Should I Get a Dog?

[quote]PGA200X wrote:
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Very funny!!

[quote]Natural Nate wrote:
You mean like your neighbor’s pet cats or wild ones?

If I ever found out a dog had killed my cat I’d go after the dog and gut it.

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I’d just go out and get a one of these Stone cougars or some other wild-domestic cat hybrid and let it go to town on the chow.

[quote]Natural Nate wrote:
You mean like your neighbor’s pet cats or wild ones?

If I ever found out a dog had killed my cat I’d go after the dog and gut it.

Lorisco wrote:

Just so you know, I have had two full Chows and they kill most anything that gets in the yard, particularly cats. They have killed cats, rats, squirrels, possums, birds, etc. Anything in their space is pray.
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Wouldn’t happen if the stupid cat didn’t go into private property. The owners should keep them in the house not running around ruining shit such as my car’s paint, trash, patio furniture.

[quote]Natural Nate wrote:
You mean like your neighbor’s pet cats or wild ones?
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I think it was wild. No one ever claimed it.

You would have a hard time defending that to the police; going into someone else’s yard after their dog. Idiot!

If your cat goes into someone else’s yard where you know they have dogs it’s your fault.

Just a hint sport, your neighbors yard is NOT your yard. So if your cat goes there when you have been warned about the dogs, you are shit out of luck and a dumb ass as well.

Ps - unless you are armed and know how to use it quickly that chances are that you would be the one gutted and it would be justified as you were the intruder. Dumb ass!

[quote]GaMeOvEr305 wrote:
Natural Nate wrote:
You mean like your neighbor’s pet cats or wild ones?

If I ever found out a dog had killed my cat I’d go after the dog and gut it.

Lorisco wrote:

Just so you know, I have had two full Chows and they kill most anything that gets in the yard, particularly cats. They have killed cats, rats, squirrels, possums, birds, etc. Anything in their space is pray.

Wouldn’t happen if the stupid cat didn’t go into private property. The owners should keep them in the house not running around ruining shit such as my car’s paint, trash, patio furniture.
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Amen brother!

If you have an animal you better damn well keep it off of other people property or live with the consequences.

[quote]rg73 wrote:
Natural Nate wrote:
You mean like your neighbor’s pet cats or wild ones?

If I ever found out a dog had killed my cat I’d go after the dog and gut it.

I’d just go out and get a one of these Stone cougars or some other wild-domestic cat hybrid and let it go to town on the chow.

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That might work until it met the 110lb Aikita I also have! (A dog used by the Japanese for hunting bears)

Game over!

[quote]nolecat wrote:
Alex630 wrote:
I think it depends on the dog’s temperment. I’ve heard that chows can be pretty vicious, though my uncle’s Lab just attacked a smaller dog, so…There’s some anecdotal evidence for you, for what it’s worth.

Yeah, I’ve been doing some reading this afternoon and apparently the lab/chow mix is very territorial and a aggressive. I’ll have to think this one over.

I had a Chow/golden mix, very territorial, but a great family dog. He was a great dog once you were introduced, but you definately did not want to suprise him!!! We got him at about 8 months from the pound and he was very skittish, I think he had been abused. He never bit anyone, but he looked 70 pounds of teeth when suprised.

Never had to worry about leaving my house unattended with him there. The golden/collie mix I have now, would lead them to the safe for a little attention.
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I have lots of experience with this situation. I’ve got two cats; one a laid back, male, indoor cat; the other a strong, female, outdoor cat. We had a cocker spaniel, RIP, and she got along with both of them wonderfully, and she could be a crazy bitch sometimes. Get a small dog and, odds are, the dog will be more frightened than the cat if anything!

[quote]Lorisco wrote:

Chows are also very aggressive with other dogs and will take on larger dogs and do quite well because of just how aggressive they are. They have the same biting strength as a pit bull.

But, being part Lab it may be that it is more mellow and less aggressive, like labs.

