Prey Drive & Cat

[NoVaRed]

Posted an intro.  Basically we've had a husky for 3 weeks.  I grew up with many dogs - puppies through rescues.  So far our pup is low maintenance - but I'm still learning about this breed.  He's docile indoors, loves doggy day care and other dogs, but there are some issues.  My fiancee has a cat, but he has a strong prey drive - good lord he is fast.  He's killed a couple squirrels before we can blink and eyes our cat like it's a nice lunch.  We definitely keep them separated.  Is there any hope for coexistence?  He's two, and I don't want to ruin him with excessive training, if that exists.   He also has separation anxiety and can't be alone (we never leave him home alone for longer than an hour).  He loves other dogs and running off leash in fenced back yards/dog parks. Continuing to work on his anxiety but if that can't be helped, well I'll just keep paying for daycare.  Let me know if there's any hope for accepting the cat as anything other than prey, though. 

[robke]

Trying to train prey drive out is not an option you and the cat need to just know to stay away from each other...we have a cat since Monday and the dogs have not seen it yet, heard and smelled it.. the 2 will never meet, cat in bedroom with a baby gate in the landing for it’s own protection...

 

sa now that you can cure... we use a command and treat when we leave and a “did you watch the house” and treat when we come back... started this from 30 seconds to 1 min and the. 5 mins intervals...it does take time and patience....

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

Sadly i would never trust a husky with a cat even those raised with a cat from a puppy are still a danger , they could be good for years then one day decide the cat is fair game, it's best to keep them seperate and make sure the cat has a high up safe place to get away to and like robke said baby gates to keep dog out (u can get taller dog gates that the dog can't jump)

Separation anxiety can be cured again like robke said building up the time away

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[wolfpup]

I have a cat and two dogs -  and more child gates than Mothercare!  Each child gate has one of the uprights cut out so the cat can get through at speed if necessary  (and it is sometimes) but the dogs cannot.   During the day the cat remains upstairs but comes down in the evening when I am in the lounge.    The dogs have downstairs and the cat has upstairs.

At night when the dogs come upstairs the cat sleeps nestled into my hip or by my pillow.    I am very lucky in as much as the cat is not a 'runner'  if the dogs get him trapped he never reacts, just slinks down and moves extremely slowly, whilst letting me know that he is unhappy.   If he tried to bolt then I am sure the dogs would see him as prey - but he seems to instinctively know this and has never done anything to kick in their prey drive.   The more he feel threatened the slower he moves.

The dogs know its more than their life is worth to try anything whilst I am around and the cat seems to have the sense to get scarse whenever I go out.   Luckily we are both retired and rarely both go out at the same time so there is usually someone in the house at all times.

[amyf27]

We have two huskies, 10 yr and 7 yr. They've always had a very strong interest in cats they've seen outdoors, like they were sport. Niko the older one has killed a squirrel, and several little moles.

Got our first cat about 6 years ago. The huskies initially looked at her like lunch too, licking their lips, etc. She's an indoor only cat. I kept reinforcing that she was a family member - don't remember exactly what I told them, but positive reinforcement that kitty wasn't a snack. They picked up on that after a few days. They haven't tried to hurt her and I don't see them ever doing that. They've chased her a few times, keeping their distance though, never touching. She even tried to pick a fight with the female husky, thankfully she understood - treated it more like a sibling argument. I think every husky and cat situation is different though, so you never know. We got a 2nd cat about 1 and a half years ago. She'll be 2 yrs old soon. Same with this one - they were quite interested, but learned from the first and don't touch her. Sometimes they try to intimidate, but what's funny is half the time, the cats intimidate them. The one day Niko was crying in the basement (we sleep down there, finished basement), and I had gotten up earlier. I went over to check on him - and the younger cat was just sitting on the steps. He was at the bottom of the steps and wanted to come up but the "cat was in the way". lol. Whenever the cats are drinking water from their bowl the huskies wait their turn. The larger cat I know will sit there on purpose just to make them wait longer.

They've even napped near each other, and hang out near each other when looking out the big livingroom window.

The outdoor cats that roam are still a very strong interest, and I can tell if they were loose, they would go right after them, same as squirrels, bunnies, moles, etc.

