So I recently got a 5 month kitten that I found out in the streets. Too friendly to be feral. I have a family dog that is about 2 years old now. Except for the initial interaction, I have kept them separate for the most part for almost a week now. Initial meeting wasn't the best; my dad was holding my dog, and I was holding the kitten. My dad let the dog loose and she jumped up on me excitedly, which prompted the kitten to scratch me everywhere and escape into the woods (thankfully came back). So... first impressions not so good. I've had them eat behind my door at the same time 3 times now and 2 face-to-face interactions with my dog on her leash. Today, we tested if they can do well without the leash, and I think for the most part, things went okay.
Kitten is weary of dog and will growl and scratch if dog gets too close. Dog knows not to get too close to kitten and will retract and walk away when swiped at. Dog either has tail wagging or covering her butt when around cat, so is friendly. Did not bark at him during this interaction. Dog mostly side-eyes cat or looks away, hardly looking directly at him. She only ran after the kitten once while I was distracting him with a toy, but I promptly stopped her. Good news is that both seem to be curious about the other, but kitten is being mean. At first I thought kitten may be acting curious, but am thinking he is more stalking the dog now. He will follow dog around and will swipe if he gets too close to the dog (yes, he puts himself in proximity to the dog where he feels unsafe...) When kitten feels safe, he will mind his own business. When I distract him with toys, he plays. He even napped a little bit while dog was around (about a meter and a half away). I put up a calming diffuser that claims to work for both cats and dogs, so hopefully that could help them. I just don't want kitten to become domineering and then my dog's quality of life has to suffer because of that. It's the early stages, so I want to nip it now. What can I do to foster a good relationship between the two? Or exactly, how can I get my kitten to be friendly to my dog?
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from Pets https://www.reddit.com/r/Pets/comments/cv3x43/how_to_improve_kittendog_relationship_get_kitten/
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