Rudy has a new kitten...

[Lolo76]

I would say that I got a new kitten, but it seems she prefers Rudy to me! I just rescued a kitty from outside my work, where she was hanging out with the homeless for a few weeks... she is absolutely adorable and sweet, but still a little skittish and recovering from getting spayed. I was worried about how she'd react to living with 2 dogs & 2 other cats, but apparently it's not a problem. She immediately ran up to Rudy when they met, and started rubbing against him and purring. He loves kitties, so of course he returned the affection... now she follows him around, sleeps with him, and even mews when he leaves the room. She also liked the other dog, and attempted to cuddle with my Persian cat (who still isn't sure about her). At one point she had Rudy licking her ears, while my roommate's dog was licking her back, and she loved it! I'm guessing she lived with a dog once, and it's also obvious she was not a feral but rather a stray. Anyway, just thought you'd like to hear the story - and see, dogs and cats CAN live in harmony.

Here's a picture of them together, and the kitten alone... no name yet, but I'm leaning towards Simone aka Mona (after my mom's cat Simon who died this year).

 

[smkie]

THat's AWESOME! My dog Bronki had a cat of his own once, they loved each other. I am so happy for RUdy!

 

[bubbatd]

Sweet !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[wishbone]

They are looking great together, so sweet to see the kitten is just doing fine and feels at home.

 

[Lolo76]

She's still a little skittish with people, and has been sleeping on a blanket under the bed... but she is very lovable when she comes out, and will come when Rudy "calls" her. She actually escaped through the cat/dog door this morning, and Rudy woke me up to show me where she went (on the patio, which is luckily secure). So cute!

 

[Lolo76]

Uh-oh... I discovered one thing they can't share - food. Rudy has some food-guarding issues, but it's only ever been with dogs. He let the kitten taste his food the other day, but just now he snarled at her when she tried his dinner. Luckily I caught it quickly, before he had a chance to hurt her. Is this a sign of bad things to come, or is it just a food issue? Obviously I won't be feeding him near her again, but I want to make sure I can trust them together in general. This really upset me...

 

[Lolo76]

Oh, and here's how I reacted to his little outburst... he got a sharp collar tug & NO, and then I isolated him in the hallway for a few minutes. I let him back in the room, and then claimed the food as mine - by holding it in my lap, and making him sit as I took it away every few bites. I also held him back for a moment, while I let my other cat approach his food, to remind him that the cats are Alpha (he usually respects their role). Was that a good reaction? I have a trainer who will be getting a call this week, but would like your opinions too.

 

[Punkygirl0101]

Aww, what a sweetie!

 

[ihartgonzo]

Awww, Rudy is such a sweetiepie. = ) And Simone is adorableee... you should call her Mony, like the Billy Idol song. hehe. Those two make a perfect couple.

As far as food guarding... eh... I don't mind growls/snarls, personally. He should definitely be fine with YOU messing with his food, but it's difficult to ask a dog not to guard it from other animals. As long as he's giving good warning signals, he's only communicating that he does not want to share, which is natural. Giving him a collar correction and a "no" when he gives warnings could do no more than discourage him from giving any warnings and going straight into snapping/biting, which is NOT good. For now, I would supervise diligently, and teach the cats to stay away from Rudy's food, as well as Rudy staying away from theirs. If you free-feed, I would switch right away to giving him 2 seperate meals per day, and only leaving the bowl down for 5-10 minutes. If a cat makes a move towards his bowl, I would either block the cat, use a squirt bottle, or whatever you'd like to use... OR I would feed Rudy in a seperate room or a crate. I would also get some yummy treats that both Rudy and the cats like, have them sitting in front of you, and alternate between giving each of them treats, and praise Rudy for being calm and eating near the cats.

 

[Lolo76]

Thank you for the advice, and for the compliments. Rudy doesn't really free-feed... I sometimes leave dry food out if I'm working late (Thursdays I'm usually gone for 13-14 hours), but he doesn't guard the dry food since he's not a big fan. His regular mealtime is at night, when he gets one can of Evanger's wet food, and he also gets a dehydrated chicken breast in the morning. Tonight I fed him in my bedroom as usual, and he wasn't interested at first - my dog is an anorexic, LOL. The kitten eventually walked up and started eating it, and he looked concerned... I just stood between them, praised Rudy for being patient, and waited until she was done. Then Rudy gently approached to eat, and even let my other cat join him for a minute. Seemed to work fine! While you did suggest deterring the cats from eating his food, I would like to try teaching him to tolerate it... he's always been fine with the other cats eating his food, so I think he's just confused about the kitten's role (which he will learn is Alpha). All good advice, though!

Btw, the kitten has been sleeping under my bed all weekend... but yesterday I woke up, and Rudy was laying next to me with the kitty curled up in him. How precious! I thought she'd run away when I sat up, but instead she moved over to cuddle with me for a while. I also noticed she tried to suckle Rudy's belly a few times, and that kinda freaks him out - he jumps straight in the air, and looks at her like she's crazy. LOL. Here are the latest shots from yesterday (from my crappy cell camera):

 

[Lolo76]

Oh, and here's a prettier picture of the yet-to-be-named kitten...

Please excuse the dirty floors, LOL - and that's my cat Cyrus' butt in the background.