Its kind of like how the huskies get along with most dogs, but there are a few you just can't put your finger on why, but they do NOT like. There is one that goes by occasionally that makes Kira absolutely crazy, and if she sees this dog, she'll get into that stealth walk mode with her head down, alert, staring, liek she's stalking prey. This dog is a Thailand Ridgeback, beautiful dog, and very protective of its owner/walker. We nickname this one "devil dog" just because of the look it has - an exotic almost prehistoric look. Love the dog.

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I have a cat and two dogs -  and more child gates than Mothercare!  Each child gate has one of the uprights cut out so the cat can get through at speed if necessary  (and it is sometimes) but the dogs cannot.   During the day the cat remains upstairs but comes down in the evening when I am in the lounge.    The dogs have downstairs and the cat has upstairs.
At night when the dogs come upstairs the cat sleeps nestled into my hip or by my pillow.    I am very lucky in as much as the cat is not a 'runner'  if the dogs get him trapped he never reacts, just slinks down and moves extremely slowly, whilst letting me know that he is unhappy.   If he tried to bolt then I am sure the dogs would see him as prey - but he seems to instinctively know this and has never done anything to kick in their prey drive.   The more he feel threatened the slower he moves.
The dogs know its more than their life is worth to try anything whilst I am around and the cat seems to have the sense to get scarse whenever I go out.   Luckily we are both retired and rarely both go out at the same time so there is usually someone in the house at all times.

Our smaller cat usually sleeps on the bed with us, by me, along with our puggle lol. The two huskies almost always come downstairs when I go to bed - one lays in the corner by my side of the bed, and the other near the stairway.

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[amyf27]

We have two huskies, 10 yr and 7 yr. They've always had a very strong interest in cats they've seen outdoors, like they were sport. Niko the older one has killed a squirrel, and several little moles.

Got our first cat about 6 years ago. The huskies initially looked at her like lunch too, licking their lips, etc. She's an indoor only cat. I kept reinforcing that she was a family member - don't remember exactly what I told them, but positive reinforcement that kitty wasn't a snack. They picked up on that after a few days. They haven't tried to hurt her and I don't see them ever doing that. They've chased her a few times, keeping their distance though, never touching. She even tried to pick a fight with the female husky, thankfully she understood - treated it more like a sibling argument. I think every husky and cat situation is different though, so you never know. We got a 2nd cat about 1 and a half years ago. She'll be 2 yrs old soon. Same with this one - they were quite interested, but learned from the first and don't touch her. Sometimes they try to intimidate, but what's funny is half the time, the cats intimidate them. The one day Niko was crying in the basement (we sleep down there, finished basement), and I had gotten up earlier. I went over to check on him - and the younger cat was just sitting on the steps. He was at the bottom of the steps and wanted to come up but the "cat was in the way". lol. Whenever the cats are drinking water from their bowl the huskies wait their turn. The larger cat I know will sit there on purpose just to make them wait longer.

They've even napped near each other, and hang out near each other when looking out the big livingroom window.

The outdoor cats that roam are still a very strong interest, and I can tell if they were loose, they would go right after them, same as squirrels, bunnies, moles, etc.

Its kind of like how the huskies get along with most dogs, but there are a few you just can't put your finger on why, but they do NOT like. There is one that goes by occasionally that makes Kira absolutely crazy, and if she sees this dog, she'll get into that stealth walk mode with her head down, alert, staring, liek she's stalking prey. This dog is a Thailand Ridgeback, beautiful dog, and very protective of its owner/walker. We nickname this one "devil dog" just because of the look it has - an exotic almost prehistoric look. Love the dog.

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Our smaller cat usually sleeps on the bed with us, by me, along with our puggle lol. The two huskies almost always come downstairs when I go to bed - one lays in the corner by my side of the bed, and the other near the stairway.

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Took this one below just now - the smaller cat likes to nap in the corner. Male husky hanging out on the other side of the couch. He knows I'm going to take them hiking soon.

