Advice and/or opinions about new chihuahua in a home with three cats

[siamese3]

Hi everyone.. looking for some opinions and advice. I currently have three cats who I adore, but I have been thinking about a dog for awhile. I had the opportunity to meet the cutest little chihuahua named Maisie about a year ago, and I abruptly fell in love with the breed and have had a hard time not thinking about a chi of my own. My husband and I are going to meet a rescue dog, a chihuahua mix, this weekend and I am just trying to make sure I have considered everything I should. I have a 12 year old female cat (mitten) and two male siamese sibs (max & kiki) that will be 6 this fall. They have been around dogs when relatives visit, mitten mostly retreats for the duration, but max & kiki are pretty curious.. I think that for the most part they would all adjust. My biggest fear is kiki, who was the runt of the litter and is very, well, for lack of a better term, posessive of me. He can just be kind of a jerk.. he does''t believe in sharing me too well. My oldest siamese cat Ping, who died last year, was able to put him in his place and at this point, everyone else just kind of either ignores him or deals with his slightly bully-ish behavior. My husband was really great when we integrated max and kiki into our home (Ping was very posessive of me also) and things worked out fine....but I know that chi''s need lots of attention so I am slightly concerned because kiki is more like a dog than a cat.

The rescue dog is named Elijah. He is approximately 1 year old, socialized, crate trained, not yappy and very friendly and cuddly. The women who runs the progam where he is now is bringing him into her house this week to see how he behaves around cats (she has two).

I have been doing tons of reading, research about the breed and integrating cats & dogs.. but would love to hear some thoughts from any of you wonderful people about possible issues or things I should be considering or thinking aobut.

 

[kenny]

S3, sorry I know nothing about cats.

I just wanted to say bless you for considering taking Elijah in.
Our dogs are half Chihuahua, half Shi-Tzu, and are also rescue dogs from an agency.
.
All the best of luck and it sounds like you are smart to be going into this with open eyes.

 

[Puppmom]

Siamese, will they allow you a trial period? It seems to take cats a little while to adjust so I think at least a week would be ideal. In my experience, dogs seem to be pretty crappy at picking up on kitty signals - specifically the "back the hell off" signal. Sometimes, all it takes is the cat to let the dog know what''s up a time or two and then there is peace. You just won''t know until you try.

I do have a friend that has a chihuaha and a cat and while they don''t love each other, they tolerate each other. And the cat is totally the boss.

Good luck! I think it''s fantastic that you''re thinking of adopting and doing all of your research in advance.

 

[siamese3]

kenny.. thanks for the reply

puppmom.. I planned on asking exactly that when we go to meet Elijah....hopefully, it wouldn''t be necessary, but just knowing it was an option would make me feel better.

 

[Ara Ann]

Hi there!

I can share my cat/chi experiences, but it may not help too much!

Several years ago, when our lab mix Bruno was about 6 years old and our chihuahua, Poncho, was about 5, we adopted a kitten, "Hobbes" into our family... all were males. The lab LOVED the kitty and treated him like a puppy, complete with tongue/dog spit baths, LOL. The chi was the ''boss'' of the gang though and while he tolerated the kitty, they were never as close as the lab and kitty were. Years later when our lab died, the chi and kitty tolerated each other, but that was about it. A few years later again, the chi passed away and our then very mature kitty loved having all the attention for himself and was much more loving toward us.


About a year after our chi died, our oldest son really wanted/needed another doggie companion, so we headed to the animal shelter and we adopted another chihuahua, Max, from a chi rescue group. Max was 2.5 years old and had always been an ''only'' animal. While he was FANTASTIC with people, and our first chi was not as good with his people skills, Max hated and still hates other animals (even our son''s hamster!). However, he tolerated our kitty because kitty was ''here first'' - but kitty was less than thrilled to have another dog in his home... And because Max/most chi''s love to be the ''baby'' - he pretty much took over my lap and did not want to share with kitty, so kitty retreated from snuggling me as often.

Every once in a while, they would tolerate each other enough to share the couch with me, on opposite ends, LOL, but it didn''t happen often or last very long.

They also had their share of chasing each other around and trying to claim territory, but thankfully neither started an all out gang war. Max did get a swat once that drew blood (a tiny bit) on the top of his head...and he also came away with a few mouths-full of kitty fur, so they could each stand up to the other, but were not friendly.


But, all that said, every animal is different, so you''d really have to try it out and see what happens...just don''t expect a ''happily ever after'' Brady Bunch kind of furbaby family...it may happen, but it may not.

Good luck whatever you do! And Chi''s are terrific little guys, they have a way of really getting into your heart...and once you''ve had one, they become very special to you!

