking his lips and trying his best to get off the leash.

[Guest 2dogs4cats]

On boy, I am so sorry. I have 2 Greys currently and 3 cats. It can be difficult getting the right "mix". It's possible your Grey tested cat friendly with a mature cat but is not kitten friendly.

[robinw]

Don't be heartbroken yet. If Loca could be made cat safe, anything could be made cat safe. Remember, he must be really stressed and confused right now.Give him a little time and try what I suggested; tying the leash around your waist. Once again, I'll bet he's very scared, nervous and confused right now. Keep him muzzled, also, even while his leash is tied around your waist.

[PrairieProf]

I'm really sorry, what an upsetting thing to find out when you were expecting a happy homecoming. It sounds like you may need to contact your group about this ASAP.