Our cat won’t come downstairs after new puppy

Roselilly36 · 20/09/2021 10:26

Your cat sounds very upset. It’s early days so hopefully, your cat may adjust.

Does your cat go out? I hate to say it as you are upset enough, but sadly sometimes cats will find a new home if they are unhappy..

I had two cats before we had our dog, and a kitten after him, they all got on really well had a lovely relationship after a hissy start.

I hope the situation settles down, good luck.

NoSquirrels · 20/09/2021 10:29

Give it time and absolutely don’t force it. Sitting on the stairs and watching is fine, it’s good - let the cat observe.

Make sure they have litter trays and food and water upstairs, that there is a secure way out (if they go outside) that the puppy can’t access.

Get a Feliway plug-in too.

NoSquirrels · 20/09/2021 10:32

If the cat will be in the room with the puppy that’s also good - just make sure the cat can escape freely any time they like, and the puppy is contained - in a crate, held by you etc.

Extra Dreamies when they have a nice interaction helps too!

One of my cats took about 3 days to be OK with the dog, another took well over 3 months! It takes time but it’s OK. Extra fuss for the cat where the puppy is not around and try not to worry.

ikeepseeingit · 20/09/2021 10:38

Pop a gate on the stairs. Feed the cat treats (even salmon or tuna) as he watches the puppy. Have two people feeding treats from behind a gate, one for puppy and one for cat. As the cat gets more comfortable eating it’s favourite treats at the top of the stairs, you can move the treats/tuna slowly down each step. Once you have got to a point of being able to feed them side by side at the gate, you can then open the gate in intervals and feed, closing when they are not eating. Eventually the hope is that your cat has enough association with good things around the puppy, that he gains some confidence to go over the gate himself. The process could take days, weeks or just hours, it really depends on the animals. I second the suggestions for cat litter/water and food upstairs for now and a feliway plug in. They will get there with time OP it’s just a big adjustment him x

Coronawireless · 20/09/2021 10:42

@Jinnybean

I feel so sad for my sweetheart. She hasn’t hissed or anything at the puppy that came home on Friday but she will stand and watch her, try and sniff her and the min Jinny moves she bolts upstairs. She will sit on the stairs and watch her. But she’s not ate much :( I put her food upstairs then bought it down at bedtime as she sleeps in the kitchen.

I don’t know what to do :(

We’re 6 weeks ahead of you on this! Cat stopped eating, couldn’t use some of his usual places, became very unsettled etc. Unfortunately for us, coincidentally cat was very unwell following an infected bite and abscess. He associated this with the arrival of the puppy and one night he went for him…like, really tried to kill him! Pup and children were terrified - awful evening, we thought we’d have to re-home. Since then things have settled a bit - not perfect and we never leave them unsupervised but it’s slowly getting better. What helped was banning pup from upstairs - that is kitty’s sole safe territory. We moved kitty’s food up there too. Pup and kit have separate entrances to house for now. And both get lots of cuddles, treats and attention when they are both in same room. Kitty has swiped at pup a couple more times - but not as aggressively as that awful night - and pup now knows to steer clear. As a result, Kitty is less frightened of him and therefore less aggressive etc and so the cycle is winding down. Still wouldn’t leave them unsupervised but hopefully we’ll get there.

RandomMess · 20/09/2021 11:11

We're 6 weeks in to an adult cat moving in it's still such early days.

Our other cat is the boss but new cat has ounces and attacked our dog a few times seems to around food so we've changed our habits and their feeding routines.

New cat desperately wants to play with dog who unsurprisingly keeps a safe distance!!

Soubriquet · 20/09/2021 11:15

My cat actually moved out for a year when we got a dog

She had to have everything in the shed outside as she would not come in the house at all.