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My chow/golden mix loved playing with other dogs. He never started a fight but, I saw him end two in short fashion. Funny thing is, he had his ass handed to him twice by cat’s. Loved to chase them, just unsure what to do once he caught them.

Congrats on not just rushing in and getting a dog and regretting it later. That is probably one the most common mistakes. My wife and I have 2 cats and 1 Dog. We had the cats before the dog so here are a couple of suggestions.

Ask the pound if they will see how the dog reacts to cats. They usually take the dog to see a cat in a carrier or something. If the dog is just generally curious and wants to check the cat out(tail wagging, dog still happy), that is a good sign that the dog has the potential to coexist with cats after some appropriate training. If the dog’s dispostion changes, ie growling, baring teeth, becoming quiet and intently following the cat with his eyes, then that is a sign the dog veiws the cat as an enemy/lunch. A dog like that may be able to be trained (by someone with lots of dog experience)to coexist with cats, but should NEVER be trusted to be alone with a cat.

Our dog fell into the first group. Training for the first 3 weeks went as follows.

If he was not in his crate, he was on leash. (long leash for playing fetch in the yard, short leash attached to my belt when in the house). Yes, the dog was at my side for most of the day, for 3 weeks(I work from home). Basically this gave me the ability to instantly correct the dog if he did something bad (lunge at the cat, paws up on the counter, chew furniture, etc), or reward him if he did something good (lie down peacefully, sit when receiving dinner, remain calm when the cats tried to sniff him, etc). This work really well and gave the dog a very good understanding of what we expected of him, and as a result he is welcome at all our freinds houses. I only hope our kids (when we have them)will be as well behaved.

Other stuff to consider…

Don’t actually let the dog and cat meet for a couple of days. Keep them seperated. When the dog is outside let the cat roam around and get used to the dogs smell. This should ease things a bit.

Do not leave the cat and dog alone together for any lenght of time until you are sure they are best friends (will take weeks/months for the dog, the cat may take longer). It is quite possible that it may never be a good idea to leave them alone, it will depend on the dispostion of the dog.

Be ready for some “accidents” on the part of the cat as she displays her distain for the new animal. Be patient and give here lots of love and attention (well, OK, YOU don’t have to do this, your wife can give the cat attention).

Make sure the cat has a room with its food and litter that the dog can not get to. We put a cat door to our laundry room, so the cats can be hide from the dog when they have had enough. Of course now they are all good friends.

Read lots of books, because I am just some guy online with no pet training creds other than a well behaved dog.

Cheers, and good luck.
BigUruk

[quote]Testy1 wrote:
Lorisco wrote:

Chows are also very aggressive with other dogs and will take on larger dogs and do quite well because of just how aggressive they are. They have the same biting strength as a pit bull.

But, being part Lab it may be that it is more mellow and less aggressive, like labs.

My chow/golden mix loved playing with other dogs. He never started a fight but, I saw him end two in short fashion. Funny thing is, he had his ass handed to him twice by cat’s. Loved to chase them, just unsure what to do once he caught them.
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My full Chow is actually very social with humans as long as I’m around and ok with it. So in that respect he is contrary to the typical Chow breed. But if I’m not there then he is not social and defends his territory.

The 70 pound Chow is actually the alpha male over my other dog (Aikita) who is 110 pounds. I’m just glad the Aikita is ok with it and mellow as Aikitas are brutally strong and could take out the Chow if it wanted too.

Are you kidding me? Give me a blade or 2 and that dog’s going down, I don’t care what kind it is. No contest. I’ve got a much longer reach and all I have to worry about is the stupid thing’s mouth

The only reason people think a dog could take down a human is because the dog always attacks aggressively and the human tries to defend himself and run away. But if you put a dog against an adult male human that knew a little about fighting and was INTENT on WINNING the fight . . . you’ve got yourself one dead dog.

[quote]Lorisco wrote:

Ps - unless you are armed and know how to use it quickly that chances are that you would be the one gutted and it would be justified as you were the intruder. Dumb ass!

