How to Introduce Cats and Dogs to Each Other

Whether bringing home a new puppy to your pack of dogs or merging your and your new partner’s dog and cat households, pet introductions can be tricky! Here’s how to help them go more smoothly.

Adding a new pet to your household is always exciting, but it can be a little more complex when you already have pets at home who are set in their ways. They’re about to have their world rocked by a new animal arriving to compete for toys, food, and your affection. Even typically friendly pets might feel a little on edge in a situation like that!

The best case scenario is that your pets will become fast friends–and some chill pets might make the intros easy with a casual sniff leading right into a game of tug-of-war. However, most pets will require a little more moderation from you to make their introductions easy!

Introductions are typically the easiest among young pets, even across species. Puppies and kittens raised together are the most likely to be well-socialized and have an easy relationship into adulthood. You’re still in luck if you’re working with adult animals, though. Even if you have an old dog who hates learning new tricks and you’re moving in with your partner and their persnickety cat, there is still hope!

Here are the best science-based tips from animal trainers and behaviorists to help take your pets from strangers to happy housemates:

Nail Their Basic Training

Before you consider bringing another animal into your space, ensure your current pet’s training is as intense as possible.

This is especially important if you are introducing animals with a high prey drive (an expected dog behavior in many terriers and hunting dogs) or who aren’t great at reading social cues about when other animals want to play. Many cats don’t get along with overly-enthusiastic pups, and cat and dog introductions can lead to nasty scratches if a dog doesn’t give the cat enough space!

Train your dog to listen to “leave it” or a similar command to redirect their attention when necessary. This will help to break them away from chasing or roughhousing with other animals before things get heated! Even better, please give them a space where they know to settle on cue, like a mat, bed, or crate, giving them time to cool off before returning to their new friend.

If your dog’s obedience skills are a little rusty, consider working with a dog trainer with plenty of hands-on experience to establish a solid training program for your pup!

Start by Keeping Them Separated

As tempting as it might be to plop a cute puppy or kitten down on the floor and see how your pets react, that can be risky for all pets involved. It’s best to keep any pets you’re introducing in separate areas of the house as they get used to the smells and sounds of another animal in the house.

Use closed doors to give them each separate zones of the home. Most cats can be content in a single room for this trial period if they have all the essentials (food, water, and litter box). It’s best to give the pets who were there first as much room to roam so they don’t feel like the new animal is encroaching on their territory.

They’ll be interested in whoever’s on the other side of the door and doing lots of sniffing! That’s a good sign as they get acclimated to each other.

Introduce Them to Each Other’s Scents

Animals get to know each other through smell, and getting them comfortable with a new animal’s scent in their home can be hugely helpful in laying the groundwork for a successful introduction.

Let each pet cuddle up on soft objects like a blanket, towel, or cushion, and then swap them after a few days. Each animal will get used to the other’s scent and learn not to view it as a threat as they get cuddly with the same cozy blanket. You may repeat this process multiple times, adding more scent-marked fabrics to keep the scent fresh and establish its presence in other house areas.

This process can be done in one home while the animals are still separated or between houses for an even more gradual introduction.

Set up Safe Zones for Your Cat

If a cat is part of your introductions, they need a safe, dog-free space to retreat whenever they want a little space. This could be a tall cat tree where they can survey the area (and dogs) below or a closet or cubby with a cat door to keep the big dogs out!

Try to get them comfortable in this space before introductions start so they know exactly where to go if a puppy has a little more enthusiasm for wrestling than they do.

Give Everyone a Workout Before Introductions

Introducing two pets feeling a little stir-crazy is a recipe for disaster! Pets should be as mellow as possible before introductions. Take your dogs (and leash-friendly cats) for an extra long walk, or give them some good dog or enrichment activities to burn some energy. This will help them be more relaxed when greeting their new roommate.

Start Introductions at Mealtime

It may initially seem counterintuitive, but dinnertime is a great time to begin your pets’ introductions! There’s a reason so many human first dates happen over dinner–eating together makes us feel safe, and the same applies to your pet.

Start this process on opposite sides of a closed door. Keep any dogs on a leash to prevent lunging at the door, and set up good habits for later in the process! (You may also consider using a leash for your cat if they’re leash trained or prone to being aggressive, but cats are typically more likely to run from stressful situations.)