Your cat is scared of the dog: give them routes up high, and calm the household down
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A cat that is scared of the dog first needs to be able to escape somewhere the dog cannot follow. Give it routes up high, out of the dog's reach, a safe room closed off by a gate, its food and litter tray out of the way, and let it set the distance itself: never force contact.
Why is your cat scared of the dog?
A cat sees a dog as a possible predator. According to veterinary behaviourist Jasmine Chevallier, in an advice sheet for Zoopsy, a cat first feels in danger around an unfamiliar dog, while most dogs have a chase reflex: a cat that bolts sets off the chase.
Being chased leaves a lasting mark. According to the same sheet, the cat remembers the episode, anticipates it at the next encounters and greatly increases its safety distance.
The same sheet explains that, faced with intense fear, a cat runs, to hide or to climb. If it cannot run, because it is cornered or held, it attacks, and these fear-driven attacks are often very violent. Everything in the home follows from that: always leave it a way out.
How do you help a cat stressed by the dog, day to day?
The golden rule, according to Dr Chevallier: the cat must stay free to move, able to flee, hide or retreat up high, and choose for itself how close it gets. RSPCA Australia adds that it should always keep a retreat the dog cannot reach.
| What your cat needs | Where to put it | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Food and water bowls | In its own area, away from the dog's path | It should not have to cross the dog's territory to eat |
| Litter tray | In the same area, out of the dog's reach | It must be able to get there without meeting the dog |
| High spots | In every room the dog uses | An exit close by, not at the end of a chase |
| Hiding place and bed | In the safe room, behind a gate | Somewhere to settle without keeping an eye on the dog |
According to the RSPCA, anything of the cat's that sits in the dog's path should move to a cat-only area, ideally before the dog arrives. In shared rooms, routes up high, screwed to the wall, keep an exit open for it.
Which routes up high help a cat escape the dog?
Vet Muriel Alnot, writing for La Compagnie des Animaux, says the cat needs a refuge the dog cannot get into, high up for example. A route rather than a single perch: up there, the cat is not just waiting, it can move about above the dog.
The Pelux cat wall shelves with hanging bridge are built on that idea. On the wall, two square solid wood platforms, 25 cm a side; between them, an arched hanging bridge 70 cm long; on the floor, nothing. Your cat crosses from one to the other above the room, out of the dog's reach as long as the height is right.
Three conditions make it a real refuge. The product page wants the first platform reachable from a sideboard or shelf your cat is used to jumping onto: that furniture must itself be out of the dog's reach, or the dog follows. The platform must sit higher than your dog can reach standing on its hind legs: measure that at home, the product page does not cover it. Finally, the product page asks you to test how the two platforms and the bridge hold, by putting your weight on them, before your cat's first crossing.
Its limits, too. It is fitted by drilling, into a solid wall only, not plasterboard or hollow brick: if you cannot drill, it is not for you. Maximum load, the gap between platforms, whether the screws and wall plugs come in the box: the product page is silent on all three. Each platform is 25 × 25 cm: compare that with the space your cat takes up lying down. With no suitable wall, a tall model from our cat trees or the cleared top of a wardrobe can be the escape route. With several cats, see our guide to a cat tree for several cats.
A route above the dog
A 70 cm hanging bridge strung between two solid wood platforms fixed to the wall: your cat does not just sit up high, it gets around, and the floor stays the dog's. Discover the cat wall shelves →
The safe room: what to put in it so your cat settles
The safe room is a room the dog never enters, closed by a door or by a baby gate the cat can get past and the dog cannot. According to Dr Chevallier, once it knows it can fall back there, the cat will gradually come closer to the dog.
According to the RSPCA, it should hold a litter tray, hiding places, high spots, food, water, toys, a scratcher and a bed. Dr Chevallier suggests spending time there with your cat, with cuddles, play or treats, without the dog.
For the hiding place, a felt cat cave can do the job: a cat that hides under the bed or in a box is looking for a covered spot of its own, where it can see without being seen, and the cave gives it that corner, with an opening on the side. Only in the dog-free zone, though: sitting on the floor and open, it is no refuge if the dog can get to it.
Old cat and new puppy: how do you introduce them?
Introducing a young dog to an old cat takes more patience: according to Muriel Alnot, it is harder than a kitten meeting an old, settled dog. The RSPCA's steps, each taken only once both are calm:
- Keep them fully apart, and swap cloths carrying each other's scent for a few days.
- Let each one explore the other's territory in turn, with no contact.
- Let them see each other through a gate, the dog calm in a harness on a loose lead, for sessions of five minutes at most.
- Let them share a room without the gate, the dog on its lead, the cat always with a way out.
- Let the dog off the lead, under supervision, lead left trailing, usually after a few weeks on the lead.
Allow at least a week, sometimes a few, according to the RSPCA. And never hold the cat so the dog can sniff it: according to Dr Chevallier, that closed, frightening situation can trigger very violent attacks, on the dog as well as on the people present.
When does a cat scared of the dog need a professional?
When introductions are not moving forward, or either animal stays stressed or agitated, the RSPCA advises seeking help from your vet and a veterinary behaviourist. A cat that stops eating, hides all the time or toilets elsewhere since the dog arrived needs the vet, not a piece of furniture. So does serious aggression between the two: no home set-up fixes it alone.
Frequently asked questions
How long will my cat hide after the dog arrives?
According to Dr Chevallier, the stage of watching from a distance often lasts a few days, during which the cat is also more distant with people. If it stops eating or never leaves its hiding place at all, take it to the vet.
My cat has been scratching me since the dog arrived: is it angry with me?
No. According to Dr Chevallier, a stressed cat tolerates less and can redirect its aggression towards its people. Do not scold it or chase it: leave it alone for a few hours in its safe room, in peace.
Can you leave the cat and the dog alone together?
Not until you are sure they tolerate each other and the dog has learnt not to chase the cat, according to the RSPCA. Until then, separate them when you go out.
Key takeaways
- A cat that is scared of the dog must always be able to escape: up high, or into a room the dog never enters.
- The cat's food, water and litter tray belong out of the dog's path, in a cat-only area.
- A route up high only protects the cat if the dog can neither reach it standing up nor climb the furniture that leads to it.
- Introductions take at least a week; a cat that stops eating or hides all the time should see the vet.