introducing cat to dog.

[jaemison]

so. unfortunatly, i've been a horrible mom to mr. miles davis. he's been through two moves already this year -- one in a car for two and a half hours, and will be going through another one in a week or two in the transition of us moving out of state. i've also moved him into an apartment where another cat lived -- and once he got used to that cat, and even had a little crush on her, my roommate had to give her up. now, i'm staying with some family until i can move into a rental house in a few weeks. they've got a cat, two dogs. i've been keeping him in my room because he doesnt really like dogs, but he and the cat have met quite often, because when i move again .. owen and his mom are coming too. and we'll be having mia the very active year old pit bull and her daddy.

SO MUCH CHANGE! he's already a fur licker off-er, but i he was doing that even before all this change happened and i became such a horrible mom, and so he's been doing that a little more -- i'm thinking some of it might be the litter i use, which is tidy cats and from reading another thread here i'll be changing that to natural pine litter for awhile to see. i want to make the next move as stress free as possible and would really like some pointers on that.

obviously he's already met owen -- and i caught them kissing the other day, can cats be gay? -- and owen's mom and he's already met mia's dad ... but he hasnt met mia. and i've been trying to keep him from the dogs here too. one could care less, the other just wants to play .. which is how mia's going to be. there was a slight encounter with maggie the playful mutt in the dark on accident the other day, which caused alot of hissing and screaming and when i turned the lights on he was all halloween kitty { he is black, you know .. arched back, puffed tail. halloween kitty } and surrounding him was like .. puffs of black fur, which was confusing in it's own right. i dont want to keep him locked up in my own house, and i dont feel like i should ..

so how can i make it easier for miles with the pit around? so far with him, cat to cat has been easy but i really dont think he likes dogs much. when he was about 4 and a half { he's just turned 3 on august 1 } he'd climbed up the christmas tree, and a boxer he was already wary of attacked the tree .. which caused miles to walk with a pimp limp for a week, and to never go near daisy again and run run run as fast as he could when he saw her.

so. please help! any suggestion would be great. even if the suggestion is .. make your posts shorter, lady. :D

[jaemison]

no, no. we'll have just another cat and a dog. the first cat has been long gone, given to a nice family when my OLD roommate couldnt keep her at her new place. my aunt and uncle have two dogs here where i'm staying -- they'll be staying here when we move. my cousin, who will be my NEW roommate, has owen. we'll just have owen, miles, and mia.

and yes, a vet checked him for fleas -- no go on that, he gave him a cortizone shot and explained how pets can get allergies just like humans can. the cortizone didnt really do much, he started licking it all off again within like a day and a half, when the vet told me it'd last a few weeks.

and i do have a rather large cat apartment already for him. so, that'll def' help. thanks!!

[Thomas Dock, CVJ, Vet. Technician]

Oh...and by the way...I think you are being a very good mom to Miles...you are obviously very concerned about his well-being!!  :-)

[Thomas Dock, CVJ, Vet. Technician]

Wow...you and your poor Miles have been through a lot of change recently!  I hope you all are getting to a point where you can start settling down!!

So, if I understand your post correctly, Miles will be living with 2 other cats and 2 dogs?  

One of the most important things for a peaceful introduction and transition is to take things slow and always know where everyone is!!  I would not leave any of the animals alone together for some time after the move to allow plenty of time for adjustment.  Believe it or not, Miles will probably appreciate having a space of his own without the dogs around.  Just make sure he has access to the litter box and, of course, his food and water.

Having some "cat furniture", like cat condos or cat trees can be helpful as a refuge from the dogs too.

With respect to the fur licking, has your veterinarian checked him for fleas?

Over in the Ask a Vet Expert section, we have a Behavior forum that is monitored by our veterinarians and by Dr. Suzanne Hetts, a certified applied animal behaviorist.   Also, Ms. Linda Case, another well known behavior expert watches and answers questions there.   You might post this question there to get their expert input!

Good luck on your moves and be sure to keep us posted!!