red nose pit/boxer breed

Question
We just got her and the the previous owner told us she was good with cats. I also have a male chihuua/shitzu mix and she is ok with him but both my male and female cat have an issue with her. Why is this and how do I make them tolerate each other.

Answer
Hi Cindy,

You didn't say how recently you brought home the new dog.

The basic answer as to why your cats don't get along with the new dog is because you can't predict how animals are going to react to a new pet, or change in general. You can't "make" your cats do anything, you can only be patient with them.

You're really lucky that the new dog truly is good with cats as you were told.

Mostly, time will be the cure in having your cats get along with your new dog. You can't rush it. As long as the new dog isn't chasing the cats, you can just let all your animals come to their own level of comfort. Things should settle within 2-3 months. That's a worst case scenario, I think it will be sooner, since your cats are already used to living with a dog.

In my experience, the cats will probably do a lot of hissing and running away, and they may only come out at night to feed, at least in the beginning. But the situation WILL improve!

The key to successful cat-dog introductions is to expose them to one another gradually under controlled conditions. You want to avoid creating situations where the cat runs away and the dog's prey-chase instinct is activated. If the new dog simply is ignoring the cats, that's great.

Trust me, it will take time but your cats will get used to this upheaval in their lives, the dust will settle, and everyone involved will come out of this unscathed.

Best of luck,
Patti