# Introducing puppy to older cat?



## Ricolove (Aug 28, 2011)

We are preparing to get a new puppy, we have a breeder who had puppies not long ago and we will bring our puppy home around mid october. 

We have only had one other dog, our Hav, Rico, who is no longer with us unfortunately, and while he loved our cat, Roo didn't like him and would leave the room the second she saw him.

Roo is a little anti social, even with us. Does anyone have any ideas how to introduce our cat to a new puppy, so at least they can tolerate being in the same room?

Thanks


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

I would say just give them time... we have 3 cats and we brought Tillie into the house when they were 10 yrs old and 2 yrs old.
A lot depends on the personality of the cat and the persistance of the dog!
Be patient, 1 of our cats was cool with Tillie by the next day. 1 of them took about 6 months to warm up and now they play chase together. 1 of our cats still hasn't warmed up to our KIDS. LOL
COngratulations on your upcoming arrival!!


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## clare (Feb 6, 2010)

Here are some pictures of our Havs,Dizzie and Nellie with some of our cats.Two of the cats actually like the dogs,and play and call for them,whilst the other two are indifferent to them.When we first brought Dizzie home,only the youngest cat,who was 18 weeks old took to him,the others were pretty much disgusted with him,but gradually they warmed up to him.We used to put him on a long lead when they were around so he couldn't pounce on them,but he was a very sensible puppy and pretty much left them alone as they were bigger than him and they could easily keep him in his place.By the time Nellie joined the family,the cats didn't take that much notice of her as they were so used to Dizzie,they just looked at us with a resigned expression as if to say here we go again,now it is wonderful to see them all playing, fighting and sleeping together.


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## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

Clare, your pictures of your cats and Havs are adorable. 

We had two young cats when we first brought Cooper home and they adjusted fine. Cooper ignored them and they ignored him. When Tessa came onto the scene, the heirarchy had already been established. The smallest female cat, Misty, was the boss and the other two let her run the house. Tessa though didn't understand that and started chasing Misty all over which got Cooper going and they would both corner her. We have been telling Tessa to "leave it" and she is starting to get better. Both cats spend more time in the basement than I would like. I think Tessa just wants the cats to play with her and she can't understand why they won't. Tessa kisses the male cat named K.C. all the time and he is so placid that he just sits there while she does it. It's very cute. 

They all share the bed during the night though. No fighting at all.

Long story short, I think it depends on the temperment of the animals. Some are very accepting, some are not.


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## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

There are all sorts of articles about how to introduce a new animal into the household. (Dave? Do you have anything? ) Since you probably will have your new little beastie confined to an expen or small area, this will give your cat a chance to eye the competition. As you gradually open up the house to the puppy, just make sure the cat has an escape route. Cat's claws and puppy faces don't mix.


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## MoirasNiceLady (Jul 11, 2011)

Our cat Morrigan has tolerated our Cairn Terrier Merlyn for 5 years but doesn't particularly like him. She hated our Cairn Stella who is no longer with us. For some reason she LOVES Mo! We didn't do anything different or special when introducing Mo than we did with the other two dogs. Who knows, maybe it's just the Hav's winning personality traits that won Morrigan over. :biggrin1: Here they are playing:


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## DonnaC (Jul 31, 2011)

I agree that there doesn't seem to be a magic formula. I think, at the beginning, you want to make sure to keep their food separate (you may find they don't care, but I'd try to respect this in the beginning). Also, if the cat does seem skittish, make sure he/she has access in and out of rooms -- they sure don't like feeling like they can't escape.

We have two cats. One of them does fine with the puppies, although she tires of their endless games. The other has just been torn apart by their arrival and has not come down to the floor or out of hiding since they got here. Of course, that's the cat they're most intrigued with, and any chance they get to torment her, they take! We try to make sure she has space, her own feeding area, and pets and love when she'll stick around for it. Other than that, we haven't really figured out a "fix." There may not be one.


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