Show us your pets!

[roadie gal]

She isn't mine yet, but the plan is she will come home with me next weekend and see how my cats deal with her. She's a senior, a bull mastiff, and at a vet my friend uses. The owner couldn't keep her anymore and wanted them to put her down. The vet said she is about the most loving dog any of them had ever met and they just couldn't. So the owner signed her over to them and they are keeping her, dealing with a skin infection she has, and looking for a home for her. I thought this was a good way to maybe bring a dog into my family, as she is so easy going she doesn't even care that a cat is around. And she isn't all wild and crazy and so hopefully my cats won't hate having her around. Any pointers on bringing a dog into a home that cats previously owned are greatly appreciated.

When we got our first dog we already had 2 middle aged cats. What we did was to get a baby gate that kept the dog downstairs. We put a second food dish and a second litter box upstairs so the cats could be completely away from the dog if they wanted. They could sniff the dog through the gate, but he couldn't get to them. It took about a month for the cats to be comfortable enough to hang out downstairs with the dog. That's when we finally took down the gate and got rid of the second box and food bowl. You definitely want to give the cats a place to feel safe and away from the dog. It's best if they can also "spy" on the dog while they get used to him.