Cat companion for dog?

[pinkorchid1]

Does anyone here have a dog and a cat and are they good companions for each other?
I have a 3 year old dog and I worry that she's a little bored and could do with a friend. I'm home most of the time so she's not lonely, but I worry that with a busy home life with 2 children, she doesn't get the attention she deserves. (She gets regular walks).
Another dog would be a more obvious choice and am not ruling it out, but our dog has such an amazing temperament, I am concerned another dog wouldn't be as great ! I am considering a cat instead. Can they be companions for each other or would they just live independent of each other in the same house?

I have both cats and dogs. My youngest dog adores my youngest cat and they happily play fight for hours ( small dog so same size as cat). All of my cats are dog friendly and all of my dogs are cat friendly but that did take time and effort. Last night I had five dogs and four cats cuddled up beside me while I watched a movie. But it depends on personality so you will need to chose wisely

We have a dog and three cats.

Two of the cats and the dog absolutely adore each other, the third cat and the dog very much have a love-hate relationship 😂

They don't fight or anything, don't get me wrong, but the cat can be quite antagonistic and will get in the dogs space and then when the dog wants to play, he'll go full "skippity pap" and start whacking him 🙈

Is she used to cats? If she isn't it won't be a good idea unless she is a breed with an exceptionally low prey drive. They really need to grow up together.

My dogs and cats have always got along well and would snuggle together but the puppies are reared from 8/9/10 weeks with my cats.

I honestly think, in your situation, you would be better off with another dog/puppy.

She does like to chase squirrels, but isn't a breed with a huge prey drive. Out and about she has chased cats if they ran. If the cat doesn't run she backs off very quickly. I am confident that if we bought a cat ( or likely a kitten I suppose) into the house she would be fine after she got over her nerves. She doesn't have an aggressive bone her body. Next door have house cats and they were sniffing each other under the garden gate in the summer. My dog was curious but not excitable or aggressive so that gives me hope!

Talk to a rescue - some will have cats that they know are ok with dogs.

No, if they start together then fine but at this stage and the fact she chases them is very unfair in the cat.

My cats were raised with dogs but I've seen "well behaved" dogs make my cats miserable when here.

I wish there was a way I could test her with a cat. Would a re-homing centre do this or would it be just a no no of the dog hadn't lived with a cat before?
I would definitely like to rehome a cat if possible as then won't have to deal with the kitten stage which I'm assuming is just as bad as the puppy stage! However I think the dog may be much more accepting of a playful kitten who has no fear of the dog from the start.

I wouldn't have anything to do with a rescue that placed a cat with a dog that chased. The poor cat has little protection and where can they escape to? I don't think you are appreciating the stress on the poor cat.

Go get a dog if you're determined. A poor cat will run when they can if chased. Chasing squirrels is also very concerning and is prey driven

Yes ok fair enough! I don't want to bring in a cat that will end up being stressed and miserable. I do think my dog would be fine in the house with a cat - but I don't know that 100% and wouldn't want to put a poor cat through that stress. I guess another dog would be safer!

Totally unfair on a cat to use it as a plaything for a dog! Our dog chased cats and he was a utility breed. They moved and he chased. We occasionally had a cat come into our large garden. It’s utterly unfair on the cat and definitely a rescue one that’s already had a bad time! Honestly a cat is not a companion for a dog. Think again. If your dog is bored, you, as its owner, need to help your dog by providing more stimulation yourself and not use another animal to do it.

"but I worry that with a busy home life with 2 children, she doesn't get the attention she deserves"

So possibly not very sensible to add more responsibility to the picture which could easily take more time away from the dog.

This decision could go so wrong. Put the time that you would put into a cat into your existing dog. The dog would much prefer that

Yes you're right of course. I do need to do more. My dog doesn't show that she's 'bored' as such - she calm in the house and doesn't destroy things or is badly behaved at all - just snoozes most of the day if no one is interacting with her. It's me who just thinks "she must be bored"! I think she would love a playmate and clearly a dog is the better, safer choice!

