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Cairns and Cats


AKP79

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So I just recently bought an 8 week old cairn. My cat has dwelled peacefully with our German Shepherd, but she was not happy about the new pup. She likes to observe him, but if he gets close or barks at him she hisses. I mostly keep him in the carrier or in a separate room with a gate when they interact, but I'm trying to train him to let her be, so he doesn't end up attacked by our feisty cat. Any good tips on training. Dax prob won't mind him chasing her once she's comfortable with him, but I want him to learn control too. Help?

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Is this your first Cairn? What's his name? He will learn to coexist. I have two outside cats that Dempsy would love to chase ALL the time, but the cats set the rules. Most of the time Dempsy is disappointed that the kitties don't run from him - but if the kitties are in the mood they will let Demps chase them at their own speed. :) It's probably a good idea to watch for awhile, but I do think they will be ok together. Is your cat declawed? at any rate I still think they will adjust. Good luck and enjoy your new addition.

Elsie, Max, Meeko & Lori

 

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i think most cairns will push and bother cats until they find out that the feeling is not mutual. cairns, like the rest of us, come into the world thinking that whatever they think is fun is what others think is fun. your cairn might have to take a swipe to the nose before he finds out that hissing and glaring means beat it kid you bother me.

Edited by pkcrossley
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our cat started out not willing to be in the same room as our cairn, now she tolerates him being in the same room, but is def. not as happy to see him as he is to see her.  she will sit on the back of the sofa and look down disapprovingly, and sit on the top step of the basement hissing at him whenever he notices her and dares to stick his head in the kitty door.  Sometimes when we have him in his fence she will sit outside and growl and hiss like its a favorite hobby of hers. lol  

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One awesome husband plus, 4 kids, 2 fur babies (also known as dogs!) 2 turtles and one cat = one wonderful life!!
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I had a close encounter with a cat in the field opposite.Muffin was about 6 ft away.She clearly saw it but didn't chase. My Oh was out walking one day, Muffin stopped so he turned and she was almost nose to nose with a cat. 

 

I don't know her history as she was a stray but it appears she is used to cats.She will try to chase almost anything else.

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All our current Cairns got brought into a house where cat(s) were a fixture.  With my first Cairn, Holdsworth, Arcadia kitty

was brought home while he was still a puppy and she an inquisitive and not-shy kitten..  They used to play unendingly.

'Kady would lie in the middle of the rug, and Holdsworth would hop around her in circles and gently nip.  She would grab

his hair on either side of his face,and he would end up dragging her around a few feet.  It was really funny.

I miss them both very much.

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Max and Nelly
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  • 3 years later...

We have a Cairn (Kipper) who we rescued when he was about a year old. He is 7 now and has been the sole pet in our house (except for a gerbil). I would like to try and introduce a cat to our household, but not sure if this is stupid idea. While Kipper seems very barky and aggressive on walks, he is actually pretty submissive and a bit of a scaredy dog. He is standoffish with new people and when he encounters our neighbor's cat, they sniff each other and Kipper acts jumpy and if the cat makes any sudden move, he darts out of the way. So I can't really see him being aggressive toward a cat. If anything, the cat would be the one that was the more dominant animal. But I recently read an article that listed Cairns as being one of the breeds that in general does NOT get along well with cats, so I don't know.  My plan was to try and temporarily foster a cat (with the option to adopt if all goes well), so that we could first see how it got along with Kipper, and to see if my daughter had any allergy problems being around a cat. Any advice would be appreciated.

Edited by Renee
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My only personal Cairn experience has been with Buffy and she hates cats with a passion.  This is not to say that *all* Cairns hate cats because I have heard of situations where the two have managed to live together.  Be forewarned, however, that Kipper's reaction to a cat may be different when the cat is inhabiting Kipper's kingdom. 

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I can be of no help--cats are public enemy number two (vile squirrels are in first place) to our Cairns.  Cats are to be chased and abused at every opportunity and it is a behavior that we have never been able to modify.  Even a whispered "Kitty!" in this house is enough to make both Cairns look like mini-battle cruisers --ears up, hair up, tails up, all guns loaded, aimed, and ready to fire!
Co-existence with cats is not on the table.
It's not as if I encourage the behavior or anything but, I do have examples.  "The Christmas Cat" reveals the entire repertoire of Bonnie and Sam's verbal curses.  Enjoy!
 

 

 
 

 

Edited by Idaho Cairns
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Gus actually has had a couple of cat friends. They belong(ed) to good friends where we visit a lot and, being older cats who met Gus as a puppy, they never ran from him and he never chased them. Two of them are gone now but Gus and Elmo still touch noses when they meet up. However, all other cats are a totally different matter. Both my kids have cats and Gus has tangled with them and usually comes out worse. He had a close encounter in a dark room with an obese three-legged cat that beat the snot out of him. I am sure they can learn to live together, but in my experience it is easier if the Cairn is young and the cat is old! If the cat runs, the chase is on and it's a vicious cycle.

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Do not have a cat with Angus but had cats with other dogs including terriers. Cat is always boss.

I do not think I could have a cat with Angus. He goes ballistic if the neighbor cats enter the yard or are even distantly visible across the road or in the trees.

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Hm. This is sounding like not the greatest idea. My daughter especially will be disappointed. Bunnies and guinea pigs are clearly out of the question! I really wanted a kitty too. Kipper barks his brains out when he sees a cat outside, like he wants to have a go at it, but he does the same to dogs, even to dogs he knows! 

