I need help. I'm desperate for advice?

My sister is moving out of the house soon and she is taking our cat with here because the cat likes her. But one of our relatives had free cats to give away and the only one they had left was a male. We got the male and it's only about 2 months old. It's a very small kitty.

When we got home, it greeted our cat, but then our cat ran from him. Then we took our 9 year old (in human years, she's a big) dog, Jazzy, she's a chocolate lab, outside for a minute. We put the kitty in the bunny cage so it could meet Jazzy without harm. When the dog sniffed at the cage, the dog began barking hard and trying to dig in the cage. We had to lock the dog up in a room so the kitten can explore the house.

But I'm desperate for advice. If a mistake happens, the new kitty could be killed by the dog. What do I do? I don't want the little kitty to die because of Jazzy.

We just got the cat today by the way.

Theres a lot of very good websites devoted to cat - dog interactions.

First off, your kittens is very young- 8 weeks is too little for him to be away from Mom. Theres not much you can do at this point, but I can't stress this enough - kittens can be rehomed at 12 weeks, not 8.

Now put your kitten in a room. Your room is probably good :) Provide a litter box, food water, and give the kitten lots of attention. He's just a baby, and will be missing his siblings and mom. Your new kitten will should stay in your room for a week or two, while everyone in the house learns your new kitten's smell.

As for your dog, give it a week before introducing them. Put the dog on a leash, and put your kitten in a corner as far away from the dog as possible. You could hold on to the kitten, if you want. This is a two person job. If the dog barks, than stop. What you want to be doing is getting kitten, and dog closer and closer together. As soon as the dog starts acting aggressive, go back a step. You can use treats if your dog reacts to them (good dog, for ignoring kitty etc). Never leave them alone until they seem totally comfortable with each other.

There are many websites that deal with this:
http://www.cuhumane.org/topics/catdog.ht...
http://www.iluvcats.com/propdogin.html
http://www.petplace.com/dogs/introducing...
http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pag...

This is only a few websites out of many. Read up on them, and you, dog, and kitty will all learn to get along :)

MAYBE, Jazzy didn't like the SMELL of the "bunny" cage!

Did you mean that Jazzy is 9 yrs old, or 9 in human years? Even then, he'd be less than 2 in dog (PUPPY) years. A lab isn't considered to be mature (adult) until at least 2 yrs. So, Jazzy is still a puppy and acting like one!!

If Jazzy didn't get along with the "soon to be gone" cat, then he may be "taking it out" on the new one.

If the dog and cat did get along, and If they haven't left yet, maybe you could rub something all over it, then rub it on the new kitten. That would transfer the older cat's scent to the young one. I don't guarantee that it'll work, and you still shouldn't let both Jazzy and the "baby" out in the same space.

Until Jazzy can learn to behave, you MUST NOT let him anywhere near that kitten.The dog is going to have to be kept on a leash, and TRAINED ...... that the cat is a member of the family.

I'm kind of surprised at his actions. I have a chocolate lab and he loves cats. My dobie doesn't, but she doesn't like many people or animals.

Whatever, BE CAREFUL and WATCHFUL..........

Good luck....

the first thing you have to do is allow the kitten to adjust. slowly introduce the two inside your home. you may want to put your dog on a leash at first. let them go at their own pace. if you try to force it, it will make matters worse. you would be better to let the kitten in a room for the first day or so, not the dog. he has to accept this new addition.

When I got my cat I shut her in a room for the first day so they could get used to each others smells. Then I brought them together very carefully and always supervise them when they are together until you feel comfortable that they won't fight. Good Luck!