Feeling like a terrible pet owner

[Stellarbella]

In need of a bit of a pep talk.

We brought our golden puppy home two weeks ago, he is now 10 weeks old. Since we got him home he has been back and forth to the vets due to persistent diahorrea - last weekend he was so unwell that he had to be hospitalised

Anyway, he’s now been diagnosed with coccidiosis, and is on antibiotics. But the cat has now started to get bad diarrhoea, so she’s obviously picked it up from him. I feel absolutely terrible about making her ill.

To make matters worse, the puppy likes to ‘play’ with the cat whenever he sees her, but the play is very bitey, so we have to separate them. This means that DH and I spend our evenings in different rooms, me with the dog in the dining room (not particularly comfortable) and him with the cat in the living room.

Because the puppy has been so unwell and won’t take treats, we have made very little progress with training.

Tell me this will get better?!

Oh bad luck with the sickness. You’ve taken your puppy to the vet and had it treated so I don’t think that makes you a bad owner.

I think don’t stress too much about the training. Concentrate on your pets getting better and once I’d focus more on socialisation once pup can go out and about again as thete’s a small window for that.

I can’t help with the dog and cat issue. Hopefully there will be someone here with some experience in that area that can help.

Hardly a bad owner you are getting them the appropriate treatment , it will get better . Keep trying with the introductions of the cat and dog , if necessary get the dog a house lead so you can maintain a bit of control .

Yes, it will get better. You need to give your dog and cat time to absorb each other's scent. It's probably worse because your dog being back and forth from the vet means he'll be picking up new animal smells every time - once he's better, the integration will be easier.

I integrated my pup to my two cats, and then integrated a new cat when my dog was about 8. It really is all about smell. Keep them physically separated at first, but keep swapping things like bedding so the scent mingles. If possible, share grooming brushes.

During introductions, restrain the pup and make sure the cat has an escape route at all times. Stay with them so you can intervene at the first sign of hostility. Distract the pup with a game so his attention isn't focused on your cat. Gradually you should find their interest in each other wanes and they ignore each other during supervised interactions.

Once they are safely ignoring each other, you should be able to relax your supervision - but never leave the cat without an escape route. My dog is now 11 and my oldest cat is 18, but the cats still have a dog-free space in the form of a safety gate blocking the dog from the room where their food and water is - otherwise they all have free run of the house.

It will be OK eventually, I promise, but you do need masses of patience and always to err on the side of caution, because one nasty moment can undo days of work.

Thanks for all the replies. I will try keeping the dog on a lead when he mixes with the cat. The problem is that my cat is overconfident so she’s always trying to get the dog to chase her and then rolling over and being submissive. She doesn’t realise that that’s a dangerous thing to do around an overexcited pup. I’m sure nothing bad would ever happen, but just really, really, don’t want to take the risk