How To Get A Dog And Cat To Live Together

Do you want to make your house resemble that of Mr. Jon Arbuckle of the Garfield comic strip, where Garfield, the cat and Odie, the dog co-exist peacefully, to a certain extent? Of course, Garfield is the big boss there with Odie always at the receiving end. In real life though, the playfulness of dogs and cats are not as harmless as in the comic strip. Cats and dogs have been mortal enemies since the time they have been domesticated. Having said that, it is perhaps easier to make your pet kitty and pooch to live together than, say, two of your warring siblings. Ask any parent and they would any day, gladly, exchange the chance to train dogs and cats to live together than to go over the entire process of raising siblings again. One may ask why dogs and cats can’t live together. For that we have to go back to history. Time was when the ancestors of the cat ruled the jungles terrorizing other animals among which there were a considerable species of wolves. As time went by, wolves were domesticated and became the best friends of man and cats also underwent the domestication process and became more humble. But after centuries of domestication the genes of rivalry failed to be suppressed, and so till now we have the eternal enmity to deal with. So, if you are one of those with a dog on your right and a cat on your left, and thinking that “…never the twain shall meet”, then read the article below to learn more on how you can make the two live together.

 

This is the best option and a lot less headache if you want a dog and a cat to live together. When young they are easy to control and also their vicious instinct is not fully developed. You can safely keep the two together and they gradually tend to accept each other.

 

Unfamiliarity breeds dissent and it is especially true for dogs and cats. The introduction process should start a few days in advance. It is better to keep the dog and cat separated until they get used to the smell and sight of each other. Use common toys so that they get used to the scent. Initially they may growl and scratch so it is better not bring them too close together, too soon. Observe when they are calm and then gradually bring them near each other and make sure that you are in control. Let them sniff each other out.

 

Cats are very nimble and they escape at the sight of a dog. So it is better to keep the cat in a room or enclosure so that you can bring the dog over for acclimatization. However, if your dog is hyperactive then it may scare the cat to death. So, before anything, calm the dog. Control any tendencies of the dog to chase the cat.

 

Allow the cat to play with the doggy toys, when the dog is not playing. This will familiarize the dog with the scent of the cat which it will associate with the toys, and so consider the cat harmless. Similarly the cat will also undergo the same catharsis. When they develop a mutual disregard of each other’s presence then you can safely leave the two together.