Many people cannot choose between having a cat or a dog in our homes, we simply love both of them and we cannot resist being part of our families.
If you are one of these types of people who do not know or want to decide and are willing to fill your life with more happiness and pampering, we are going to give you some keys to make this process as relaxed and satisfying for everyone as possible.
Coexistence between cats and dogs
You have already decided and you are going to increase the family, you are going to gather a cat and a dog at home, and now what?
Surely the first thing that will come to your mind or even the first thing they will tell you is that you are crazy. How can you think if cats and dogs are natural enemies? Well, in this blog we are going to demonstrate that these assumptions are not real.
Every day more people live with a cat and a dog at home and have a good time and even their pets are friends. Let’s see how to do it!
Before bringing a cat or dog home
Before introducing a new animal at home, there may be several cases, that you already have a cat or dog at home or that both enter at the same time.
In the first case, it is best to know what your pet’s personality is like. Have you ever had contact with other animals before? How does it react? Is it a sociable animal?
You should take into account all these questions to guarantee a good coexistence. If your dog is aggressive with street cats, your cat has never had contact with other animals or is not very sociable, it is better that you discard the idea or put yourself in the hands of a professional.
The basis of a good relationship between a cat and a dog is the education that the pet you have at home already has.
In the event that the two enter at the same time, they can be puppies or adults. In the case of puppies, it is much easier since you can shape the personality of your pets and if you do not get them to love each other, at least tolerate them.
If they are adult animals, please ask the person who has them if they have lived with other breeds and if they are suitable for cat / dog respectively.
First hours together
Once we have made the aforementioned evaluations, it is time for the presentation. This moment is key and will mark the future relationship between your cat and your dog.
It is important to keep in mind that cats and dogs are two different species with very different needs and attitudes, understanding this is key to their presentation and coexistence.
In these first hours you should leave each one in a different and exclusive part of the house. If it’s the two newcomers, put each one in a room and let them explore and feel comfortable in this new room, home and family.
If, on the other hand, you already have a pet at home and you are going to introduce a dog or cat, you should leave the new member of the family in one room and the one who already lived with you, in the rest of the house. We do not want your pet to interpret that, when this cat or dog came home, he had to shut himself up or stop doing what he usually did.
First days
Once your new pet feels comfortable in this room that you have provided, you should let them smell under the door so they know that there is another member of the family. You can even introduce a blanket or clothes impregnated with their smell in each other’s rooms, this way they already know that there will be an imminent presentation and in a certain way they already “know” each other.
It is important that this process is done with relaxation and not forcing any of the parties.
Once they are comfortable in the room they have for themselves, it is good that you let the new member of the family, either the dog or the cat, go out to the rest of the house when the other is not there. In this way they can explore the house without stress, know that it is a safe place and, in addition, if we reinforce them with sweets or playing they will relate it to something positive.
The presentation
Once we have done the previous steps and our cat or dog is already comfortable with the house and when he leaves the room he is calm and carefree, it is time to introduce them.
The most important thing of all is to know that the times imposed by the cat must be followed at this time. We must focus attention on his attitude and see if he is overwhelmed or not.
Dogs are much more sociable animals and follow their “leader”, which in this case is us, so if you must scold either of them in this process it is the dog, never the cat or he will misinterpret and may hate us us and the dog.
In these first introductions, take the dog on a leash and invite the cat to enter the room where you have the dog, always a place that is not his safe place (his room). We must not force the cat, we must invite it and go alone and enter when you want.
The cat is the one that must decide whether to approach the dog or not and if he wants to run away that he does not feel persecuted, for this reason we put the leash on the dog.
This process must be repeated daily and the time varies according to the attitude of our pets. It is important to note that the more time they spend in the same room and have the presence of the other close by, the better.
But we repeat, always respecting the times of the cat and without forcing. Each good act by both the cat and the dog must be rewarded.
Once we see that they have already smelled and come close, it is time for presentations without a strap.
The first days toguether
The first days that both the cat and the dog are toguether, we must be present in these meetings until we make sure that both parties are already comfortable with the presence of the other.
For this reason, we recommend that you go back to sleep in your safe place until we are completely convinced that the process has been successful.
As a resume, it is a slow process in which you have to be very patient and have the best of our attitudes.
Dogs and, above all, cats, capture the mood of their owner very easily, so we must act calm and relaxed in these encounters.
Even if it seems like a difficult and long process, then you will be rewarded with a great coexistence and even friendship between your pets.
If you want more information about cats, curiosities and needs, we encourage you to visit our blog.