 

[siamese3]

Ara Ann,

Thanks so much for sharing your experience.. your scenario is kind of what I am afraid of.. Kiki is such a lap cat and needs so much attention and I am afraid the Chi will be the same way. I know my cat Max will probably be fine..he is so easy going and really misses my older cat Ping..he slept with him all the time. I never thought my cat Ping would accept Max & Kiki and I worried endlessly about it before I got them and it all worked out in the end.. again, my husband was so great and we really worked hard at integrating them properly. We kept them separated and worked very slowly on introducing them. I am just trying hard to be realistic, and know that it is difficult to know how things will go. I am just so captivated by this small, but big hearted breed.

 

[movie zombie]

don''t bring the dog home right away. visit it and come home with its scent on you. make sure your cats notice...and they will. they will over a few weeks get used to the smell on you. when you bring the dog home it won''t be in a complete surprise but a known scent. keep them separated just as you would if introducing another cat. have the doggie out and about only when you are present. do not leave the room and them together for some period of time. good luck!

mz

 

[Haven]

We brought our pitbull mix Bailee home after having our three male cats for over three years. It went really well, and this is what we did:

- At the shelter we asked them to test Bailee to see if she gets along with cats. They put her in a cage with their "test kitties" (AKA the most laid back cats in the world) and she just stood over them licking their faces. A good start.

- Before we brought Bailee home, we bought two baby gates and put them up in the house to basically segment our home (a ranch) into two sides: one had the living, dining, and family rooms, and the other side had the kitchens, bedrooms, and bathrooms. DH also cut one of the side bars off the baby gates so there was a space large enough for the boys to walk through, but not one large enough for the dog. This way, the cats *could* have full run of the entire house, but the dog couldn''t, so if they boys wanted to get away from her they had half off the house to themselves.

- We also mounted these metal hooks on our bedroom door and one of the spare rooms (where we keep their litter boxes) so we could prop those doors open with only enough space for the cats but not the dog. This way, when we did allow the dog into the kitchen/bedroom area of the home, the cats still had "their own" space to run into, if they wanted.

- Then, when we brought her home we kept her on leash and walked her through "her side" of the house very calmly. Our cats are very bold, so they all came and sniffed her out, gave a couple hisses and a bat with a paw or two. Bailee just stood there and took it, so that was a good sign. We kept her on leash in the house long enough to teach her all the rules: No jumping on furniture, no chasing the cats, no barking at passers by, etc. We cage trained her, so she was in the cage while we were gone.

- When we did let her out around the house off leash she was still only allowed in that one half of the house, even though it really only took a couple days for the boys to accept her. I can''t remember how long we kept up those baby gates, but it was months if not a full year. When we did take them down she knew not to go into that part of the house unless invited, and that''s how it remains to this day.

I think it''s important to train the dog about the house rules really well when you first bring him in to your home. Bailee is extremely high energy, so we had to do a lot of work to help her calm down in the house and not act like a wild woman. A lot of that has to do with the way WE behave, but we knew that if she was running around the house that would freak out the cats, and we don''t want her to be in an excited state all the time, anyway.

Now, I like to say that they''re best friends! They do cuddle together all the time, and it''s really fun to watch. I''ve posted these pictures all over PS, but they''ll be good inspiration for you, I hope!

Thank you so much for adopting a dog. There are so many pups in need out there, and they each deserve a loving home. Having Bailee and the boys has so enriched our lives, and I imagine Elijah will do the same for yours.

Bai particularly likes to rest her head on Manny, as you can see. He is the mushiest of the three of them.

 

[Haven]

That was weird, it didn''t attach. Here they are:

 

[waterlilly]

Some random thoughts from me:

It's a total coin toss. Don't expect to know how things will be in just a week either, for good or bad. One of my dogs wanted to eat our cat when we first brought her home, after a few months she didn't recognize the cat existed. Now the cat could crawl in bed with her and she wont flinch. Our chi-X never showed any interest in the cat at all.

Be prepared for the dog to require a LOT more attention that the cats do. Dogs are a LOT more work compared to cats. Do you work? Do you already have a plan for how the dog will be maintained while you aren't home to keep dog/cats safe?

If it's a normal, friendly pup - it will want to be on your lap, following you, etc. every minute you are home. Chi's require a firm owner though or you will have a monster on your hands. Do NOT allow it to have attention on demand. Teach it to sit asap, and ask it to sit before giving any treat. Ask it to sit before putting the food bowl down, ask it to sit and wait before being allowed to walk out the door, don't let it hop up on your lap - ask it to sit, and then invite it up, etc., etc.,.

