Does your cat do some things that kinda freak your dog out?

In this Dog and Cat Chat, Naomi and Matilda talk through some ways to address both sides of cat-dog relationship - to find appropriate outlets for Beau's sometimes over-the-top behavior AND to give Delilah the skills to cope when he triggers her.

What you'll hear in this episode:

• why you might not want your dog to lay down and "be calm" when the cat is being exciting

• how you noticing "pre-behaviors" gives you insight into what is triggering your pets

• what to do about "[horizontal] zoomies"

• when reinforcing with food might not be the best option

To listen to the full episode, click here to open it in your podcast player or press play below:

Meet Delilah and Beau

The Initial Plan: address sticky spots

1. Delilah resting in living room, Beau approaches

   • create a target area of the couch for Beau to head towards (not directly towards Delilah’s resting area), reinforce with attention

2. Beau gets behind the couch, does “horizontal zoomies”

   • provide other opportunities for scratching horizontally (either under couch or in area around couch)

   • take data: does he zoom more often on days he doesn’t get as much wand toy play?

   • reinforce Delilah away from Beau when he zooms, treat scatter or toy play

Updates from Matilda:

Our Follow-Up Chat:

Naomi: Love this footage! Her ears are back and her brow is a bit furrowed - is that what she normally looks like at baseline?

Matilda: Her ears are usually back to some extent, even when relaxed! I think her brow is slightly more furrowed than normal and she’s holding her head down a little bit. She’s typically quite stoic but when he approaches she just holds herself very still, so I kind of get the sense that she’s.. not 100% sure what to do?

Naomi: Yeah - "freeze" is an alternative stress behavior to "fight" or "flight" - she doesn't look ACUTELY stressed but has probably figured out that the best thing to do when he comes around is to just let it happen.

Matilda: Sounds about right! I’ve been basically just throwing a piece of food for Delilah away from Beau whenever he does that so she gets some practice just moving away instead of freezing and I feel like it’s going well!! She’s choosing that option more often now.

YAY! Go Delilah and Beau! 🥳

Any future updates from Matilda will be put here - stay tuned!

Want to do your own Dog and Cat Chat??

Create a plan with Naomi to help your own pets move closer to coexistence! Schedule your FREE Dog and Cat Chat consultation to get that push in the right direction (and help other cat-and-dog people in similar situations).