Lurchers and cats? And playing?

[Oneofthepack]

Hi, some of you might remember I found a lurcher recently (not posted about her again for reasons I can explain in about 8 days!)

She's a good girl but 2 probems have occured. One, she bloody hates my poor cat. 2 of the others are a bit fixated but do allow him into the room but you can tell this one would kill him in a flash. Has anyone ever managed to cure what is probably a working lurcher of their instinct to kill small furries?

The other problem is she is getting very playful and is dying to play and muck about with the others but they are all so damn grumpy. None of them really play nicely together probably because they all had 'issues' when I got them, although they will all have a game with me and tuggies etc. She nudges them and tries to join in with the toys but they just growl or ignore her and she's giving up trying which is really sad. Would some sort of play therapy work or any other suggestions?

 

[_Acolyte_]

Hmmm, this might not help, but Flick was dying to play with Islay right from the start and got soundly told off for her efforts

After they had had a couple of spats (where only Flick managed to draw blood

) then Flick learned not to bother Islay. Until this week, when I let them off for a play together and ISLAY was the one chasing Flick around and inciting her to play

None of my rescues have ever played together/shared the same bed - but I am hoping that these two will get it together as proper friends now, and am just waiting to see what happens

But as far as the small furries are concerned.... nope, they would all die with all of mine

Cala has probably re-trained one though

 

[TarrSteps]

Oooh . . . I have no personal experience but I have to say, the people I know who rehome rescue greyhounds generally seem pretty pessimistic about the possible rehoming with cats of older/working dogs that don't seem small furry friendly off the top. They test carefully and seem to be able to tell which will be trainable from the first meeting. Of course, they don't go further with the ones that seem very sharp so hard to tell how it might work out in the long run.

Mine is working bred but never worked and doesn't care one way or the other about the cat in the general run of things, although they do play "slow chase" in the house now, can be on the bed together, and seem to get on okay. BUT he was young (4 months or so) when we got him and had already been successfully tested . . . so I'm not very helpful, am I?

 

[Cluny]

I can understand the problems you are having! My first saluki cross lurcher lived very happily side by side with my two cats, but sadly my whippet x grey lurcher girl saw it as her mission to ride the world of cats.

In the end my cat had to go and live with my Mum, he didn't mind though, acres of his own to roam and a nice barn to live in with his bed ontop of a pile of haybales.

I think it'll be very hard to rid a sight hound of it's chase instincts, especially one that's trained to work.

 

[Bosworth]

I did it - my old lurcher bitch Holly was a rescue - she was a travellers dog and 9 months old when i got her. The moment she walked in the door she saw one of my 3 cats and went for it. luckily i was quicker than her - half expecting her to do it. So I slapped her really hard. she stopped and looked shocked. Every single time she went for the cat she was smacked hard. It took one night of continuous vigilence and she learned that it was not a good idea to go for my cats.

In the house we own now I have one cat - Bob a rescue cat, I have 2 lurchers who own Bob, and he accepts that he will be poked, squashed and washed by these two. However he will not run from dogs he just stands and looks at them. So it is far far easier to stop dogs attacking him as he gives them nothing to chase. We have a holiday cottage for rent on our farm and holiday makers come down every week and most bring dogs and we have lots of friends come to stay who bring their dogs. Bob has not been attacked by any dog although plenty have tried. I do exactly the same, if it looks as though they are going to attack I will smack the dog hard and shout no. Bob will quite happily smack a long nose if it pokes into his domain and between the two sets of punishment they soon learn that rats are far more fun.

You have to be totally consistant, and vigilent. You have to ensure you mean it and the dog has respect for you so that when you say leave it it leaves it. And don't be afraid to back up the vocal command with a smack. It is short term pain for a lifelong result. I can take my lurchers anywhere and know they will behave with any cats ducks or chickens. Now rabbits and guineapigs and hamsters or gerbils are a different matter. But luckily they are in cages.

 

[Cluny]

LOL Bosworth and when Sky came to stay she learnt too!

 

[CAYLA]

It certainly can be done......I have gotten prob clost 20, in the last few months alone, esp as lurchers are becoming more popular as pets, we also work along side greyhound rescue, so have done the same for them.

