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Next weekend we’re getting our 8 week old golden retriever, and our three year old cat has never been around dogs. With the layout of our house, there’s no practical way of doing the whole “let them get used to each other before seeing each other” thing. We won’t be able to hide a puppy from him.

Our cat always greets us at the door. I imagine when he sees the puppy, he’ll run upstairs and hide. The puppy will be indefinitely kept downstairs. Should I try to go and give him some wet food/treats with the puppy’s scent on me? Or just leave him be? He has an automatic feeder downstairs; which he sprints for the second he hears it. Should I leave it there in hopes it would entice him to come down and eat while the puppy’s in the room? Or go ahead and move it upstairs so he eat without having to see the puppy?

Obviously I’d never force an interaction. But what else could I do to ensure positive interactions when they do see eachother?

We got a German shepherd puppy when she was 4 months and is now 7 months! We were told she’s good with cats, but she just wants to corner our 2 cats, even when they correct her. We attend group training classes and our trainer said that German Shepherds have a high prey drive, which will hopefully lower with age.

The kitties have upstairs and the pup is downstairs, but as we get towards the cooler weather, I know my cats like to come downstairs and cuddle with me while I work. I don’t want to crate the puppy since cats could spend the entire day in one spot, but I don’t want them to be chased when they come down. Our puppy knows all of her commands until a cat is in sight.

What are some good next steps? Should we hire a trainer to come to our house? Is it a matter of time? I really want to know what I can do because I’d love to spend the holidays with all of the pets around without needing to manage boundaries for them. Thank you!!!

Side note: this is my first puppy, and we have an adult lab who the cats are comfortable with.

Every time it rains, he doesn't want to poop. I can get him to pee though. A few times it's rained outside and I've tried to get him to poop, with no luck (spent ages in the rain). And when inside after bringing him in as he didn't poop, I'll turn my back for 1 minute he's pooped. Does anyone have any advice! Feeling a bit defeated this morning as he hasn't pooped, he's had breakfast, I know he needs to poop 🥲 I can't take my eye off him

I had a movie on in the background as I decorate for Halloween. So I wasn't thinking about it, but a man in the movie shot a dog, and my dogs were watching. The one dog jumped off the sofa and in front of the TV barked and then made a whimpering sound. She looks sad but I said it's okay. It's only TV. I changed the movie. They seem to be their normal selves. But has anyone had any experience with this? Is there anything I should be thinking about or doing?

So I just recently got an apartment and it comes with carpet in all the rooms and living room except the kitchen. We have two dogs, a 3 year old chihuahua mix and a 9 year old chihuahua. She usually pees a lot and it’s happened before where she’ll pee on our bathroom carpets if we leave the door open. They are both really good at peeing on pee pads when we are not home, but it has happened where they pee in the middle of the living room on rare occasions but we currently have hardwood floors so it’s an easy cleanup. We always take them out on like 15-30 minute walks before we leave for work, and after work we take them out twice before the day ends but we do work 8-9 hours a day. Any recommendations to prevent peeing on the carpet as much as we can? Of course accidents happen, but has anyone tried anything that helps or has prevented your pets from peeing on the carpet before? For as long as I’ve had them we have always had hardwood floor. Thank you!

I've had dogs my entire life besides the last 5 years. I'm considering getting a doggo. Would be great for me and my 2 year old son. But my concern is I leave the apartment at 4am and don't get home until 445pm. I do have a sliding door upstairs that I could put a doggy door in. That was he can go potty on the patio on some artificial turf. It's covered but won't completely stop the rain.

I work 4 10s and 3 days off. Terrible idea or no?

My dog is a little reactive on walk. She barks at other dogs when walking past and she won’t take any treats or listen to redirection. I’ve tried hotdogs, cheese, treats, a clicker but I still can’t get her to calm down. She was a rescue and was found in a bad environment in Texas and is fine with some dogs off leash but doesn’t like when they jump on her. I wanna try and help but I’m struggling to find ways that will work.

I've read the separation anxiety guide, but it hasn't helped because the dog isn't bonded to me. So I can't do anything in the guide.

This dog is fully bonded to him. He's never home, feeds her human food, never trains her, and never takes her out for walks. I want to take over being her owner and actually start training her and walking with her and fixing her separation anxiety, but she won't bond with me.

She's fearfully reactive, and scatters at every little noise, every little sound. Every time my roommate comes home, she runs to him and he pets her for maybe 5min before ignoring her again.

How would I go about starting to bond with her? I'm home more than him, and I have more resources than him to train her.

Thanks in advance.