Also - not sure if you knew this, most dogs (certainly every dog I've had in my house) love to eat cat poop. They also love to eat cat food. So, kitty dishes and litter boxes need to be kept out of reach!

THANK you so much for considering a rescue pup!

 

[siamese3]

mz,

Thanks for the advice about bringing home the scent & keeping them separated, when not supervised at first, if we decide to bring Elijah home..


Haven,

Your pics are so cute.. of course snuggle buds are what I would be hoping for. Your experience sounds great and certainly gives me hope. I like your idea about separate areas of the house, so they can each have "their safe space."

I am worried about what to do at night with both the cats & Elijah. I believe Elijah is crate trained.

 

[siamese3]

Waterlily,

I don''t work, and my husband works from home 90% of the time. My family has always had dogs, but not teeny, tiny dogs and I realize what a comittment it is, which is why I have been thinking about it for so long. My cat Kiki requires lots of attention, my siamese cats, in general, seem to require more than the average cat.. one of the many reasons I am drawn to them. Thay also have BIG personalities..like chi''s. Thanks for the warning about the "on demand" attention, we are trying hard to learn as much as we can about chi''s & how to train & handle them so we can be a good fit.

I have been working on solutions for food & litterboxes, so thanks for the heads up!

 

[Haven]

Bai slept in her crate for a while. (I''m sorry I can''t remember how long, it''s all fuzzy to me now.) Eventually, we took the crate down and she slept on my "reading sofa" in the living room, which is where the two of us snuggle during the day while I''m reading. And then, I finally wore my DH down and she finally started sleeping in the bed with us and all three cats. We''re very warm and cozy at night.

During the winter months we often wake up to find all three of the boys sleeping on or around Bailee for warmth. She''s like a little heater.

 

[siamese3]

Geez Haven..

Finally, someone who knows what I feel like!! I am always covered in cats while I sleep. My husband cracks up looking at them laying all over me. At least a chi wouldn''t take up as much room as Bia!

I am having a hard time imagining myself not having Elijah with me at night but realize he might be just fine & dandy in his crate. At least in the beginning.

 

[Ara Ann]

Date: 6/10/2010 11:48:58 AM
Author: siamese3
Geez Haven..


Finally, someone who knows what I feel like!! I am always covered in cats while I sleep. My husband cracks up looking at them laying all over me. At least a chi wouldn''t take up as much room as Bia!

I am having a hard time imagining myself not having Elijah with me at night but realize he might be just fine & dandy in his crate. At least in the beginning.

If he is crate trained that is a good thing, but if you are home a lot, he will want to be ''with'' you...a lot. As you may already know from reading up on Chi''s, they are very dependent on their human ''parents'' and want to be with you all the time. My Max wants to be with someone, usually me, all the time (I work from home too). Yes, they need to know their ''place'' and I agree with making them sit before a treat, etc., but they are a needy breed over all. I don''t think he''d take to having a designated area in your home, like a larger breed would...he will want to be with you and won''t understand being kept at bay, if that makes sense.

And Max loves to sleep with us, even though he''s small, he manages to take up a lot of bed space, more than you''d think!

I also agree that it will take much longer than a week to gauge how they will all get along. Literally, for us, some days it was minute to minute! Also, Cats and dogs have a very different concept of territory, with cats being territorial and staking different places even at different times of the day! While dogs are more literal about ''spacial'' territory.


Your Chi will also want to be in the sun, if you have sunny spots in your home. Our Max''s favorite spot is in his bed, at our back door wall, in full sun. If it''s a cloudy day, he wants to snuggle to ME. Warmth is a Chi''s best friend too!

It will most likely be a challenge at first, but hopefully it will all work out in the end!

 

[Haven]

Date: 6/10/2010 11:48:58 AM
Author: siamese3
Geez Haven..

Finally, someone who knows what I feel like!! I am always covered in cats while I sleep. My husband cracks up looking at them laying all over me. At least a chi wouldn''t take up as much room as Bia!

I am having a hard time imagining myself not having Elijah with me at night but realize he might be just fine & dandy in his crate. At least in the beginning.

Yay for being covered in kitties at night! I''ve slept with a kitty since age 10 and I can''t imagine being kitty-less at night, I really can''t.

I really wanted Bai to sleep in the bed for a long time before DH finally consented. I was probably a very annoying person to live with during that time. I grew up with a 95 lb lab who slept in bed with me each night, so our 45 lb Bailee couldn''t be too much trouble, right?

DH would kill me if he knew I posted these pictures, but they''re just so appropriate for this thread right now. I often wake up to find DH smothered in furbabies, so I do what any good wife would do and grab the camera. (Vince was sleeping on me so that''s why there are only two kitties in this picture. Geddy was actually kneading DH''s chest for about ten minutes and headbutting his chin. Poor guy didn''t wake up once.)

