Introducing lab pup to "opinionated" adult Savannah

[katnoir]

Meet my very opinionated 5 year old F4 Savannah cat, Zuri. Our almost 24 lb cat thinks that he runs our house. He is a play machine and loves to play tag with my children and I... Until he decides to use his teeth instead of a paw to tag us then the game has to stop. So we decided that he would do well with a companion to play with, other than our four-year-old dsh Tabby who just likes to sleep all day.

We pick up our new eight and a half week old lab pup next weekend. The puppy will not be crate trained yet, although we will have a crate here once he arrives. We know we need to keep them separated when not supervised, but we wonder if we should have extra concerns about our oh so energetic and opinionated Savannah. Are there extra measures or introduction tips anyone can suggest beyond keeping one of them crated during the introduction.? How long might one expected this introduction period to last, before we could feel comfortable having them running free in the house together?

We are newbies at introducing dogs and cats so any thoughts are appreciated.

Kat

 

[Patti]

Your lab puppy is going to be very exhuberant and want to play as well. I would start introducing them by making sure one or the other is in the crate. See how they interact through the wire before you let them meet face to face. You may have to do this several times before they start accepting the existence of the other. Once they seem friendly to each other you can try introducing them without the crate. I would keep a close eye on them, at least to start with, because your Savannah can cause some serious pain if he decides the puppy is getting a little too exhuberant. Eventually over time, they will learn how to play well together, but this will probably take some learning of boundaries on both their parts, and they will probably continue to need close supervision until they get to that point.

 

[katnoir]

Thanks so much for the advice! We also plan to clip the cat's claws next week just before puppy arrives. Her fingers are crossed that our big cat will be more curious than aggressive. He is really still full of "spit and vinegar", so to speak. Thanks again!

Your lab puppy is going to be very exhuberant and want to play as well. I would start introducing them by making sure one or the other is in the crate. See how they interact through the wire before you let them meet face to face. You may have to do this several times before they start accepting the existence of the other. Once they seem friendly to each other you can try introducing them without the crate. I would keep a close eye on them, at least to start with, because your Savannah can cause some serious pain if he decides the puppy is getting a little too exhuberant. Eventually over time, they will learn how to play well together, but this will probably take some learning of boundaries on both their parts, and they will probably continue to need close supervision until they get to that point.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

I would just make sure you supervise and then take your cues from that... although your cat is likely going to be the more dominant, he's not necessarily going to hurt your puppy. Clipping the claws is a good thought though as his slaps and hisses will be enough warning