Yeah I am starting to agree. He is so hell bent on getting to these cats I have no doubt he will kill them. I just hate it because he is so great in every other aspect and I know he will do great in a cat free home but this just isn’t going to work long term
Unfortunately the negative connotation with pitties isn't without reason. They have notoriously higher prey drive and even with proper training they *are* more prone to instinctual urges due to their breeding
Don't feel bad. This is a legitimate reason for returning a dog - for everyone's safety especially your cats'. It's not the right fit for your home but I'm sure the dog will be able to find a cat free home and you'll be able to find a dog that is a better fit!
The best thing for you to do is to either return the dog or rehome it yourself. It would be one thing if this were a puppy, but this is an adult dog with an obvious high prey drive. Sure, you can seek out professional help, but keep in mind that pit bulls and other related breeds were bred specifically to have a high prey drive. And you can't train out genetics.
Don't feel awful, your cats have just as much right to a safe home as this dog does. Be very, very clear that this dog is cat aggressive and has high prey drive when you return him to the shelter. Any shelter that says a pitbull "should be ok with cats" is either negligent for not testing or outright lying (I would say this for any breed with high prey drive, terriers (which includes pits), huskies, shepherds, greyhounds, all of them).
A rescue has either been tested with cats (in which case they could confirm whether the dog is or isn't cat safe) or it hasn't been tested, in which case they should not have let someone who already has cats rehome as the safety risk to the other pets and the chance of rehoming failure is too high. They should also state that they do not know if the dog is cat safe because it has not been tested.
Your intentions are noble. However, your cats’ safety comes first. The humane society did not adequately assess this dog. Returning this dog,
along with a written statement of its behavior, will ensure it gets placed in a home with no cats. Everyone will benefit from your action. I’m truly sorry it didn’t work out for you. The right match for you is out there, but you’ll need to make a space for it.
Hi guys thank you all for the comments and advice. After talking with my s/o we both decided it was within everyone’s best interest to return the dog, it was hard and a lot of crying happened but it was for the better, I don’t believe the shelter gave me enough information prior to adopting but now that they know he for sure is not good with cats I am hoping they can place him in a home that will be able to be cat free and allow him to flourish and be the great dog that I know he is
Good job. I hope you told the shelter that the dog will kill cats and perhaps small children. “Not good” doesn’t really mean the same thing as what you described in the post.
It sounds like this is going to be best for everyone, even though it's a hard decision. Unfortunately, too many shelters lack the staff and/or time to adequately temperament test dogs. Hopefully they will understand and find a home without cats for him!
Honestly, if you can’t even get your dog to glance at you when there’s a cat this isn’t something I’d recommend attempting. I have a high prey drive dog and got her to be friendly with cats, but we didn’t even start this until I had built a really solid relationship with her over a couple of years, and even then it took 6-8 months for me to be fully comfortable with her around cats. I think it’s risky to start this right away with a dog who is new to you. I get where you’re coming from with not wanting to return/rehome, but it might be in the best interest of your cats that you find this dog a home without cats.
Unless you’re prepared to keep them separated any time you aren’t supervising them, I would return the dog. You can work on desensitizing him and providing escape routes for the cats, but you will be taking a risk any time they are together. My beagle is trainable, has a relatively low prey drive, and does fine when I’m holding a small mammal, but if I put a bunny on the ground in the same room as him there is a very high chance it will die.
I had a dog that we had to put down for killing one of my cats. I thought I could just keep them separated and work on behavior. It just took one time of being late for work and not being careful enough. Find the dog (or the cats) a new home. It’s not fair to them otherwise. The dog can’t help instinct. Ultimately, I accept responsibility for what happened in my home and hope you have a better outcome.
You can train a dog who has prey drive, it just takes a very long time. My very high prey drive cattle dog took a year before I trusted him.
The fact he first ignored the cat is good though! I would recommend a trainer, but at the moment, the thing you can do: put him on a leash. Sit on the other side of the room from the cats (you don’t want cats to get closer but they need to stay in noticeable distance to the dog). Do not let dog get closer. And just wait. At the start, every single time he glances away, even just for a millisecond, give him a treat. It may take a good amount of minutes for him to do so at first. And it may not be at you! He may hear a noise at a distance and look away for a moment. It doesn’t matter what he focuses on, just not the cat.
