Adult Basenji and Adult Cats
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Just adopted a two-year-old black/white basenji named Zimir. We just brought him home last night. So far, so good with the cats. Two of them are totally keeping their distance. However, Mittens, our oldest gray has already established himself as alpha. One swipe to the nose and Zimir is keeping a respectful distance…at least for now. He has not been through basic obedience training, so that is my first objective. Wish me luck! He seems to be a very sweet dog.
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Zimir is more comfortable with the house. However, I was wrong when I said basic obedience training is the first objective. The first objective is housebreaking! He's okay with peeing outside, but has twice come inside from a walk and then pooped! Most of the housebreaking articles are all about puppies, but I suppose some information is better than none. I guess it will just take time and patience!
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Just make sure you take him outside a lot and wait until he has done everything, well if he has to. I clicker trained my boy to go outside when he was a puppy, he caught on real quick. But then he started to go and I would click and he would stop and come back for his treat. Then I waited until he was done before I clicked and then he would come running over for his cookie. They are very smart and will catch on quickly. I am surprised that he comes in from his walk and then poops. I wonder if he didn't get taught that at his other home…..
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I'm certain part of the issue stems from the fact he previously lived in a kennel. He had the run of a fenced area and could defecate whenever he needed to. We will just need to walk him frequently and for longer periods of time. Perhaps the traffic noise has something to do with it as well. It still has him a little unnerved. His previous home was well out into the country. I grew up with dogs who were abandoned in the country where we lived. With time an patience, they all adjusted eventually.
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We just adopted a 2yr 9 month old Basenji mix named Marley. He had two previous owners and is pretty obedient though his independence does shine through. We have a 9 year old black cat named Cassie who has been in a household with 2-3 other dogs her whole life and gotten along fine, but her front claws have been removed.
Upon getting Marley we followed the basic introduction guidelines; having them in separate areas where they couldn't see each other, but still get used to the scents, then slowly introducing in controlled environment etc. The interaction has gotten better. Cassie won't run and won't hiss or swat right off the bat, but Marley still snaps at her. This isn't a playful nip, it is a open mouth intent to bite.
We thought at first he just wanted to lick her and just nipped because he felt she was tense and would hiss and swat, but even with Cassie calm, Marley tries to bite. He is negatively reinforced for the bad behavior and positively reinforced when he is calm/doesn't lunge when he sees her, but when he is allowed to get close enough the biting tendency still has not stopped. It has been about a week. Marley, supposedly, used to play with a cat once in awhile, but since Cassie doesn't have her front claws, we are worried that Marley won't resist the urge to bite her and she has no defense. If Marley is loose in the house, Cassie tends to stay in the area of the house we have designated as hers and do not allow Marley to go, but we don't want her to feel trapped in there.
Is there any hope for this pair to become friendly or at least be able to be comfortable around each other in the same environment? Any advice would help! Thanks!
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We had 3 indoor cats when we adopted our first B, Bitty. The only adjustment required was the cats learned to move through the house up high enough that Bitty could not reach them, after a little over a month the cats came down Bitty ignored them. When Mr Baroo came to us 3 years later the cats sat him down and lectured him on proper dog/cat behavior. Then when Buddy joined us last summer the cats seemed to give up and now they all sleep in a puppy/kitty pile when it gets chilly. In fact our youngest kitty, SassyCat, has decidec that she is the only solid grey BasenjiCat in the world.
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Jessica, I hate the be the nay sayer, but you have to decide if your cat's life is worth the risk. It does not sound good and I frankly would not hold out a lot of hope of it continuing. Not going to address the no front claws because even with claws, a determined dog will kill a cat. If you cannot totally separate them so you know the cat is safe, I personally would advise you to return the dog and wait til you can get a pup or one that is TRULY cat friendly.
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I would agree with Debra that you can't trust that things will work out. It is early days, so anything is possible, but the cat's safety likely depends on whether you are prepared to keep them separate, certainly anytime you can't supervise. Claws won't prevent an attack. My friend's Jack Russell killed one of her barn cats, most likely because the cat spiked him and set him off. They had been in a state of "armed neutrality" up until then.
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Ours were raise with three cats. Two who were hand fed (both rescues). They all "respect" each other.
Our third cat is part Savannah according to the vet. The cat weighs over 25 lbs and is an accomplished hunter. The only issue those two had is when the BJ tried to take away a rat. The cat won that argument but did leave the tail for the dog. Those two wrestle. Other Bj owners have posted similar photos, the only difference is that with the Savannah mix, the dog and cat are closer in weight.
