Cats and dogs living peacefully together? Your own experience may tell you it can happen. Cats and animals other than dogs living together—can they coexist without issues?
I asked friends online for their opinions and I was delighted with the stories they told!
I posted: “I want to hear about your experiences with cats and non-dog pets like birds, fish, small animals (ferrets, hamsters, guinea pigs, etc.), snakes, lizards … what else? How did you end up with cats and whatever? How did they get along … or not? Problems? Please add your advice for anyone who’s considering adding an [other pet] to a household that already contains a cat or cats. Tell us about your household with a whole bunch of pets!”
Here are some of their stories and some photographic proof!
Erin Saywell (Indiana) When we had lizards, our Meme cat used to pry the lid up on Boh the Uromastyx’s tank, and crawl in to sleep under the heat lamps with him. She’d gently bop him on the head with a soft paw, and he’d boop her back.
Photo by Erin Saywell
Oh! I forgot about this picture … Fry cat and Pippin the mini lop. Pippin was a house rabbit and everyone got along with him.
Photo by Erin Saywell
Denise Gregg (New York) Penny the cat loves her pack of border collies. She came from a farm where they also raised border collies, so she was already accustomed to life with dogs. She’s the leader of this pack.
Photo by Denise Gregg
Christine Hale Vertucci (Tennessee) Sorry, didn’t see you were looking for pets other than dogs. But I still love sharing these two. I really miss them! I had two cats before I had dogs, and they tolerated a steady stream of cat, dog, puppy, and kitten fosters. The two cats never liked each other (they lived to 19 and almost 25 years), but they LOVED the dogs. Especially the old lady cat, Chica. She really, really loved all of the dogs, especially Omar. They were inseparable.
Photo by Christine Hale Vertucci
Em E Wolf (Vermont) I’ve had cats and ferrets with absolutely no problems at all! I have had multiple cats and multiple different ferrets over two decades. Nothing bad ever happened, and I believe they got along, and sometimes even played together. I also had cats and guinea pigs, and cats and geckos. Never had problems.
Ann Jorgensen (Alaska) Yes. So … kitties and a house chicken and kitties and a house rabbit. (This is what happens when you work at a shelter.) Stewart, or Stew, loved all animals. I saw Stew walking through the hall in our intake area when he was a young kitten. What caught my eye was that his back was shaved and he had several sutures. Vet thought a raptor had attempted to take off with him. I couldn’t leave him in the shelter; I actually scooped him up and took him to my office. I realized then he was a short-legged cat, known as Munchkin, but he was out of a feral colony. Stew is such a goofball and loves everything. One time I watched him scale a tall cat tree with his teeth. I love his quirky personality, even his crossed eyes and ear fluff (I called it newt ears). I now have Ben, a very big bunny, a continental mix from the shelter, and Betty, also from the shelter.
Photo by Ann Jorgensen
Jennie Willoughby (California) My daughter and I raise show chickens. Our two indoor cats love to hang around the incubator on hatching day. They will paw at the solid-but-see-through incubator as the newborn chicks flop around. Once the babies are moved out to brooders, the cats will occasionally try and climb in with the chicks to lie under the warm heat lamp. In ten years, I have not lost one chick to the indoor kitties. We also have an outdoor “hunting” cat. He loves to hang around inside the chicken runs with all the birds; he knows eventually the squirrels will try and raid the feeders. In the five years we have had him, he has managed to catch only one dang squirrel. Hence the quotation marks around “hunting” … LOL.
Jessica Theisen de Gonzalez (New York) My dog and two resident cats wound up sharing space with an 8-year-old parakeet that was left behind in an abandoned apartment with a twenty dollar bill. I named her Sugarpuss O’Shea, after the resilient showgirl character Barbara Stanwyck played in “Ball of Fire.”
All the critters were heavily reinforced with treats to ignore her cage. They’d look from time to time, but she was curious and unafraid so she’d stare right back. She died after I contracted COVID. I stayed clear of her cage as much as I could, but she felt abandoned and started hiding in a corner. She had a stroke just as I was starting to clear the infectious part. She was such a special creature. I have her ashes.
I’ve had two other birds since. One of the most surprising things was coming home late from work and finding the bird out—he was maybe 6 months old at the time—freed from his cage and hanging out with the dog and cat by the front door waiting for me to come home.
Best advice starts with knowing your resident pets before adding others. Are they very prey driven? Responsive to redirection? Treat motivated? Are you willing to either separate them or supervise interactions? It can be done, but you must be willing to do a lot of work to keep everyone safe and happy.
Photo by Jessica Theisen de Gonzalez
Deb Hunt (Washington) Our home is referred to as “Mild Kingdom,” as a Rescue Respite for various pets over decades. Our motto has always been, “We are family.” We’ve had various scenarios, but mostly a comedic sitcom.
My parrot flew off on a potty break in Issaquah, WA. My Rottweiler, Junk Yard Jane, was devastated, taking off barking and attempting to give chase, but we watched the parrot fly away. We sat at a picnic table in shock, as he rarely flew off and always came back. Suddenly we got a glimpse of Boogie as he did a fly-by in front of us, eventually landing by Jane and professing his love for her. She used both front paws pulling him in under her jaw to cover and hold. Boogie escaped her grip, jumped in the car, and resumed his spot in the back window. (We were homeward bound, where Boogie received a mild wing clipping.)
Then there are so many Lily Love Pig stories. She loved everything and everybody, but didn’t much care for pets being kenneled—she would flip the handle up and slide it over to free them. (Thankfully, she never learned how to undo the safety clips.) She made the front page of The Spokesman Review for robbing the Zip Trip [gas station/convenience store] regularly. After her story was shared, people left their change to cover her thefts.
Thanks for taking me down Memory Lane. It’s really been a fun ride!
Thanks to all of our friends who shared their stories! Have your experiences with cats and “other” pets been as memorable … and fun? We’d love to hear your tales, too!
