How to stop my puppy chasing our cats

[Bellamamma]

Bella is 14 weeks old and has started chasing our cats. At first cats would not come near her but as they have become tolerant of her, will sit on back of sofa and watch her. Over the last week I have been giving her a little more freedom in house but cats walked into kitchen and she chased them around the house. I was advised to let the cats give her a warning but this is. It working as they just run away with Bella in hot pursuit. Can you advise me please? I would like to work towards a happy coexistence between my pets. Thank you.

[gizmo001i]

Hi, we have 4 cats and to be honest with you, we have left the cats and Bailey to it. Yes he does chase them at times, but at other times they completely ignore each other. One of our cats seems to like being chased as she will fall down in front of him until he does. Then another likes to box with him, both stood on their hind legs and boxing each other with their front paws. If the cats have enough, then they give him a bop on the nose with their paws (no claws) and he seems to get the message. My view is that when it comes to getting cats and dogs to get along with each other, the worst thing we can do is get involved. Let them sort out the boundaries and things should eventually sort themselves out. Obviously if things start getting dangerous then step in, but there are times when Bailey has a whole cat head in his mouth whilst he noms down on it. In fact we have a cat that puts her head in his mouth on purpose. It's very interesting watching how each cat interacts with Bailey as they all have a completely different relationship with him. But rest assured, the cats are the ones that are in charge of the situation lol. I think the highlight of the relationship is watching Bailey use the scratchpost a habit that he has learnt from the cats. Hope this helps 😀

[sodpot2000]

We had this issue with Buster when he came to us at 14 months old. We already had a cat who had decided several years before to move in and had enjoyed a good relationship with the old dogs. Enter a young hooligan who will chase anything that moves. It was the acquisition of the baby gate that saved the day in the short term. But in the longer term they came to a modus vivendi. Basically, the cat got fed up of being chased after, turned around, hissed, spat and took a haymaker of a left hook at Buster's nose. The point was made, because he was only ever looking for a game and thought that when Billie-Jo ran, she was joining in. With that misunderstanding sorted out and after we had been 'punished' by her spending a night camping in the garden in protest (she chose a very warm, dry night) peace and order returned. Buster will still chase, but since Billie-Jo simply ignores him, having learned that he is no threat, the chase is a short and slow one - more of a procession really!

[LisaL]

My last cocker came to us as a puppy and we had 2 adult Bengal cats. Once the cats realised this fluff monster wasn't scary they soon got the hang of telling him off...sometimes he listened, sometimes he thought it was a bigger game. Pretty soon they were sharing beds and coexisting happily but there was the odd day where war broke out including the day the puppy started humping the cat and then when the cat commandeered the puppies bed and bone and wouldn't let the dog in

They will sort themselves out eventually 

[Londongirl]

It depends on the cat. I can just imagine Bengals giving as good as they get! Whereas my middle-aged nervous-nelly of a cat just scarpers every time she sees Henry. We got a stair gate and put her food upstairs. She basically lives up there now, but seems to have a sixth-sense for when Henry is in crate and comes downstairs then!

If the cat has clear escape routes to a place where the dog can't follow (even if it's on top of some furniture), the cat can dictate the terms of the relationship in safety.

[Pearly]

It depends on the cat. I can just imagine Bengals giving as good as they get! Whereas my middle-aged nervous-nelly of a cat just scarpers every time she sees Henry. We got a stair gate and put her food upstairs. She basically lives up there now, but seems to have a sixth-sense for when Henry is in crate and comes downstairs then!

If the cat has clear escape routes to a place where the dog can't follow (even if it's on top of some furniture), the cat can dictate the terms of the relationship in safety.

Errrrm, nope! My Bengal, I think, enjoys being chased 

It's best to stop the chasing now.  Don't put the cat and your dog in the position that it can become either a learned behaviour or an addictive "rush" that your dog will apply to birds, leaves, sheep, rabbits or pretty much any living critter that moves and breathes..........

On a brighter note, you already know you have a chaser and can deal with it before the first sheep incident!

[Blueberry]

Blue chases our cat, and TheCat (for that is his name) is very stressed.  There has been an increase in indoor scent marking by TheCat, which I am finding very wearing. 
However, TheCat will provoke Blue, by walking past at close quarters, or otherwise drawing attention to himself - not much I can do about that.  If I'm on the spot I can intercept & divert, but it isn't always possible.
TheCat has safe places where Blue cannot go - one downstairs and one upstairs, but he will insist on putting himself in Blue's way.
TheCat is about 8, and moved himself in (uninvited) around 7 years ago, and was Lord of the Manor until last summer! 
I would love to be able to stop Blue from chasing him.

[Bellamamma]

Thanks for your replies. Still confused though. I take the point about sheep as we live in the country. Can I ask those of you who just lt them sort it out among themselves, how did you handle your dog around sheep and other animals.

[TheAdventuresofBarnaby]

We have two live in cats and a couple of regular visitors.

Barnaby our 4 month old WCS does chase them,  but its a game enjoyed by them all. Also as an exuberant demonstration of Cocker love,  he frequently gives them a good wash about the hear.  Tomcat (Mr. G) quite enjoys this attention,  but Miss mini is less keen.  When the cats have had enough they either escape to higher perches or bop him on the nose and its game over.

We've allowed them to play together from day one, and at first it was Barnaby who was at greatest risk.  Now he's outgrown the cats,  is faster and could potentially do them serious harm.  But he now knows his place,  and has a deep respect for the cats,  especially the ginger tom.   

Interestingly the two regular visiting cats are also tolerates but not chased,  whereas if any stranger cats appear in the garden he sees them off in short order.

I agree an earlier post that recommended letting them get on with it without intervention,  that way they'll sort out the status quo fro themselves.....hopefully :-)

[sodpot2000]

Can I ask those of you who just lt them sort it out among themselves, how did you handle your dog around sheep and other animals.

Very short answer. You have a legal obligation to keep your dog on a lead where there is livestock. Doesn't matter whether they are chasers or not. You can be prosecuted for not having your dog on the lead 'or under close control'. See s1 Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953.

I hope that helps as farmers are entitled to shoot dogs that are worrying their sheep.

[ips]

Don't think there is a legal reason to have dog on a lead "under close control" can be at heel.

[sodpot2000]

That's right. Its one or the other. Either on the lead or under close control, which really means walking to heel. Easier on the nerves to just clip the lead on until the next field.

[ips]

You are right easier on the nerves. Unless of course you are 100% sure your dog will not bother sheep, cattle or horses.

[Pearly]

I agree an earlier post that recommended letting them get on with it without intervention,  that way they'll sort out the status quo fro themselves.....hopefully :-)

If the cats have not already put Barnaby in his place and stopped him chasing I would strongly suggest you need to intervene and stop him from doing so.  I appreciate that's easier said than done but a wcs that has learned to chase (anything) will be incredibly hard to bring back to steadiness.  I had hoped my two cats would sort Coral out or that she would get bored with the "game".  Not so, she's now 2 years old and will chase anything that moves - because I've let her do it as a pup.

I cannot trust her off a lead around livestock and she will take a very long time (if ever) to be steady to the flush - frankly I fear I may have ruined her  please do learn from my mistake. 

4 months may seem young but chasing is a learned behaviour and the hormone 'dopamine' that they experience at the time is not only very addictive but gives a dog far more pleasure than any treat or reward - making it nigh on impossible to break the habit later on.......

[Patp]

I have a chaser too.  See a good trainer that understands the breed (gun dog trainers brilliant but you have to be very committed)

I wish I knew then what I know now.  Early training would be so different x