cat attacks dog

Question
My male cat is one year old now, I got him as a kitten, he fell in love with my brothers dog right away. But now he attacks the dog for no reason, for what I can see. How do I correct this problem?

Answer
Jonathan,

Are both animals neutered? That corrects a LOT of behavior problems.

Is your brother's dog an elderly dog? If he is, it's morbid, but it has been proven that cats can sense when something is wrong with another animal, or an impending death, and will attack that animal.

The cat may also be reacting to a smell that is on the dog. Cats go by smell and not by sight, so if the dog smells different than he used to, the cat may think that he is another dog and is defending his territory from this new 'intruder'. If that is it, then the dog will replace his scent as he grooms. Or your brother may want to try giving the dog a bath and see if that helps your cat's issue with him.

Tabbi