[MamaCat1976]

Good morning! I joined because at the end of March we will have a lovely new GSD welcomed into our home. She was born a week ago today. Does anyone here have cats and a GSD? I know with proper socialization they should get along fine but does anyone here actually have both? We have several cats and I want to make sure I raise her around them properly. Any tips or advice?

 

[ksotto333]

It will depend on your cats and the puppie's character and prey drive. Our pup is 13 weeks, we have 2 cats that grew up with our older girls and are great friends with them. One cat is not excited about having a puppy here and gets all ouchy with her. The other cat gets along fine with her. We don't allow chasing of the cats.

 

[MamaCat1976]

It will depend on your cats and the puppie's character and prey drive. Our pup is 13 weeks, we have 2 cats that grew up with our older girls and are great friends with them. One cat is not excited about having a puppy here and gets all ouchy with her. The other cat gets along fine with her. We don't allow chasing of the cats.

That makes me feel better! We have other dogs as well and the cats are pretty ok with them so they are used to dogs/puppies. Only one hates dogs, but she always has, no matter the size. The owners of previous pups from the same parents, the ones that have cats, said theirs are good with their cats. I guess I'll just make sure that every day she has cats near her, interacting with her, so she is completely used to them as she grows up. I won't allow chasing, either. And this is so important to me because I had 2 dogs that killed several of our kitties before, and that was traumatic for me. I want to avoid that at all costs with our little addition.

 

[Honey Maid]

My cats had never seen a puppy, but they had grown up since kittenhood with dogs. The puppy was curious, the old cat just looked at him, the younger was leery. We just stayed on the puppy, lot's of "No, leave the cat alone", and getting his focus off the cat. Finally the older cat got tired of some of his antics and took some swats at him, the younger would hiss, then jump onto something high. The puppy is pretty good now, at 15 weeks old, but we still keep an eye on him. It just takes time. Luckily my cats did not run from him, just sat and looked at him, put up with some of his antics.

 

[MamaCat1976]

We also heard that females are easier to train so we opted or a female. We have 12 cats so she will have plenty of exposure

 

[Fodder]

...try typing “cats” in the sites search bar, grab a cup of tea and get comfortable. popular topic.

 

[MamaCat1976]

...try typing “cats” in the sites search bar, grab a cup of tea and get comfortable. popular topic.

Ha, will do! Should be interesting

 

[_Lena_]

I had two cats before Kaito showed up. One just hides when he shows up, still, it's been almost 4 weeks. The other has no interest in associating with him, but when he confronts her, she scares the crap out of him and he backs off. She actually wouldn't let him walk all the way up the stairs a few days ago. Growled, yowled and hissed. He almost fell down the stairs running away from her.

I'd love to figure out a way to get them to get along.

 

[finn'smom]

The cat was in my home before the dog... puppy needed lots of reminding that the cat's head did not go in his mouth just like a tennis ball. I was consistent, cat has a custom built tree to an area the dog cannot access. I didn't allow play between them, mostly because Finn would get wound up too easily. They are buddies now, and if anything I find myself protecting the dog from the cat.. she is happy to run him out of anywhere she thinks should be hers. Side note, he doesn't tolerate other cats outside of the home - they look like furry treats to him as soon as they bolt! His cat is just fine by him though.

 

[WNGD]

this is so important to me because I had 2 dogs that killed several of our kitties before, and that was traumatic for me. I want to avoid that at all costs with our little addition.

And yet you decided to get a German Shepherd?
It can work but they are anything but a guarantee to get along with cats.

 

[dogfaeries]

It took some work, but Scarlet is good with the kitties. My 5 month old Nora is still learning, but we all can be on the couch at the same time without a ruckus.


Nora and Pi

Scarlet & Mimi

 

[Catrinka]

Our 11 year old cat Goosey loved my last GSD, a big 110 lb boy. They'd play and nap together. She was devastated when he died two years ago (as we all were). So I was hoping that our new puppy, Luca, would eventually fill that void for her. Unfortunately, she's less than thrilled with him. He's an over-sized 6 month old pup now and they've settled into a relationship where he pesters her and she tolerates him. I'm hoping that it'll continue to improve, hopefully to the point where they're friends.

The main things we did to get them off to a good start was to add interior dog gates with kitty doors so he didn't have free run of the entire house and she could visit him (via the kitty doors in the gates) but could easily get away safely to the parts of the house he was blocked off from. We also never allowed him to chase her (which involved keeping him on a leash in the house in the early weeks). We fed them treats and meals on opposite sides of the gates to get them used to each other. He got occasional swats from her when he was little which seemed to earn her some respect from him.

Here's a pic of them outside when he was a little over 4 months old.

 

[Honey Maid]

It's quite doable!

IMG_1505.JPG

• Honey Maid
• 2 mo ago

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• Honey Maid
• 2 mo ago

 

[faith5]

I think it's possible. I've raised 2 GSDs, a GSDxChow, and a couple other mixes with cats. As long as I start with a puppy, I've never had a problem. The puppy is the newcomer and the cats teach him his place. I've noticed that when our cats become acquainted with the puppy first, they don't bother to run from him even when he grows into a large dog; and the dog isn't really interested in chasing something that doesn't run--and that will scratch if provoked.

When starting with adult dogs, a lot depends on the cat. I have one cat who is so conceited & confident he would never dream of running from a dog. He seems to tame the dogs himself, even ones who have never been around a cat. I have another cat who is skittish and runs from everything--which is a sore temptation to dogs who didn't grow up with him.

Pic below is one of our cats snuggling on the front porch with our old GSDxChow.

 

[Justine.Jansone]

Good morning! I joined because at the end of March we will have a lovely new GSD welcomed into our home. She was born a week ago today. Does anyone here have cats and a GSD? I know with proper socialization they should get along fine but does anyone here actually have both? We have several cats and I want to make sure I raise her around them properly. Any tips or advice?

We have a 9month old Malinois X (GSDxMalinois) and a 5 year old cat. Pup wasnt interested in the cat at all during the first month. then he started being interested but the cat absolutely hates dogs We are now 7 months in and the cat will tolerate the dog, and sometimes even offer kisses (headbutts) but he will tell the dog when enough is enough.

dont try to push the cat to socialise with the dog, cats need more time to get used to them. when you bring the pup home if you can pop it in a crate or a box, so the cat can investigate. make sure the cat has a safe space/room that the dog cannot get into.

after some weeks we started coaxing them closer together with treats. pup distracted with treats does not care about the cat at all and the cat really loved chicken. i used my body as a barrier between them lol Also make sure to devote some time to the cat to give cuddles etc so they dont feel left out.

the pic was taken in October, and we got the puppy in July. that was a first! and lasted a few seconds

 

[Rionel]

I have three cats and three dogs. My 5 yr male Collie is laid back 90% of the time, but hates the cats. My GS female is about 2-1/2 yrs, has off the chart drives, but is the most social with the cats. One cat (12 yrs) was the most antisocial cat I've ever seen (I won't even handle her), and two are bobtail kittens. Once we introduced the two bobtails, the old cat and the GS even get along now, and the kittens are about a year old, and play with the GS constantly. I have not figured any of this out but I'll take it : )