Shelties and cats?

[Alabar]

I also have had two different kitties with my Shelties. Skye and Katie, our first family, were good buddies and playmates. They'd chase each other, and Katie loved to sit on the back of the couch and bop Skye's nose (no claws). Now our kitty Mario has lived with 4 different Shelties and done well with all. Asta and Ally basically ignored him, Brooke does also, and Faith LOVES Mario - follows him all around and tries to herd him. He wanks at her occasionally but then turns around and rubs his face on hers. I think Shelties in general are gentle enough to be good with cats.

Aww such a cute story!

Thank-you everyone for all your wonderful stories they really put my mind at ease. I'll start the breeder applications in the new year and hopefully find a good match.

 

[Kristi]

I wonder if the gender has anything to do with how well they get along. My male shelties have always gotten along better with my cats (all females), but saw a reply where the female dogs got along better with a male cat. One of my boys (when he was a puppy) 'adopted' a kitten we rescued - he'd groom her, they'd curl up & sleep together, he'd even back away when she walked up to his bowl. She'd play with the boys, but never the girls. She was never afraid of dogs, but the dogs would see another cat and you'd think they'd never seen one before.

Make sure your cats have a place where they can escape from the puppy and monitor their interactions. I know of someone who's puppy almost lost vision in one eye due to her cat's claws. And of course...keep the litterbox(es) somewhere the puppy can't get to it. One time I was dumb enough to think a hooded litterbox would suffice. Less than 24 hours later, while I was at work, one of my pups got 'stuck' while snacking at the 'litterbox buffet' and in her escape, dumped the entire contents of the litterbox. I can laugh about it now, but it really wasn't funny at the time.

 

[MissyGallant]

Our Casey got his head stuck in the opening of a hooded litter box. I was peacefully sitting on the couch and suddenly, there was the most earth shattering banging noise. He managed to get the hood off the box, but did not get the hood off him. His butt was sticking out of the end, and his solution was to just bang the hood against everything he could until it fell off. I managed to calm him down and extract him. Then I had to leave the room before falling over laughing. He never went near a litter box again. But we also used a baby gate to block that area off.

 

[Alabar]

I wonder if the gender has anything to do with how well they get along. My male shelties have always gotten along better with my cats (all females), but saw a reply where the female dogs got along better with a male cat. One of my boys (when he was a puppy) 'adopted' a kitten we rescued - he'd groom her, they'd curl up & sleep together, he'd even back away when she walked up to his bowl. She'd play with the boys, but never the girls. She was never afraid of dogs, but the dogs would see another cat and you'd think they'd never seen one before.

Make sure your cats have a place where they can escape from the puppy and monitor their interactions. I know of someone who's puppy almost lost vision in one eye due to her cat's claws. And of course...keep the litterbox(es) somewhere the puppy can't get to it. One time I was dumb enough to think a hooded litterbox would suffice. Less than 24 hours later, while I was at work, one of my pups got 'stuck' while snacking at the 'litterbox buffet' and in her escape, dumped the entire contents of the litterbox. I can laugh about it now, but it really wasn't funny at the time.

Hahaha! That's too funny! Cleaning it up would have been so much work though. That's a good thought to keep in mind for sure. We have a cat tree that is nearly 6 feet tall, and shelves in the bathroom that the cats like to sleep on, there's plenty of overhead spaces. Our home is busy ( it's predictable it's the same people every week) so I like to make sure they have somewhere to go.

The gender idea makes sense too, I've had mostly males animals in my life and they're generally calmer, the two girls I've had had been more feisty with everyone. ill keep that in mind too when it comes time. Thanks!