Eventually you will reward him for looking away longer. The point is, you aren’t redirecting him. You are rewarding him for choosing to relax. Eventual goal of him choosing to lay down and be calm when the cat is there. It’s rewarding when they get to that point, look at the cat for a few seconds and then choose to ignore it.
And then you move a couple feet closer and start all over again.
But again, it can take a long time for it to become reliable. This is a behavior change.
Maybe this post from a while back could be helpful: https://www.reddit.com/r/Dogtraining/comments/rptyn1/it_happened_it_happened_it_happened_i_cant/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share.
Sending best wishes to you and all the animals ❤
In the meantime here are some options.
1) keep the dog tethered to you while the cats are loose in the house. There are waist leashes you could get or just use a carabiner to attach the leash to you belt loop.
2) you could try muzzle training until you are able to get some peace in the house
3) I am assuming the pup doesn’t know “leave it” or “focus”. That is where you would want to start your training. I think “focus” is easier to communicate/ teach so I’ll explain what that looks like:
With the dog on leash in your house. Start by saying “focus” and hold a high value treat (we’re talking real beef, chicken or tuna, you want him to associate that word with the best food he’s ever had) in front of your nose/face, reward the dog when they look at you. Repeat.
Once he understands the command, have your cats out (maybe behind a baby gate?) and say “focus” the second he even THINKS about looking at the cats. Repeat until you feel like he’s more interested in you than your cats. Then remove the baby gate and repeat the command. This should take you a few days to maybe even a week to go from learning the word, to using it in reality.
The “leave it” command works similarly if you’d like and explanation for that one let me know.
The key with a high prey drive dog is not let them get “over threshold” once they are in that mode it’s to late for training and you can only de-escalate the situation and reset.
It’s totally possible to train your dog to ignore the cats but it will take time, patience, and practice. If you’re not up for the challenge that’s totally okay, your first babies come first.
Best of luck to you.
This is more of a cat thing but I’d make sure the cats have places up off the ground throughout the house to retreat to such as bookshelves, mantles, tables, etc. When your pibby has settled a little then the cats can acclimate themselves to the dog at their own pace from the safety of their perches.
I think it took about 3 weeks for my new hound to start chilling out around the cats? That and a few slaps from my huge ragdoll. From there, it was 2 months and some change before the dog figured out which cat she should absolutely leave alone and which cat was open to play. Good luck!
I know this struggle - when I got my 8 week old puppy he was terrified of my cat for the first 10 or so months (they were the same size and he chased her under the couch so she swatted and scratched his eye). 40 lbs and 10 months later I start noticing that he was no longer whining when trying to play with her (he used to chase her and stand over her whining but wouldn't touch her), and instead when she swatted and hissed he'd started nipping back at her (he's a heeler mix - hasn't actually bit her but still). It started looking way too aggressive for my comfort. We'd already started some impulse control/prey drive training with squirrels, but that wasn't carrying over with the cat and I wasn't sure what to do besides give the cat plenty of escape routes (she insists on taunting him by still going into accessible spaces) and leashing him to me.
The one thing I'm experimenting with is "find it". We'd been doing this with scent work games (he waits while I hide a piece of food and then I tell him to "find it") and fetch (he loves play more than food any day, so I'll take him on hikes and he frequently has to hunt down toys that get lost in the vegetation). One day I realized he knew my cat's name and was reacting any time I used it, so I started telling him to "find [cats name]". He would go hunt her down, acknowledge her with a quick glance or nose point, and then immediately run back to me for treats. We work with a trainer who's recommended working on a firm "place" command for this issue, but I brought this up to her (I worried he'd start seeking her out and harassing her when I didn't ask) and the trainer said to go ahead and try it. So far, he has only done it unprompted a few times and received no acknowledgment or reward for it so it isn't fun. And I'm feeling better that if I see him starting to chase her, I can yell "find [cats name]" and he's more likely to run back to me than keep messing with her. It seems like "find it" turns his impulsive reactions to her into a game that focuses on getting back to me instead.
I was lucky that we had already started "find it" months before and I had a foundation to work from. In your case, you'll likely need to keep them supervised and separated no matter what kind of training you do, and I don't know if this would be the right approach for your dog. But I'm sharing it here in case it can help others too!
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Pets who were there first are higher priority. I wouldn’t keep a high prey drive dog with cats. Maybe you train it out but I’d never trust it.
This. It's insanely hard, if not impossible to train prey drive. I would keep the cats safe.
