Terriers and our cat

[Throwntothewolves]

We recently got a jack russell puppy. This isn't our first JRT, and we already have another terrier.
At first he was settling in well and was finding his place, a bit wild at times, but all in all things were going good.
We have an old lady cat. She has been with us since before any of the dogs we've had and is generally very tolerant of them, and they are respectful of her. When new puppies have joined us in the past she has quickly put them in their place and they have gained a healthy respect for her as a result, then all has been harmonious for ever more.
Things seemed to be working out that way this time too, until today. The puppy got a bit bold with the cat and was bouncing around almost taunting her. She hissed at him and that should have been the end of that. But much to my shock the older dog piled in and started chasing her. The puppy thought this was a great game so tried to join in too. Thankfully I was there to rescue the cat or I dread to think what could have happened.
The older dog and the cat have always got on very well, and I've never had any concerns about them being in eachother's company. So this seems to have been an instinctive reaction to protect the puppy from the cat. But now I can't trust that the dogs won't hurt the cat.

Does anyone have any experience of this and advice as to what to do to prevent this sort of thing from happening again? Obviously I won't leave them alone together, but they all live in the same house so will encounter eachother occasionally. I don't want the cat to get hurt, or worse, and she should not have to live in fear in her own home, poor thing

The issue is leaving her to “put them in their place”.
You need to separate them. The Blue cross have great advice on this. You want to avoid the dogs giving the cat any attention. Using treats to get them to focus on you. The ideal isn’t for them to get on but for the dogs to avoid the cats.
Do you have stairgates etc? High places the cat can escape to?

I'll take a look at the Blue Cross website, thanks.
I don't leave her to sort them out as such, it just is what has happened when she has encountered new pups while strolling past them. I realise that they may not get along, but it has never been an issue with the several other dogs we've had, particular the older one we have now, so I wasn't expecting this.
The cat can always escape, yes. She sleeps and has her food up high where the dogs can't reach, and has beds elsewhere in the house. At night she is in a separate room to the dogs. The stairgate we have is no good as the pup can fit through the gaps, but I will look into getting another so she can go upstairs and know she will be safe.

My only advice is when you go out make sure that they are locked in different rooms or that the cat is outside and cannot get in , do not rely on thinking the cat will be able to jump a stairgate / get on a table / shelf as she may not get the time . My mum had an indoor cat ( ragdoll) that lived harmoniusly with her two dogs , when they died within 6 months of each other she got 2 terrier puppies and they always had to be kept separate from the cat as despite one of them being ok with the cat as a pair you couldn’t trust them at all .