Edited by Renee
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We have three cats and two Cairns. The Cairns,  Jack & Belle, get along well with two of the cats, Mother & Bubba. The third cat, Sissy, lives by herself in the gated living room with a private doggie dog for outside access and does not get along with the dogs nor the dogs with her!

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Additional information.  These two species integrate the best when one or both of them are young.  That way there are no
 predisposed notions.  For Holdsworth and Arcadia, it was a big, fun game.  :)

 

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Max and Nelly
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I agree with Tara, It is easier if one is young. If I wanted a cat it would be a kitten, because my Cairns are grown. It's not impossible either way, but like Tara I believe it is easier when one is very young. I have noticed through the years that it is different when a cat is not suppose to be there (like a neighbors cat or a stray comes into your yard) Than when the cat is brought into the home to live. Most dogs know the difference.

It has also been my experience that most dogs know the difference between a cat and a baby kitten. It has also been my experience that a cat recognizes the difference between a dog and a puppy, and both will be more gentle with the babies.

For instance a neighbors cat comes up to our fence Kelly (my Cairn) takes off growling, and barking acting like she will tear its head off. A kitten came up to our fence one day and Kelly payed with it through the fence and was ever so gentle with it.

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Well maybe it's not totally out of the realm of possibility then, esp. if I get a young kitty. I agree that dogs are smart enough to know if the interloper animal is a "friend" or "prey/stranger." We have a gerbil who is about 4 years old, and at first Kipper was very curious and wanted to mess with it, but once he realized it was a pet, he left it alone. I know it would be more difficult for a cat to coexist with a gerbil, esp. given the "climb-y" nature of cats. I told my daughter I would not even consider getting a cat until the gerbil has passed on. Well, little elderly Sprinkles is on her last legs, I can tell. Poor wee mite. 

Edited by Renee
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56b29509302af_P1010002(800x556).jpg.a1d156b295277e25b_008(640x510).jpg.fb22ac33856b2954116b87_P1010410(800x600).jpg.b27bI think the idea of having a foster kitty is a good idea.  But you know every kitty and dog will have a different relationship, just like people.  Some people you like and some you don't.  But fostering will give you a good idea.  This kitty was found by Elsie and they are best friends.  Dempsy also likes kitty, but Elsie and kitty bonded from the start.  I think Elsie would like kitty better if she didn't have her front claws, sometimes she gets ruff - but I like cats to have their claws.  They continue to share a bed to this day. :) 

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Elsie, Max, Meeko & Lori

 

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Another thing to remember is that the litter box will have to be in a place the pup can't reach, because most dogs love poopsicles ! Our terriers  have always hated cats with a passion and I have no doubt that there would be a blood bath on both sides if war ensured. If both are still babies I can see it working out. I still shudder when years ago while going to high school, I had a part time job at a vet clinic. A fluff ball of a younger dog (probably Maltese ) tangled with a cat and came into the clinic with its eyeball lying down out of the socket on its cheek. It's was obviously beyond repair and had to be removed. Ever since then I have a great respect for cats and their will to live!

Until one has loved an animal, a part of  one's soul remains unawakened.  - Anatole France

Adventures with Sam &Rosie

 

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Well the gerbil has passed on. :( RIP, little Sprinkles. She had a good run.

Those photos of kitty and Cairn are sooo sweet! What a nice outcome.

I have definitely thought of the litter box dilemma. We have a basement so that's where I was thinking of putting it, and putting a kitty flap in the door. But I'm guessing either Kipper could go through it too, or get stuck in it! So I will have to give that some thought. Maybe up high. I don't know how kitties feel about pooping not at ground level though. Kipper is not much of a jumper, that's for sure.

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21 hours ago, Renee said:

Well the gerbil has passed on. :( RIP, little Sprinkles. She had a good run.

Those photos of kitty and Cairn are sooo sweet! What a nice outcome.

I have definitely thought of the litter box dilemma. We have a basement so that's where I was thinking of putting it, and putting a kitty flap in the door. But I'm guessing either Kipper could go through it too, or get stuck in it! So I will have to give that some thought. Maybe up high. I don't know how kitties feel about pooping not at ground level though. Kipper is not much of a jumper, that's for sure.

That's where baby gates come in!

Max and Nelly
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5 hours ago, tlwtheq said:

That's where baby gates come in!

Building on what Tara said, they make gates with cat doors, which depending on the size of your cat and your Cairn would let the cat through but keep the Cairn out. I particularly like this one (http://www.petsmart.com/dog/gates/carlson-pet-products-extra-tall-walk-thru-gate-zid36-6557/cat-36-catid-100092;pgid=xiFoqHuMfLlSRp4U5nYj3Vng0000_O59J0pr;sid=BhblqT73RjLnqWhDIBCirQz9ych3ZVden248_cdv?var_id=36-6557&_t=pfm%3Dcategory) because it has a door on it, so I don't have to climb over the gate. 

"as far as i am concerned cairns are the original spirit from which all terriers spring, and all terriers are cairns very deep down inside." pkcrossley

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  • 4 years later...

Thank goodness no! A horrible and painful procedure banned in most provinces.

Until one has loved an animal, a part of  one's soul remains unawakened.  - Anatole France

Adventures with Sam &Rosie

 

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Ask at your local animal rescue. There may be one there. The cat I have now had already been declawed when I adopted her. Declawing is a cruel and crippling procedure which does not prevent the cat from trying to use her paws as if the nails and the bone were still there. 

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