Training my dog to leave the cat alone

[animalgirl2010]

I was wondering if anyone on here has had any success with training a dog to not attack cats? And how you have done it? I have a pit mix rescue I have had for about 2 years I am about to move and I want the dog to be able to join us in the new house with my cat. She has killed chickens before and if she spots a cat outside there is no way to get her attention she focuses it all on the cat and barks and whines to chase it. Is there anyway to get her to change at this age or should I try to re home her with someone without cats? thanks

 

[Whispering Winds]

Maybe some more experienced dog owner/trainer might know, but every dog I have ever known in my life, and i have known dozens, have never been able to stop with the hating cats, have to chase the cat, must have cat routine! Hope someone else will blow me out of the water on this one.

 

[:D chicken]

Hi well i hope they havent hurt each other yet and i have never had a cat and my dog was a wimp and was actually afraid of cats...

but if u wanted to train the dog i would keep it on a leash and when it tries to leap at the cat restrain it and force it to sit and say BAD *insert dogs name here* if its what it takes hit it on its nose gently but so it pays attention to u
Hope this works! Bye

 

[Rolsjo]

Well, again, this will not be much help but our cat trained the dog not to chase him. For the first few months we had both animals our dog had a very scratched up nose. Our dog will still chase the cat, but the cat tells her when he has had enough. They are good friends now and even sleep together in her dog kennel.

 

[thebritt]

The first step is to get the dog to focus on YOU. This is done by holding a small piece of a very SPECIAL treat close to its nose while it is sitting next to you (no cat present), and bringing the treat up to YOUR face while saying, "LOOK". The dog will follow the treat's movement up to your face, hence LOOKing at YOU. Then it's "GOOD BOY", and he gets the treat. Repeat several times until you say, "LOOK", without luring him to look at you, but he does anyway. Then, "GOOD BOY!" and the treat. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE! Every day. It has to be ingrained into his mind to LOOK at you. Once this is accomplished, you can get him to sit, stay, down, etc. Nothing can happen, as you know, without first getting his attention. Once you are confident you can always get his attention, you can take him (LEASHED) on a walk - with treats handy - and practice teaching him that when he sees a cat (or whatever he might want to chase), he gets a treat for looking at YOU. You'll need to be alert on these walks so you can ANTICIPATE his reaction. It's best if YOU see the cat first, so you can get his attention right away. That way, you'll be set up to succeed.
Has he been to dog school? The more experiences you two have together where he is paying attention to YOU in a social and distracting environment, the better!
This is only the beginning, but definately the most important first step. GOOD LUCK TO YOU! (for the cat's sake!)

 

[animalgirl2010]

I bought a clicker yesterday to help with training and tried the watch me it worked amazing he had it down within about 20 minutes everytime I said it she would look but then I went and got my kitten itsy (she is the only cat) I put her in a pet carrier for her safety and then tried to get the dog to focus on me. Probably my fault and should have waited untill she was more used to the command but that didnt go so well she was only focused on what was in the carrier and how to get it out. When we first brought her home from the shelter she was determined to kill my other dog like she is the cats but we kept them seperated and finally she accepted the other dog. I hope with the training techniques mentioned I can get her used to the kitten. If anyone has any other thing they used that worked I would love to hear it.

 

[thebritt]

As I suggested in my first response, I would wait and PRACTICE until the dog REALLY has it before introducing the cat. I truly think there's hope, but I can't overstrees how important it is for the dog to obey you - hence the suggestion of dog school if you have time before you move.
When you move, will the dog and cat be in the same vehicle? If so, I would think that constant close quarters might help breed familiarity.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

i'm agreeing with thebritt - you need to get that dog trained and to understand that YOU are the boss. do you watch the dog whisperer? you can see it on line at hulu. watch how he dominates the dogs (not in a mean way) and is the boss of them. you will be in big trouble with that dog if you cant get a handle on her. you should be able to get your dog to stop and come back to you even if she is at a dead run at prey. if not - you need to work with that dog EVERY SINGLE day until you can.

do this:
* make your dog sit in a submissive state before you let her out
* you go out FIRST when ever you leave - dont let her push past you
* give her a job around the house
* make her sit quietly, look AT you, tell her she is a good dog, THEN feed her
* make her learn all her commands
* make her learn what is "yours" - which is everything. make sure she knows the cat is yours ("thats mine")
* you should be able to stand over her - one foot on each side - and she should not squirm around
* she should lay down and show you her belly when you tell her
* exhaust her with exercise every day. a tired dog is a good dog.

dont do this:
* let her 'rough house' with you - especially tug of war with anything. ever.
* drag or pull you on a leash
* "mouth" or play bite on you
* jump up on you
* be at any time on the same physical level with you - dont roll around on the ground with her, dont let her get up on the couch - you should always be above her

our dogs know that all the cats are 'ours' and they may not chase or play rough with them. when we get a new kitten we make the dogs lay down, show their belly, then we show the kitten to the dog telling him 'this is mine'... a tiny kitty crawling around a 100+ shepherd is pretty darn funny. however i would not recommend this unless you have control over your dog. do not underestimate your dog's prey response to anything small, fuzzy, and runs.

good luck

 

[gaited horse]

get a feral cat with kittens let dog try to corner her or go by her babies the dog will be in for a big surprise.

 

[thebritt]

Quote:
However, you may not only be cleaning up a bloody mess, the dog will have caught it's prey and reenforced the chase/kill drive! Not to mention the cruel trauma to any survivors!
Certainly, gaitedhorse was "joking".