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[Luna-tic]

We took in Luna at 7, we were told she’d lived with a cat. We have 2 cats, a Bengal and a Maine Coone. She was very keen to grab them when she first arrived and we also had a child gate to provide an escape route. We gave positive reinforcement with treats whenever one ventured into the same room and both cats were on high alert but the Maine Coon really just decided, as she had with our other two dogs we had, that ignoring them was best and by not running she gave Luna nothing to chase so she didn’t. With the Bengal it took longer, he’s quite hesitant with anything new and it took him a while to feel safe with our last dog, a collie. A year later all 3 co-exist peacefully, both cats are ignored by the dog and both walk past her and sometimes over her. I think the Bengal is still cautious and careful but Luna seems to understand that they are off limits. I guess every dog is different but if she sees a cat outside she’s far more interested and she’d be off after a squirrel given the chance.

So it’s possible but I think you need to make it clear to the dog that the cats can’t be harassed or chased. As for the separation anxiety, she went through that too, it was upsetting, every time we left she went through every room in the house opening all the doors with handles and peeing and pooing in some of them. It got easier over time and now as long as we aren’t gone more than a few hours she just sleeps happily out or indoors. Too long and we might come home to a puddle still and even hear her complaining, we don’t leave her often.


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[Miami Ice]

Posted an intro.  Basically we've had a husky for 3 weeks.  I grew up with many dogs - puppies through rescues.  So far our pup is low maintenance - but I'm still learning about this breed.  He's docile indoors, loves doggy day care and other dogs, but there are some issues.  My fiancee has a cat, but he has a strong prey drive - good lord he is fast.  He's killed a couple squirrels before we can blink and eyes our cat like it's a nice lunch.  We definitely keep them separated.  Is there any hope for coexistence?  He's two, and I don't want to ruin him with excessive training, if that exists.   He also has separation anxiety and can't be alone (we never leave him home alone for longer than an hour).  He loves other dogs and running off leash in fenced back yards/dog parks. Continuing to work on his anxiety but if that can't be helped, well I'll just keep paying for daycare.  Let me know if there's any hope for accepting the cat as anything other than prey, though. 

Wow! Dead squirrels took my breath away. I would've cried. This was a great read! I'm definitely tuned in to here the responses of the professionals. I'm a first time husky owner myself and have been with my three month puppy less than 2 weeks. I'm still learning also. [emoji851][emoji432][emoji433]

Question: How do you identify separation anxiety?

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[Luna-tic]

Miami ice, tends to show as destructive behaviour or indoor fouling.


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[Miami Ice]

Thank you. Now I know what to look out for. I don't want my baby going through that.

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[2Huskyfun]

I have two older cats. Both around 12 years old. Was raised with my other rescues (highly aggressive dogs) never had an issue.

HOWEVER! 

Have had my pups for 7 months now. Got them when they were 7 weeks. Trained them “no kitty” “leave it”. I do not trust my pups with the cats at all. 

I have a kiddy gate in the hallway so the cats have free roam of the bedrooms and laundry room where their food and litter box is. They never have to leave that area unless they want to. 

My cats will jump the gate and hang out in the other rooms. But I have sections blocked from the dogs so if the cats have to run they have safe spots in the house. 

If and when I rarely leave the pups unattended, the cats are locked in whatever room they happen to be hanging out in. 

As funny and cute these are; If I was not there..... I would hate to think what would have happened. My cat knows I will protect him when the play gets to rough and he knows not to run. I have had to pull them off of him a couple of times. 

Yes, so far everything has been play and no signs of  Predator behavior. However, my male pup has come close to hurting him by pawing and putting his head in his mouth (licking the chicken dinner off his face).

[chelseafan]

Looks like puppy needs protection from the cat in the first video and wants to play in the second. It can go badly wrong very quickly.


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[amyf27]

Took this just now.

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[2Huskyfun]

5 hours ago, chelseafan said:

Looks like puppy needs protection from the cat in the first video and wants to play in the second. It can go badly wrong very quickly.


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LOL. That cat is declawed so the pups don’t mind him doing that. My female cat has claws but only tags the pups as a last result. She will get playful and chase them. Hehhee.

But that metal gate is there blocking off that corner so if the cats wanted to get away from them they can.