Like Cats and Dogs (unrelated anecdotes included!)

Any relationship between two animals where there is a five to one difference in size is fated to have its difficulties. I’m speaking of our cat Bud and our dog Bones.



Eight months after moving into our new house, and just as Bud was getting really comfortable, we decided to get a dog. Since Bud’s successfully lived with a yellow lab for a year, we hoped that Bones and Bud would get along right away. Here’s how I pictured it; Bones might hold Bud’s hair back as he puked up our houseplants, and in return Bud might provide his services as a comfortable feline thermo-pillow. But it was not meant to be…

--In case I’m boring you (don’t worry, this happens to many people), here’s an anecdotal link to refresh your interest in this story by distracting you for a brief period of time. Here are instructions on how to shuffle a deck of cards with one hand(opens a new window). Amazing!

As I was saying, the vision I had for their amicable coexistence was not meant to be.

Bones, being part coonhound, found Bud to be an exceptional coon/toy and relentlessly chased him off of the top floor of the house into the basement where he was scared to pursue. Whenever Bones saw Bud coming out of that basement, his eyes would roll into the back of his head like a shark and there was nothing we could do to stop him from chasing/hunting our poor cat. So, Bud lived in the basement - a sad and lonely existence punctuated by Betsy or me going down there to pet him or feed him a few times each day.

Something had to be done, so we came up with a plan to try to get these two to live in peace together. Our plan: Every time Bones didn’t treat Bud with gentleness and patience, he was put in his kennel for a couple of minutes.

After a couple of months (sigh, poor Bud), Bud finally found the courage to sit at the top of the steps. He would bat at Bones with his de-clawed paws with this killer rapid-fire bat-fu action. As soon as Bones would lift a paw to defend himself, into the kennel he went. It might not seem fair to Bones (or you) that Bud got to swing away at Bones unpunished, but that’s the burden of being five times bigger. Besides, Bud needed the confidence.

-- Another anecdotal link, something I never thought I would see: Someone created a system where video playback speed is controlled by the amount of play-doh on a table(opens a new window).

About a month after the bat-fu attack was discovered, Bud learned that he could hide in corners and on furniture on the main floor. If Bones bothered him, he would bat-fu him away. Another three months passed and Bones and Bud seemed to tolerate each other and we didn’t need the kennel anymore. Bud could roam the house cautiously.

These days, Bones and Bud aren’t best friends, but they certainly tolerate each other’s existence with remarkable patience. I think their progress has mostly leveled off, but as you can see in the picture below, things are much better now. Bones finally got his comfortable feline thermo-pillow and Bud only goes into the basement to use his litter box and to get some peace and quiet.



This pictures makes me laugh because this couch sharing situation happens fairly often. The funny part is that Bones sometimes pretends to "stretch" while he's sleeping to kick bud off because he know's that the only way he can kick him off without getting in trouble. Heh.