 

[waterlilly]

Date: 6/10/2010 12:06:32 PM
Author: Haven

Date: 6/10/2010 11:48:58 AM

Author: siamese3

Geez Haven..


Finally, someone who knows what I feel like!! I am always covered in cats while I sleep. My husband cracks up looking at them laying all over me. At least a chi wouldn''t take up as much room as Bia!

I am having a hard time imagining myself not having Elijah with me at night but realize he might be just fine & dandy in his crate. At least in the beginning.

Yay for being covered in kitties at night! I''ve slept with a kitty since age 10 and I can''t imagine being kitty-less at night, I really can''t.


I really wanted Bai to sleep in the bed for a long time before DH finally consented. I was probably a very annoying person to live with during that time. I grew up with a 95 lb lab who slept in bed with me each night, so our 45 lb Bailee couldn''t be too much trouble, right?

DH would kill me if he knew I posted these pictures, but they''re just so appropriate for this thread right now. I often wake up to find DH smothered in furbabies, so I do what any good wife would do and grab the camera. (Vince was sleeping on me so that''s why there are only two kitties in this picture. Geddy was actually kneading DH''s chest for about ten minutes and headbutting his chin. Poor guy didn''t wake up once.)

Love these pics!!!

 

[siamese3]

OMG! That was an actual "laugh out loud" moment!! Thanks for that..

 

[siamese3]

Date: 6/10/2010 11:58:18 AM
Author: Ara Ann

Date: 6/10/2010 11:48:58 AM
Author: siamese3
Geez Haven..


Finally, someone who knows what I feel like!! I am always covered in cats while I sleep. My husband cracks up looking at them laying all over me. At least a chi wouldn''t take up as much room as Bia!

I am having a hard time imagining myself not having Elijah with me at night but realize he might be just fine & dandy in his crate. At least in the beginning.

If he is crate trained that is a good thing, but if you are home a lot, he will want to be ''with'' you...a lot. As you may already know from reading up on Chi''s, they are very dependent on their human ''parents'' and want to be with you all the time. My Max wants to be with someone, usually me, all the time (I work from home too). Yes, they need to know their ''place'' and I agree with making them sit before a treat, etc., but they are a needy breed over all. I don''t think he''d take to having a designated area in your home, like a larger breed would...he will want to be with you and won''t understand being kept at bay, if that makes sense.

And Max loves to sleep with us, even though he''s small, he manages to take up a lot of bed space, more than you''d think!

I also agree that it will take much longer than a week to gauge how they will all get along. Literally, for us, some days it was minute to minute! Also, Cats and dogs have a very different concept of territory, with cats being territorial and staking different places even at different times of the day! While dogs are more literal about ''spacial'' territory.


Your Chi will also want to be in the sun, if you have sunny spots in your home. Our Max''s favorite spot is in his bed, at our back door wall, in full sun. If it''s a cloudy day, he wants to snuggle to ME. Warmth is a Chi''s best friend too!

It will most likely be a challenge at first, but hopefully it will all work out in the end!

I definitely want him to be with me

...one of the many reasons to want a chi.. that''s why I am so worried about how to handle nights in the beginning. My husband thinks one of us should be in our bedroom with the cats and one in another bedroom with the chi. How do I choose?? I want both the cats and the Elijah to "feel" as comfortable as possible with the situation.

 

[Ara Ann]

Date: 6/10/2010 12:35:00 PM
Author: siamese3

Date: 6/10/2010 11:58:18 AM

Author: Ara Ann

Date: 6/10/2010 11:48:58 AM

Author: siamese3

Geez Haven..



Finally, someone who knows what I feel like!! I am always covered in cats while I sleep. My husband cracks up looking at them laying all over me. At least a chi wouldn''t take up as much room as Bia!

I am having a hard time imagining myself not having Elijah with me at night but realize he might be just fine & dandy in his crate. At least in the beginning.

If he is crate trained that is a good thing, but if you are home a lot, he will want to be ''with'' you...a lot. As you may already know from reading up on Chi''s, they are very dependent on their human ''parents'' and want to be with you all the time. My Max wants to be with someone, usually me, all the time (I work from home too). Yes, they need to know their ''place'' and I agree with making them sit before a treat, etc., but they are a needy breed over all. I don''t think he''d take to having a designated area in your home, like a larger breed would...he will want to be with you and won''t understand being kept at bay, if that makes sense.


And Max loves to sleep with us, even though he''s small, he manages to take up a lot of bed space, more than you''d think!


