# New 2yr old gsd and 10yr old cat



## jukesdukes (Sep 29, 2013)

Hey, I got a gsd (now 2) from a breeder in December. He wags his tail and barks at my cat (gsd is on leash) but cat warns and swipes and then gsd goes more into, "there's an enemy intruder in the house," mode. Not sure where to go from here. Cat was ok with retreiver who paid her no attention but had previously lived with my other two gsds (who have since passed) who made her life miserable. Now i feel like I have a dog with potential but sometimes he scares me. Not sure if i should let him get her in a corner and get swatted in the nose or if this would egg him on... any thoughts/experience on what my next step should be? He respects the cat unless she offends him....he also got angry at his crate once when his collar accidantally pulled one of the metal tabs and he didnt understand what had temporarily grabbed him. Also...I am having him neutered this weekend. Not sure of that will calm him.


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## Chip18 (Jan 11, 2014)

No it won't make a difference and take the collar off in the crate. You cat plan kinda "sucks!" If you want a ticked off skittish cat for life, go with that plan. If you want to do a bit better see here:

http://www.germanshepherds.com/foru...-needs-some-advice-suggestions-them-cats.html

I offer advise in there but bottom line in Cat V Dog relationships there is only one rule,
the dog never chases the cat! 

Train the "Place Command" and ignore the cat, no free roaming for the dog in the house. The dog should be in his Crate or in Place, when he is in the house. And you need to correct the dog for unwanted advances towards the cat, use a "Bonker" in it's that thread.


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## kaslkaos (Jan 15, 2003)

Agree about 'dog does not chase the cat', ever (or as close to ever as you can get), mistakes happen, so getting things in order soon is very important.
I use leashes, doors, baby gates, separate rooms, crates, whatever it takes to maintain the rule from day #1. My current dog is cat socialized, and passed the cat test with flying colours, as in 'cat, what cat, nothing of interest here' but after realizing we had scared skittish cats, well..... that was another thing, so even with a 'good with cats' dog, you may need to intervene--things change.
With a little dedication to the above, all will be well.
For the high drive, or cat aggressive dog, or a dog that has been allowed to practice these behaviours (chasing the cat, barking at the cat, intense staring at the cat), I suggest Leerburgs outline. Leerburg | Introducing Dogs or Puppies into Homes with Cats
For nice dogs that are pretty good with cats, all you need is this:Introducing Dogs and Cats | Jackson Galaxy
The Jackson Galaxy link is important, as it speaks of the cats needs. Stressed cats are awful to live with, so it's pretty important to maintain their feeling of safety, not just the reality.
Leerburg's is good as it offers instructions to solve high prey drive dogs. All positive methods suggest rehoming the dog in that case.
It sounds like your dog is somewhere in the middle. I'm big on using treats to start with. As in 'click and treat' for not looking at the cat, for looking away from the cat, for non-reaction with the cat in the room, etc... and for some dogs, that's all you need do. My current guy (already socialized to cats) got that, plus a few 'uh uh's' (verbal correction) and three weeks of leash only in the presence of cats. 
Dynamo, my previous wannabe cat killer shepherd, got all of the above, plus leash corrections to set things straight.
But yes, no chase. My only exception to that would be in cases where the dog is being very soft and gentle and the cat is very very happy about it (obvious mutual play) and then I would still supervise.
Basically, all of your pets should feel safe in their own home. The time you put in now will equal years of peace later. Hope that helps.


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## maxtmill (Dec 28, 2010)

I have had cats with dogs, and I always provided an escape route or tall cat tree where the cats could escape if need be. In other words, I never had an area of my house where the cats would be trapped with my dogs. My one cat became great friends with my husband's Beagle. One of my other cats would put up with our Great Dane sniffing him, and when he had had enough, he would slap the big guy across the muzzle (no claws out), then walk away. My third cat wanted nothing to do with the dogs, and stayed high up on the cat tree, and just nap or watch. Every situation can vary widely. You just never want to place your cats or dogs in a position to fail or be mauled. The Leerburg articles are helpful, as always.


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## jukesdukes (Sep 29, 2013)

Thank you, I will check out the links. I have the cat in a room with a baby gate and I think I am going to put a bed and some furniture in there so I can move the baby gate to where it just blocks the bathroom so she can get under the bed but be able to run safely to the bathroom but still have chance encounters with the dog from under the bed from time to time. Right now they are separated enough that I have to create the encounters and I'd like to get a little more of a coexisting (with safe spots) zone.


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