Fighting like cats and dogs

[bmac]

Sadly, we have not had the success that others here have enjoyed. Have 2 house cats (litter mates) that we got as kittens about 5 years ago. They have had the run of the house until this past December when we brought home our family Christmas gifts - 2 Shih Tzu (?SP) puppies.

Despite our best efforts, the cats will not tolerate the puppies. I guess the cats are too old to appreciate the chasing games that the pups want to play. The cats have been declawed, so there is no danger for the pups. But, I'm afraid one (if not both) of my cats would have a stroke were I to force a face-to-face. Not to mention that the cats still have their rear claws and I would probably suffer the most from this exercise.

So (and I am embarrased to admit this), we put up a kiddy gate at our bedroom door. The cats can easily leap over the gate to go in or out of our bedroom. This is where they spend most of the day. We do try to make their life interesting in that their food and litterbox are downstairs. So, the cats have to occassionaly leave their sanctuary to take care of their important duties. They will listen for doggy noises and when things are real quiet, they will venture from the bedroom. Sometimes, we have a face-off. The pups go nuts, the cats freak out and we have a race to the bedroom, sometimes with a few laps through the kitchen, just to make it interesting.

As we kennel the pups at night and whenever we are away from home, the cats do have "safe" times to get out.

My idea to put the cats and pups in the kennel together for a No Holds Barred Texas Cage Match was quickly vetoed by the bride.

Any suggestions?

 

[hazmat]

bmac,

Try them one at a time, The two pups tend to egg each other on & increase the "exitement" level.

You've done the right thing providing a safe haven for the cats. We have the livingroom gated & when kitty has had enough of the 4 month old lab, she retreats.

 

[rancar]

Following story is something I picked up at a Yahoo bulletin board. This is interesting story about dogs and mean spirited owners. In this case the dog has the last laugh. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif
______________________
kabbamonte
by: atomthebomb (76/M/Kanoonga Hills)
Long-Term Sentiment: Strong Buy 06/25/02 10:50 pm
Msg: 24638 of 24768

I have been working since I was 12 picking beans and strawberries at V-7 Produce and getting paid by the weight of the bushel. Most people working today don't know what real work is and they get paid 100X the people who do. Funniest thing though. They had about 15 dogs when I worked there and they had this one dog whos leg got infected from a barb wire cut. Nobody cared about this dog because he ran around the farm stirring things up and running wild around the town of Berwick. Not disciplined or listening to the older folks who ran the place. It got so bad that he chewed his own leg off. After that, nobody would even touch the dog and he hobbled around finding his own food & mice and drinking out of puddles. He loved the farm and his owners, but they didn't love him. I felt for this dog, but I swear I was the only one. Everyone hated this dog with passion because it was such an embarassment to have around. Well, five years later the farming industry had trouble in Iowa and that little farm had to shutdown and sell its assets. They put all their cats and dogs to sleep and the farm turned into empty lot. Here is the craziest part, I drove by 4 summers ago, 8 years later, and I swear to God on my life this is a true story, I saw that same 3 legged dog with another dog and 4 puppies laying under a tree happy as could be in the wild. I hope that answers your question.