New Rescue cat and family dog

[newcatmam]

I lost my darling cat a few years ago and have been desperate to get another cat since then. So we have adopted a lovely young male cat from the local rehoming centre and we collect him at the end of the week. We have a small, very friendly dog who has met our relatives cats and other cats on the street when he's out for a walk and he doesnt even acknowledge them. He has no interest at all but I'm a bit worried about how he is going to react to a new pet in his house.

We have left the dog's blanket at the rescue centre and brought the cats blanket home with us so they both know each others scent before they meet hoping this will make them less nervous. We are setting up a safe space for the cat in our bedroom with his food, litter tray etc in there for the first few days and will introduce them slowly once they are both settled. Is there anything else I need to consider please? Any advice gratefully accepted.

OK so I have some calming spray now for the car journey home and for his bedding and the cat tree so he knows hes safe, also got some for the dog in case he gets boisterous when he's introduced. Anything else?

Keep the dog on a lead the first few times you introduce them. Make sure it is somewhere the cat can retreat to that the dog can't get to.
I'd try and keep the dogs attention on you, give some treats & fuss them so it's all very positive associations.

You sound very well prepared @newcatmam , do you know if the cat has lived with a dog in the past? Otherwise it sounds like you have done as much as you can to get prepared. Are you following the usual advice of keeping the cat in a room for a while, and then gradually introducing the dog?
Good luck and keep us posted!

Make sure that the cat has somewhere safe to go away from the dog , you are worried about your dog not liking the cat but the cat may not like the dog ! They have to be able to escape from each other and feel safe from each other , don't leave them alone together for a very long time , until you are 100 per cent sure they won't hurt each other , this may be as long as two years so you will need to be very patient .

Also , if you let the cat out it may not come back if it's afraid of the dog so beware !

Assume the rescue said he was ok with dogs with the blankets at the centre so that's really good

all I’d say is take it slow. Let the cat settle in first and I’d say weeks not days before introducing the dog and it should be fine

Yes the rescue centre said the cat can live with a friendly dog, we were looking for a dog savvy cat and would never put a cat through that torment, or the dog for that matter.

@LouKelly I do say in my original post that we have set up a safe space for the cat, in fact he now has a few safe spaces for him to go to if he pleases.

I collected the cat over the weekend, had the quiet room set up for him with his litter, food, hiding box, bed etc in it. I let him out of his carrier and he purred immediately which was lovely. I left him to it with a licky mat and checked on him a few time. He then started scratching at the bedroom door to be out so i left the door open a bit and he had a look around the upstairs of the house and then met the dog, they were both curious but wary and kept a distance from each other. He then spent the rest of the day sat on his (massive) cat tree watching everything going on in the living room. He had his dinner and tea and used his litter tray.

I spoke to the rescue centre on the phone the next day and they said he had a lot of confidence and weren't surprised he'd taken it all in his stride.

He really had made himself right at home and its like he's been here forever. They are both still wary of each other but they are getting closer and sniffing each other and are also taking an interest in what the other one is doing.

I think we've been quite lucky with them both to be honest, its unusual for 2 rescues to be ok this early on. And no, he is not going outside of the house anytime soon. I have an air lock situation between the back door and the living room door so the dog can go out in the garden without the cat being able to get out too. The cat also has a collar and is chipped just in case he does find a way out.

Oh what good news @newcatmam ! Sounds like it could not have gone more smoothly!
Only thing missing....cat tax..which can include a dog supplement in this case...