Help with Building relationships between 19 week puppy and 13year old cat

[Twinmama32]

As the titles says really... we’ve had the puppy since he was 8 weeks, my cat has refused to come downstairs and has now become an indoor cat.
I’ve tried to introduce twice but had to physically carry cat into the kitchen, first time he jumped the baby gate, second time he stayed in the corner and growled and hissed. (Both times cat was seemingly fine after purring etc)
How do I go about it now do I just put them in a room together repeatedly?
I have to sort this as I can’t stand the cat tray being in the family bathroom not his food on the landing!

[Aquamarine1029]

Do NOT corner your car by forcing him to be in the same room as the dog. You have to allow their relationship to develop on their terms. You need to be patient. You need to be sure that there are MANY high places the cat can get to, well off the floor and away from the dog.

[Twinmama32]

Yes I think that’s why he’s stays upstairs a he’s high up!
I can’t see any relationship forming as puppy is virtually unaware of the cat’s existence and is only allowed downstairs anyway.
Ironically my cat is looking in the best health in years as indoor life clearly suits him and I wouldn’t mind at all if it wasn’t for the tray. I suppose I’ll just have to see how things play out

[StillMedusa]

Identical scenario here... Dog is just turning 5 months, resident cat Ophie (well we have two but the other one is an unfaithful git who lives in three houses inc ours) has moved upstairs...she comes inthrough a bedroom window and DS1 has to put up with cat food in his room. Thankfully she hasn't used a litter tray since she was a kitten , tho we do have one in the downstairs wet room. Puppy isn't allowed upstairs.

Ophie has come down to the kitchen and glared at puppy through the stairgate but that's IT. Puppy whines if she sees her,

I can't force it, and won't. I do remember my Gran's cat taking a year to come downstairs after she rescued a dog...but in the end they shared the home fine.

I do envy friends who got a dog and their cat was fine with it, but my cats are not like that (the other cat is less bothered as he only comes in for a nap and food and then slopes off to my retired neighbour!)

I'm thinking they might be able to share a space in about 3 years....

[Twinmama32]

Yes I’m starting to think it’s going to be a slow process...gone are the dreams of them cuddling up together anytime soon!

[Floralnomad]

You need to just carry on as you are with the litter tray upstairs , really you should consider yourself lucky as many cats just move out when dogs appear in their home . Hopefully the cat will eventually be a bit braver but he is getting on and if he’s never been used to dogs so he may not .

[PookieDo]

You can’t force the cat to do this! It’s mean

I have cat and dog, same age but didn’t grow up in same house

Daytime: cat upstairs in DD’s room with litter tray in family bathroom. Dog confined to downstairs with his bed/food

Nighttime: cat downstairs with litter tray in downstairs toilet. Dog confined upstairs with water bowl (sleeps on my bed I don’t mind)

In the morning both come downstairs for food, sometimes there can be a noisy scuffle but it’s not physical. Cats bowls are on top of the highest shelf I own, where dog can never reach.

I swap them over at the same times of day and night. When dog goes out for last wee, cat is fed and comes down. Cat gets her own space not invaded by the dog

Weirdly they will share the garden with no problem

Secure cat in own area, let cat have own space
Everything food is up high
Never force them together

[adaline]

Mine just have the freedom to go wherever they want. We have baby gates that the cats can jump over so they can eat and toilet in peace but we've never done slow introductions with any of our pets (dog and two cats) - just left them to get on with it and we've never had any problems.

They all get on fine - there are some spats occasionally but nothing serious and the dog comes out worse than the cats have ever done!

[Broken11Girl]

Fgs never forcibly carry a cat anywhere (unless going to the vet etc I guess), why did you think shoving your poor cat in the same room would work?
They won't 'cuddle up together' probably ever.
You need to do more research than posting on here should have done before getting a puppy tbh.

[heatseeker14]

Our cat has been okay with our 11 week old puppy, but he has always been a laid-back cat. He lets the puppy sniff him. No growling, hissing or puffing his fur up.
We have a stair gate to stop the puppy getting upstairs, and we put the cat bowls on the windowsill, so the cat has his own space.
The only issue we have is with the puppy trying to chasing the cat out of his cat flap. We are trying to train him not to with treats, but I think it will be a long process. For now we are having to keep a close eye on the relationship.
I hope one day when the puppy matures that they will snuggle together, but we
are a long way off from that happening!
Good luck

[Zooforhouse]

Hi, I have had the exact same issue (one year old dog, 7 year old house cat. Cat living upstairs since the dog came ☹️. Like you, I don’t mind the cat upstairs at all, just didn’t want litter and food there.

My cat and dog will never be friends sadly. However we have reached some resolution so thought I’d share.

The dog is crate trained and there is a sectioned off area in the kitchen/diner which he can be put into. A pen/large crate would also work I guess. We also have a stair gate on the stairs (child) and the cat can watch the dog knowing that he can’t get to her.

After a couple of weeks we took the cat into the kitchen to sleep once the dog was in his crate. She was fine! No noise from either.

The litter is now in the kitchen and her food on the table. She mainly has both first and last thing but now will venture down in the day for them if the dog is out on a walk or if she can hear/see that he’s contained in his kitchen area. The dog sleeps in his crate still, but is not shut in it at night now.

I will add that this has gone backwards for a few days the odd time I’ve taken my eye off the ball and the dog has chased the cat....

[Ihaventgottimeforthis]

I have a v similar but opposite problem - we have a nervous 11 yr old cat, who likes to spend most of her time outdoors, apart from when it's wet.
But now the puppy is here, she is dashing in and out and we hardly ever see her :-(

What we're trying - feeding her in new places at set times whereas before she had food all the time, but she's having plenty of meat in a space where the dog can't go.
Effectively shutting the house in half with judicious use of the hall door.
Introducing puppy to other cats who are braver.
Giving her time to do it at her own pace.
Puppy is crated downstairs at night and she has full access to the house, hopefully getting used to the idea of him being there.
It's the only massive downside to getting my much longed-for dog.