I usually work with them, one to one, and gain a little bit of respect from them, before I begin with the cat task, as Bosworth describes, the main factor is, the dog may well want to eat the cat......but has to get through you, or indeed me, first

which is not an easy or do-able task

Because I would ahev spent the time, learning the dog manors, on the lead, around other dogs, from there it learn what is an not acceptible, I always introduce them, when both the cat and other dogs are in a calm state, so no chase scenario, and sometimes I introduce them on a lead, and ,make them lie down, where they will watch the cat, for an eternity.....and also watch me out of the other eye, to see if im watching them.....which of course I am

If they ,move towards the cat, they are told LEAVE IT, in my most scarey voice, or a check with the check cahin, if still on lead, which from past experience.....makes them eager to want to please :grinn

I crate the dog when Im not there to supervise, again, they can watch the cat, and their is a barrier between them, the more they get used to a cat in a calm state, kittle movement, the more bored they becpme of them.

I personally find lurchers, whipps, and greys easier to cat train, then terriers and bull breeds.

 

[Oneofthepack]

Thanks for the replies, at least I know it can be done.She was giving him the evil eye yesterday but we've done a nice slow introduction today with me on a chair next to the cat's windowsill and the dog with her head on my lap having strokes and like you said CALA everytime she leaned forward I scruffed her and said NO very firmly and she seemed to accept it fairly well. I don't thik we'll ever be at the stage of leaving them alone in a room but at least maybe I can sit there in the evening without keeping one eye on the cat.

The playing thing seems to have kicked off big time today too as we've just got back from a long walk where they all galloped round the field chasing and barking, except Alf who looked a bit startled by it all. They must have read my post

 

[FinnishLapphund]

HEAR HEAR to Bosworth and Cala.


As Bosworth mentions it also depends on the cat, it's great if you have a cat that doesn't run because prey-instinct is closely connected to reacting on movement in most dogs.
Or find a cat that really doesn't like dogs to teach the dog a lesson, though that comes with the risk of costly veterinary visits.


I've only had dogs that have been able to play with our cats with eyes full of mischief and enjoying the "play-hunt" but definitely not a thought about killing. But if they did, I would do what already have been described.


Good luck with the lurcher Oneofthepack.

ETS It's probably easier to train when you have one or more at home to practise on, because I presume that for dog owners like f. ex. Acolyte, the cats turns up on walks when they turn up and not necessarily when they're prepared to train anti-cat-hunting if you understand what I mean.

 

[Bosworth]

Bob my cat actually loves my little lurcher Poppy, he sits and waits for her outside the door every morning. And then rubs himself under her chin. Poppy will then put a paw on his back and squash him to the ground so she can clean his ears. For some reason she has a real ear fetish with him. The two of them go hunting together and frequently come back carrying a rat or a rabbit each. and Bob will happily give Poppy his kill, much the same as a cat will bring it home for a human. All the more remarkable as we got Bob as a feral cat from Cats protection. He was allegedly terrorising children at a school bus stop. My two lurchers poke him hard with their noses, squash him to the ground and still he goes out with them to the field and plays chase with them. I am not sure if he is convinced he is a dog, or he thinks they are both cats. They will all curl up together in the big barn if its raining

Yes Cluny - sky learnt pretty quick that Bob was not to be chased and I think she was smacked once, But she did have a big Bob nose scratch to really make sure she understood

 

[FinnishLapphund]

I've had a Persian cat that though she accepted my dogs and visiting dogs if they behaved themselves indoors, but outdoors she made her intentions very clear, if she couldn't run she was aiming to, well to judge by her growl, I'd say she aimed to kill more or less. If she could run indoors and hide, she'd soon be back out in our fenced in garden again to try and see if she couldn't reach and fight the dog...

Now we have one non-pedigree cat (Selma) and one Cornish Rex (Berta) and nobody comes into our house without Berta noticing = greetings, when the dogs go out for walks she can't sleep without waits for them to come home again, but it seems as if since they've seen Jonna's puppies since birth so to say, they are much more tolerant towards them than what f. ex. Selma has been towards the two 8 weeks old puppies she has experienced me bringing home earlier in her life. And now the two girls that stayed are soon 8 months and the cats still treats them like babies...




So love the image in my head of your Bob and Poppy coming back from a hunt carrying a rat or rabbit each.