Introducing a Puppy to Resident Cats with Olivia Healy

It's Training Cats and Dogs!

What happens when you introduce your two resident cats to the new puppy in your life? How can you keep everyone safe and happy while making sure you’ve time for all the furry members of your family? In our very first episode, Naomi talks to Olivia Healy, a trainer in California who has two high-maintenance cats, about her recent experiences temporarily housing puppies.

In this episode we discuss:

Fostering

• An introduction to kitten behavior at 2 or 3-7 weeks
• Fostering can give you an insight into how your resident animals can cope (if management and introductions are done correctly)
• Why you should be upfront with the shelter or rescue
• Bringing in a trainer to guide the process
• Getting to know different personalities and breeds
• How each new foster will teach you something

Enrichment for active cats

• How a lack of enrichment for active cats can lead to aggression.
• How do you figure out what the right enrichment activities are?
• What is the right amount of enrichment for your cats?
• How quickly can a lack of enrichment effect behavior?
• Right away
• A build up over time
• Working up to enrichment side by side by using a physical and visual barrier
• Graduating to a physical but no visual barrier
• Why Olivia recommends not free feeding.
• mealtimes for wet food with dry food in puzzles around if they are feeling peckish

Things to consider when adding a dog to a house with resident cats

• Space to separate and manage
• Stress and safety
• Trust in you and your environment
• Knowing when it’s too much for either animal
• Having enough time to focus on each animal
• What are the animals that you already have?
• Having contingency plans.
• Puppy vs. older dog?

Developing your own skills

• Reading body language
• Clicker mechanics

Teaching the cats skills

• Why teaching ahead of time is preferable
• Finding food motivators and practicing reinforcement strategies
• Targeting and station
• Directing without physical touch
• Station (portable)
• Look At That
• Creating predictability in schedule and actions

Who's in this episode?

Host - Naomi Rotenberg

https://www.instagram.com/praiseworthypets

https://www.praiseworthypets.com/

Olivia Healy

https://www.instagram.com/clickerkittens

https://www.praiseworthypets.com/

Resource Links

Canine Enrichment

for the Real World: Making It a Part of Your Dog's Daily Life

Cats vs. Dogs: The

Efficacy of Feliway FriendsTM and AdaptilTM Products in Multispecies Homes