Mean Furperson
 

I've have had Molly for 2 1/2 yrs since she was a baby and I just brought home a 9 wk old kitten. Molly loves everything when not in her home. She is being really mean and takes all her toys and attacks her.
I'm afraid shes going to hurt Lilly.
Any ideas as what to do? I'm at my wits end please please please I need advice.

Diana and Molly and Lilly

We had an 80 lb lab/hound mix and brought home a 4 week old kitten, the dog was real gentle nature and they ended up being the best of friends , but with these little ones I would be afraid for the kitten, I would keep them separated unless u were right there until the kitten gets a bit bigger or ur pup gets nicer, the great thing about cats r they have sharp claws & once ur pup knows that it will b alright!!

I've never really had any issues in adding animals to my household...however, before I tried, I did do some reading. Some of the suggestions are: make sure that your kitten can get away from the dog...i.e. a high spot she can climb to to get away. You might want to isolate them if you have to leave the house, so nothing bad happens while you are away. While the introductions are happening, you should give the dog lots of treats or rewards whenever the kitten comes close to her, so she associates the kitten with good things...you can also share scent, by placing a blanket with the dog's smell on it under the cat dishes, and a blanket or towel with the cat's smell on it under the dog dishes. That way, (the theory goes) the cat or dog will associate the smell of the other one with good things...i.e. food! But the biggest thing of all is to supervise, supervise, supervise! Lots of treats, and lots of your shared attention will set up a situation where they not only tolerate the others' presence, but come to think of it as a good thing. Best of Luck...I believe that given your support it will work out! I've been lucky enough to have a number of cats/dogs share our home with nothing more than a few introductory squabbles.

Thanks
 

Thanks for your replies... I'm just going to keep trying and hope it gets better... But thanks for the ideas..

Diana Molly and Lilly

I would try to separate them, but make sure they can still see each other. Then slowly let them be together for short periods of time, only with supervision. They will work it out eventually, but for now your dog is just protecting his territory. Go slow and it will work out.

One kitten I tried to add was a real fighter even at 8 weeks old. I kept him in a medium size dog kennel with everything he needed when I was at work. Then I had to take him to work bc the kids would let him out to play, but forgot to put him back! As soon as he got some size on him, he was allowed free roam of the house and terrorized everyone. He did have his kinder moments though. His name was PussMonster.:D