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in college i shared a house with some girls who had a couple cats. another girl who came over alot had a chow. after a couple months the cats seemd used to the chow visiting and there were never any incidents. one day we were standing around bullshitting in the kitchen and one of the cats went to her food dish and started eating when outta nowhere the chow rag-dolled her.

See, perfect example where I’d get stab-happy.

[quote]swivel wrote:
in college i shared a house with some girls who had a couple cats. another girl who came over alot had a chow. after a couple months the cats seemd used to the chow visiting and there were never any incidents. one day we were standing around bullshitting in the kitchen and one of the cats went to her food dish and started eating when outta nowhere the chow rag-dolled her. [/quote]

[quote]Natural Nate wrote:
Are you kidding me? Give me a blade or 2 and that dog’s going down, I don’t care what kind it is. No contest. I’ve got a much longer reach and all I have to worry about is the stupid thing’s mouth

The only reason people think a dog could take down a human is because the dog always attacks aggressively and the human tries to defend himself and run away. But if you put a dog against an adult male human that knew a little about fighting and was INTENT on WINNING the fight . . . you’ve got yourself one dead dog.

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yea right,you can tell that to my 75 lb pitbull as he removes your throat from your body. regardless, of what your intention was. :slight_smile:

As a general rule I don’t trust chows or dalmatians at all, have no faith in akitas behaving well around other animals, and I stay away from pitbulls with idiotic owners.

As to toughguy who would trespass on someones property with the intent of gutting a dog for whatever reason…give your head a shake man! If you own an outdoor cat then it’s a chance you take that your fluffy is stupid enough to invade a dogs domain and pay the price. Pet owners have to be responsible enough to keep control of their precious ones, be they feline or k9.

housecats can get pretty stupid from being inside all the time. when the get out they have no idea. tourists in the wrong part of town.

Bust into somebody’s yard to kill their dog, and it’ll be the owner gutting you, he won’t care what happened to your cat.

[quote]Natural Nate wrote:
Are you kidding me? Give me a blade or 2 and that dog’s going down, I don’t care what kind it is. No contest. I’ve got a much longer reach and all I have to worry about is the stupid thing’s mouth

The only reason people think a dog could take down a human is because the dog always attacks aggressively and the human tries to defend himself and run away. But if you put a dog against an adult male human that knew a little about fighting and was INTENT on WINNING the fight . . . you’ve got yourself one dead dog.

Lorisco wrote:

Ps - unless you are armed and know how to use it quickly that chances are that you would be the one gutted and it would be justified as you were the intruder. Dumb ass!

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I have nice scars on both my forearms from my brothers chow. My mother had a vein ripped out of her arm by the same dog.

If you do get a puppy, introduce him to the cat by means of a closed door. This way they can smell each other under the door, and back away if one gets scared. My female cat was quite upset when I brought home my male cat, but after a while this method worked to make them friends.

Slowly allow them into each others enviorment by taking one out of the room. This way they get to know each sight unseen before you introduce them face to face.

[quote]Dirty Tiger wrote:
Most adult dogs end up in pounds because they behave badly.

I’d get a puppy. The cat will own it.[/quote]

Yeah, and the reason they behaved badly was because their owners didn’t know what they were doing. But unfortunately, you are probably right. Its better to get a puppy, IF you are willing and able to properly socialize it.

I would suggest watching the Dog Whisperer because he does a great job of explaining the basics: Only give affection when the dog is calm and submissive, walk the dog for at least half an hour every day, be calm and assertive, etc.

There is actually an episode where he gets an aggressive dog to live in peace with a cat. He basically just brings the dog into the room with the cat, and any time the dog shows interest in the cat, he gives a “correction” which is just a tug on the leash. Of course if you attempt this, you have to remain calm the whole time. Its all pretty self-evident, but its amazing how quickly we humans let our emotions get out of hand in those kinds of situations.