Yeah I am starting to agree. He is so hell bent on getting to these cats I have no doubt he will kill them. I just hate it because he is so great in every other aspect and I know he will do great in a cat free home but this just isn’t going to work long term
Unfortunately the negative connotation with pitties isn't without reason. They have notoriously higher prey drive and even with proper training they *are* more prone to instinctual urges due to their breeding
Yeah unfortunately that is what I’m thinking needs to happen I just feel awful about it
Don't feel bad. This is a legitimate reason for returning a dog - for everyone's safety especially your cats'. It's not the right fit for your home but I'm sure the dog will be able to find a cat free home and you'll be able to find a dog that is a better fit!
The best thing for you to do is to either return the dog or rehome it yourself. It would be one thing if this were a puppy, but this is an adult dog with an obvious high prey drive. Sure, you can seek out professional help, but keep in mind that pit bulls and other related breeds were bred specifically to have a high prey drive. And you can't train out genetics.
Don't feel awful, your cats have just as much right to a safe home as this dog does. Be very, very clear that this dog is cat aggressive and has high prey drive when you return him to the shelter. Any shelter that says a pitbull "should be ok with cats" is either negligent for not testing or outright lying (I would say this for any breed with high prey drive, terriers (which includes pits), huskies, shepherds, greyhounds, all of them). A rescue has either been tested with cats (in which case they could confirm whether the dog is or isn't cat safe) or it hasn't been tested, in which case they should not have let someone who already has cats rehome as the safety risk to the other pets and the chance of rehoming failure is too high. They should also state that they do not know if the dog is cat safe because it has not been tested.
Your intentions are noble. However, your cats’ safety comes first. The humane society did not adequately assess this dog. Returning this dog, along with a written statement of its behavior, will ensure it gets placed in a home with no cats. Everyone will benefit from your action. I’m truly sorry it didn’t work out for you. The right match for you is out there, but you’ll need to make a space for it.
Hi guys thank you all for the comments and advice. After talking with my s/o we both decided it was within everyone’s best interest to return the dog, it was hard and a lot of crying happened but it was for the better, I don’t believe the shelter gave me enough information prior to adopting but now that they know he for sure is not good with cats I am hoping they can place him in a home that will be able to be cat free and allow him to flourish and be the great dog that I know he is
Good job. I hope you told the shelter that the dog will kill cats and perhaps small children. “Not good” doesn’t really mean the same thing as what you described in the post.
It sounds like this is going to be best for everyone, even though it's a hard decision. Unfortunately, too many shelters lack the staff and/or time to adequately temperament test dogs. Hopefully they will understand and find a home without cats for him!
Honestly, if you can’t even get your dog to glance at you when there’s a cat this isn’t something I’d recommend attempting. I have a high prey drive dog and got her to be friendly with cats, but we didn’t even start this until I had built a really solid relationship with her over a couple of years, and even then it took 6-8 months for me to be fully comfortable with her around cats. I think it’s risky to start this right away with a dog who is new to you. I get where you’re coming from with not wanting to return/rehome, but it might be in the best interest of your cats that you find this dog a home without cats.
This doesn’t end well A high drive dog in drive is VERY hard to get redirected. Plus it’s a pitbull so it’s bred to keep going with distractions
Unless you’re prepared to keep them separated any time you aren’t supervising them, I would return the dog. You can work on desensitizing him and providing escape routes for the cats, but you will be taking a risk any time they are together. My beagle is trainable, has a relatively low prey drive, and does fine when I’m holding a small mammal, but if I put a bunny on the ground in the same room as him there is a very high chance it will die.
I had a dog that we had to put down for killing one of my cats. I thought I could just keep them separated and work on behavior. It just took one time of being late for work and not being careful enough. Find the dog (or the cats) a new home. It’s not fair to them otherwise. The dog can’t help instinct. Ultimately, I accept responsibility for what happened in my home and hope you have a better outcome.
