My 15 week-old GSD Mia wants to play with my 12 and 7 year-old declawed Siamese cats. We keep her leashed in the house, so I believe we're safe. Her actions seem the same as when I saw her playing with her littermates. And when a cat hisses, she backs off. Sometimes, she'll even lay on the ground and try to inch toward them. Unfortunately, when I tell her "no" firmly, she doesn't respond.
I've read Ed's info about estabishing pack leadership and introducing dogs to cats. It seems I should get an electric training coller and give her a strong correction when she looks at the cats. I just want to confirm that this is the correct thing to do with a puppy. I thought I read that corrections should not be made to puppies. I don't remember, and cannot find, if that was all corrections, or just corrections for trained behavior (as opposed to pack behavior).
Mia should really not have that much freedom in the house yet. I recall from another post that you've had her... what, 3 days? Keep her crated unless you are RIGHT THERE, able to pay full attention to her. It's not cruel, it's not being mean; it's giving the dog what she needs and wants: Strong pack leadership and a den of her own. The crate is a place for her to chill out. Keep it near the flow of traffic in your home so she feels part of things.
With our dogs (Maltese and GSD), both of the crates are in the living room during the day. At night, they get moved to the bedroom, off to one side. The pack stays together that way, and they know that when daddy and mommy dog make the light go away, it's time to be quiet.
Katie O'Connor Webboard User Reg: 01-09-2007
Posts: 556
Loc: Upstate NY
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Yikes Garrett - I think a strong correction with an electric collar at 15 weeks is not necessary and/or called for with her curious/playful interaction with your cats that you're describing.
If you are leashing her in the house already then you have the perfect opportunity to work on the "leave it" command. I would give her a light pop on the leash when she is paying too much attention to the cats or trying to engage in unwelcome playing...on their part...and then divert her attention to interaction with you.
What I aimed for was peaceful coexistence for my dog with her pack of housecats.
Agree with the crating that Jim mentions. My dog was crated during the day in the middle of household activity where she learned the family pack included the cats and she could become comfortable with their activity and presence.
Edited by Katie O'Connor (08/29/2007 08:11 AM)
Edit reason: saw Jim's post
Thanks all. It's good to know that the e-collar correction idea is not appropriate at this age. My wife and I were beside ourselves at the idea.
Also, helpful to know about moving the crate. We've made the mistake of leaving it in the bedroom. She's fine in the crate, except when she can't smell/see us. Hearing us isn't good enough though. Are two crates ok, or do we need to move her crate? I don't know if the dog associates any crate as her den, or just her specific crate.
Reg: 08-17-2007
Posts: 528
Loc: La Habra, California
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Quote: garrett williams
Thanks all. It's good to know that the e-collar correction idea is not appropriate at this age. My wife and I were beside ourselves at the idea.
I think the most important thing to know about dog training is, you have to do what you feel is right. If something doesn't sit right with you, if you're not comfortable with it, you HAVE to be willing to look your trainer in the face and say "I'm not doing that." Then, you can ask them to explain the reasoning. Maybe there was a misunderstanding, or they know something about dogs that you don't (Although poor trainers will make things up ("You have to grab the dog and shake it to show it who's boss!")). Even if that trainer is Ed, you're responsible for what you do with your dog. It's great to see you guys exercise that responsibility, and I'm so glad you asked about this correction.
Working "leave it" is great. And, as mentioned above, try to get the dogs attention when it starts to focus on the cats too much, before it has the chance to escalate to play bark and lunges.
Katie O'Connor Webboard User Reg: 01-09-2007
Posts: 556
Loc: Upstate NY
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Hi Garrett,
I had the two crate dilemma too and then thought how much crating is good/bad too?
What I ended up doing was putting her crate downstairs in the middle of daily activities so she could become comfortable with all that activity. It also served as a spot for her when I couldn't keep an eye on her or a place she could go to nap and call her own.
At night I tethered her to the bed. She quickly learned mommy's routine getting ready for bed in the bathroom and now it's to the point she waits patiently on the bed for me to finish and come in. As soon as I get in bed she hops off and goes to her bed in the room and usually sleeps right there through the night.
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Puppy wants to play with kitties - how to stop?
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