Your dog seems perfectly happy from the way you describe her. You’re home most of the time, she has regular walks and enjoys a good snooze. It seems to me that there’s no pressing need to get her a four-legged companion.

Then interact with her more! Organise doggie day care or a regular walker.

I appreciate you are trying to enrich life for your dog. But additional pets isn't the answer in a busy home. All you are doing is adding extra bored pets.

You know this because you had the sense to question it.

Thank you for saying that. Maybe that does mean that she's fine as she is x I'm not desperate for another pet by any means!

Thank you for your time in replying to my post. All the responses have reassured me that I'm not doing my dog a disservice by not giving her an animal playmate. It may make all our lives worse. So prob no point in disrupting the status quo when it's all going so well .

I think it's risky, my 15 year old cat hates our dog and it becomes hard work keeping him from stalking her. You could easily end up with a stressful situation where you are having to try and give them both a happy life while keeping them apart.

Yes this is absolutely what I don't want to happen! It must be very difficult for you keeping them apart all the time .

I just feel sorry for the dog, she ends up trapped in rooms sometimes because the cat won't let her past. The dog is a German Shepherd so in no way small but the cat has turned into a complete tyrant in his old age.
We have a good routine now so things are pretty easy and they both have a nice life but I wouldn't get another cat after he has gone, just for my own sanity.

Your dog sounds perfectly content to me - nice walks and lots of snoozing is exactly the way a happy dog should behave.

I think it's more they co exist and like that the other one is there rather than being playmates! My cats like my dogs more than vice versa.
Your dog may well resent whatever attention he gets being divided if a new pet arrives.

Our first dog started to chase our three cats. Our resolution was to get a feisty kitten who stood up to him. The kitten and the dog became devoted pals, but I cannot stress enough, she was a really stroppy cat who totally flummoxed our dog by sleeping on him and climbing all over him. Bill was a very quiet dog and just let her do this, I think many dogs would have objected. He did stop chasing our other cats too. However, to him cats we didn’t own weren’t off limits. He may have just accepted our cats into his ‘pack’.

Regards rescue centres, with our second dog Daisy, we asked if Daisy was good with cats as we still had Libby. They swore she was. On introduction, Libby swiped Daisy’s nose and Daisy gave chase. They divided up the house and no amount of training solved the issue.

Our current dog was fine with cats, then one day they became interesting. Now he goes nuts even if one of the two cats in our street walk by our window.
A behaviourist told us that dogs rehearse self satisfying behaviour until they are good at it and have found out how enjoyable it is. I think our first dog basically hadn’t chased cats enough for it to be a fun habit. We got him as a pup from someone who couldn’t cope with him (he ate three of our sofas, he was a chewer🤦🏼‍♀️). Daisy we got at two from a rescue, she obviously had got the chasing bug.
Spencer, we think was poorly socialised and that may explain the initial lack of interest. But they all basically enjoyed/enjoyed to some extent, chasing furry creatures that move quickly.

It depends on the cat as well as the dog. One of our cats, in Bill’s era responded to being chased by ambushing Bill and tearing an eyelid. However, Fred was quite a cat. I think when they made him they broke the mould.

My current cat has lived with 7 dogs (a mix of ours and fosters) she’s actively liked 2. The others she tolerated fine, but didn’t ever interact with them.

She likes one of our current ones and not the other, the one she likes… she’ll come say hello to him once or twice a day, she’ll lie next to him, she wouldn’t play with him and I don’t think he benefits in any real way from her liking him.

she’s fairly playful and interactive with humans, but dog play isn’t how she plays.

previous cat used to pretend the dogs didn’t exist 🤣

So no, I wouldn’t get a cat hoping it’ll be entertainment for a dog.

Thank you all. Your responses are very much appreciated. I won't get a cat! (And probably won't get another dog either!)

Our dog desperately wanted to be friends with the cat but the cat hated the dog and spent all her time avoiding her, and would just hiss at her if the dog came near. It wasn't a good combination in our experience.