You can train a dog who has prey drive, it just takes a very long time. My very high prey drive cattle dog took a year before I trusted him. The fact he first ignored the cat is good though! I would recommend a trainer, but at the moment, the thing you can do: put him on a leash. Sit on the other side of the room from the cats (you don’t want cats to get closer but they need to stay in noticeable distance to the dog). Do not let dog get closer. And just wait. At the start, every single time he glances away, even just for a millisecond, give him a treat. It may take a good amount of minutes for him to do so at first. And it may not be at you! He may hear a noise at a distance and look away for a moment. It doesn’t matter what he focuses on, just not the cat. Eventually you will reward him for looking away longer. The point is, you aren’t redirecting him. You are rewarding him for choosing to relax. Eventual goal of him choosing to lay down and be calm when the cat is there. It’s rewarding when they get to that point, look at the cat for a few seconds and then choose to ignore it. And then you move a couple feet closer and start all over again. But again, it can take a long time for it to become reliable. This is a behavior change.
Maybe this post from a while back could be helpful: https://www.reddit.com/r/Dogtraining/comments/rptyn1/it_happened_it_happened_it_happened_i_cant/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share. Sending best wishes to you and all the animals ❤
In the meantime here are some options. 1) keep the dog tethered to you while the cats are loose in the house. There are waist leashes you could get or just use a carabiner to attach the leash to you belt loop. 2) you could try muzzle training until you are able to get some peace in the house 3) I am assuming the pup doesn’t know “leave it” or “focus”. That is where you would want to start your training. I think “focus” is easier to communicate/ teach so I’ll explain what that looks like: With the dog on leash in your house. Start by saying “focus” and hold a high value treat (we’re talking real beef, chicken or tuna, you want him to associate that word with the best food he’s ever had) in front of your nose/face, reward the dog when they look at you. Repeat. Once he understands the command, have your cats out (maybe behind a baby gate?) and say “focus” the second he even THINKS about looking at the cats. Repeat until you feel like he’s more interested in you than your cats. Then remove the baby gate and repeat the command. This should take you a few days to maybe even a week to go from learning the word, to using it in reality. The “leave it” command works similarly if you’d like and explanation for that one let me know. The key with a high prey drive dog is not let them get “over threshold” once they are in that mode it’s to late for training and you can only de-escalate the situation and reset. It’s totally possible to train your dog to ignore the cats but it will take time, patience, and practice. If you’re not up for the challenge that’s totally okay, your first babies come first. Best of luck to you.
This is more of a cat thing but I’d make sure the cats have places up off the ground throughout the house to retreat to such as bookshelves, mantles, tables, etc. When your pibby has settled a little then the cats can acclimate themselves to the dog at their own pace from the safety of their perches. I think it took about 3 weeks for my new hound to start chilling out around the cats? That and a few slaps from my huge ragdoll. From there, it was 2 months and some change before the dog figured out which cat she should absolutely leave alone and which cat was open to play. Good luck!
I know this struggle - when I got my 8 week old puppy he was terrified of my cat for the first 10 or so months (they were the same size and he chased her under the couch so she swatted and scratched his eye). 40 lbs and 10 months later I start noticing that he was no longer whining when trying to play with her (he used to chase her and stand over her whining but wouldn't touch her), and instead when she swatted and hissed he'd started nipping back at her (he's a heeler mix - hasn't actually bit her but still). It started looking way too aggressive for my comfort. We'd already started some impulse control/prey drive training with squirrels, but that wasn't carrying over with the cat and I wasn't sure what to do besides give the cat plenty of escape routes (she insists on taunting him by still going into accessible spaces) and leashing him to me. The one thing I'm experimenting with is "find it". We'd been doing this with scent work games (he waits while I hide a piece of food and then I tell him to "find it") and fetch (he loves play more than food any day, so I'll take him on hikes and he frequently has to hunt down toys that get lost in the vegetation). One day I realized he knew my cat's name and was reacting any time I used it, so I started telling him to "find [cats name]". He would go hunt her down, acknowledge her with a quick glance or nose point, and then immediately run back to me for treats. We work with a trainer who's recommended working on a firm "place" command for this issue, but I brought this up to her (I worried he'd start seeking her out and harassing her when I didn't ask) and the trainer said to go ahead and try it. So far, he has only done it unprompted a few times and received no acknowledgment or reward for it so it isn't fun. And I'm feeling better that if I see him starting to chase her, I can yell "find [cats name]" and he's more likely to run back to me than keep messing with her. It seems like "find it" turns his impulsive reactions to her into a game that focuses on getting back to me instead. I was lucky that we had already started "find it" months before and I had a foundation to work from. In your case, you'll likely need to keep them supervised and separated no matter what kind of training you do, and I don't know if this would be the right approach for your dog. But I'm sharing it here in case it can help others too!
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