We moved house and now she doesn’t go out of the house. She has all of the upstairs to herself and the dogs have the downstairs. She isn’t bothered by them but they do chase her when they get a chance

Original poster

Jinnybean · 20/09/2021 16:05

She goes out but not a lot tbh, and when has been out she has came home at normal time thankfully! X

OP posts:

NatashaRf · 20/09/2021 16:16

You need the puppy and the cat to learn the cat is the boss.

So yes - lots of treats for the cat when it's near the puppy and make sure the puppy knows not to chase the cat etc.

Some of these replies about existing cats having to live in the shed/other rooms for a new dog are heartbreaking. Poor cats.

Whichever pet was there first shouldn't lose the life they knew fo the sake of a new pet.

In our experience once a hierarchy is established (existing cat as Queen/king) then it's a peaceful existence. Be in introducing a puppy or a new kitten.

Will be some scratches and hissing along the way I'm sure. But it's easier with dogs as they're less territorial than cats and easier to train.

Original poster

Jinnybean · 20/09/2021 17:10

She seems so distant with us. If we pick her up (which she used to love!) she just growls at us. It’s horrible :(

OP posts:

Coronawireless · 20/09/2021 18:58

I know it’s not good that our cat had to move upstairs for a while. We didn’t make him by the way. He likes it up there anyway so we just made sure it was completely pup-free. He was sick (which we didn’t know until a few days after pup arrived) so very stressed and no, we couldn’t just leave them to have “a few scratches”. It is getting better - and yes, Kitty is the boss which is as it should be and a battle he is chuffed to have won.

CatzNDogz · 20/09/2021 22:36

@Jinnybean

She seems so distant with us. If we pick her up (which she used to love!) she just growls at us. It’s horrible :(

This cat was absolutely OUTRAGED by the dog’s presence - full-on hissy fit of months, and watching on the stairs for longer than that.

But then the dog taught her to beg.

This is both of their “I’m patiently expecting chicken” faces.

Don’t give up! Early days are just that - early days

Our cat won’t come downstairs after new puppy

Coronawireless · 20/09/2021 23:29

Ha ha that photo is my two!! A Goldie and a dark grey tabby.

Coronawireless · 20/09/2021 23:30

Or no, that’s not a Goldie? But looks very like my one.

CatzNDogz · 20/09/2021 23:55

@Coronawireless

Or no, that’s not a Goldie? But looks very like my one.

Some sorta Labrador-ish cross - a rescue, so who knows? Tabby is also a rescue - temperamentally they are chalk and cheese but are both food-obsessed in a very controlled way, so that’s a typical sight.

icedcoffees · 21/09/2021 06:14

I find it really sad that cats moved out/upstairs due to the arrival of a dog into the home.

We have three cats and a dog and while we had the odd hiss and swat at first, they were fine within a few days and all slept together on the sofa and the bed - closely supervised but there was no real reason for us to except that we didn't want the puppy to have any accidents!

Have you done positive association (treats for both dog and cat) and used baby gates so the cat can have a room that's safe from the dog for food and toileting?

Coronawireless · 22/09/2021 08:06

@icedcoffees

I find it really sad that cats moved out/upstairs due to the arrival of a dog into the home.

We have three cats and a dog and while we had the odd hiss and swat at first, they were fine within a few days and all slept together on the sofa and the bed - closely supervised but there was no real reason for us to except that we didn't want the puppy to have any accidents!

Have you done positive association (treats for both dog and cat) and used baby gates so the cat can have a room that's safe from the dog for food and toileting?

Yes we have. It’s great that your cats had an odd hiss and then snuggled up to the puppy within days. That didn’t happen in our house nor, clearly, in OPs. It was the cats, not the owners, who made the decision to stay away for a while. Our cat goes out at night and has been in fights with other cats and probably foxes. I imagine that is part of the reason he is so naturally wary of a dog in the house. The pup was very boisterous and could have unintentionally hurt him - and he could have hurt the pup. It’s been sad to see but cat is doing what’s right for him. It’s all his choice and we give him the space and plenty of options to choose.