I also agree that it will take much longer than a week to gauge how they will all get along. Literally, for us, some days it was minute to minute! Also, Cats and dogs have a very different concept of territory, with cats being territorial and staking different places even at different times of the day! While dogs are more literal about ''spacial'' territory.



Your Chi will also want to be in the sun, if you have sunny spots in your home. Our Max''s favorite spot is in his bed, at our back door wall, in full sun. If it''s a cloudy day, he wants to snuggle to ME. Warmth is a Chi''s best friend too!


It will most likely be a challenge at first, but hopefully it will all work out in the end!

I definitely want him to be with me

...one of the many reasons to want a chi.. that''s why I am so worried about how to handle nights in the beginning. My husband thinks one of us should be in our bedroom with the cats and one in another bedroom with the chi. How do I choose?? I want both the cats and the Elijah to ''feel'' as comfortable as possible with the situation.

Again, you''ll just have to give it some time and see what happens...but I don''t think I''d recommend starting off with the ''sleeping apart'' thing, because you don''t want to have to break that habit once it''s started. Elijah would be more confused, having to start over in a new bed, etc., once one pattern was already established.

If he is crate trained and used to sleeping in a crate at night, maybe you could keep the crate in your room for a couple of weeks, or at least until the kitties have gotten used to him being in there with you all night...and then gradually introduce him into sleeping with the gang.

Does that make sense?

 

[siamese3]

Date: 6/10/2010 12:47:19 PM
Author: Ara Ann

Date: 6/10/2010 12:35:00 PM
Author: siamese3

Date: 6/10/2010 11:58:18 AM

Author: Ara Ann

Date: 6/10/2010 11:48:58 AM

Author: siamese3

Geez Haven..



Finally, someone who knows what I feel like!! I am always covered in cats while I sleep. My husband cracks up looking at them laying all over me. At least a chi wouldn''t take up as much room as Bia!

I am having a hard time imagining myself not having Elijah with me at night but realize he might be just fine & dandy in his crate. At least in the beginning.

If he is crate trained that is a good thing, but if you are home a lot, he will want to be ''with'' you...a lot. As you may already know from reading up on Chi''s, they are very dependent on their human ''parents'' and want to be with you all the time. My Max wants to be with someone, usually me, all the time (I work from home too). Yes, they need to know their ''place'' and I agree with making them sit before a treat, etc., but they are a needy breed over all. I don''t think he''d take to having a designated area in your home, like a larger breed would...he will want to be with you and won''t understand being kept at bay, if that makes sense.


And Max loves to sleep with us, even though he''s small, he manages to take up a lot of bed space, more than you''d think!


I also agree that it will take much longer than a week to gauge how they will all get along. Literally, for us, some days it was minute to minute! Also, Cats and dogs have a very different concept of territory, with cats being territorial and staking different places even at different times of the day! While dogs are more literal about ''spacial'' territory.



Your Chi will also want to be in the sun, if you have sunny spots in your home. Our Max''s favorite spot is in his bed, at our back door wall, in full sun. If it''s a cloudy day, he wants to snuggle to ME. Warmth is a Chi''s best friend too!


It will most likely be a challenge at first, but hopefully it will all work out in the end!

I definitely want him to be with me

...one of the many reasons to want a chi.. that''s why I am so worried about how to handle nights in the beginning. My husband thinks one of us should be in our bedroom with the cats and one in another bedroom with the chi. How do I choose?? I want both the cats and the Elijah to ''feel'' as comfortable as possible with the situation.

Again, you''ll just have to give it some time and see what happens...but I don''t think I''d recommend starting off with the ''sleeping apart'' thing, because you don''t want to have to break that habit once it''s started. Elijah would be more confused, having to start over in a new bed, etc., once one pattern was already established.

If he is crate trained and used to sleeping in a crate at night, maybe you could keep the crate in your room for a couple of weeks, or at least until the kitties have gotten used to him being in there with you all night...and then gradually introduce him into sleeping with the gang.

Does that make sense?

Yes...Perfect sense. I was thinking along the same lines as you, that IF he was crate trained and would sleep in the crate at night, we could have the crate in our bedroom, which is pretty big, and then we could all just sit around and stare at each other all night... LOL..yikes...

 

[Callisto]

Haven those pictures are ADORABLE.

I would second someone else''s suggestion of restricting the dog''s territory if you have a shy cat. Our dog was never allowed to go upstairs in our house which worked out well when we ended up with a cat who hated dogs. That way she was allowed to have her space that she knew the dog wouldn''t come into.

 

[siamese3]

bump to see if anyone else has ideas, advice..