Is it acceptable for a dog to do this?

Question

I have a 3 1/2 year old mutt (Brittany x Lab) that is gentle with all humans- including my 7 month old- and generally very patient and kind with my 4 neurotic cats. I have one cat, a male Siamese mix, who is extremely needy and nudgy and constantly climbing on the dog, or butting her with his head, and if she wishes not to be bugged, she usually just gets up and walks away. Lately the cat has been trying to stick his head in her food bowl while she's eating. Today, for the first time, she growled at him and he backed off. Not a snarl or a snap, just a low, quick growl. Should this be something to concern me? I can take the food out of her mouth if I had to- I wouldn't keep a dog that didn't allow me to do that- but should I be concerned for the idiot cat? Does this seem like something that would escalate? I suppose I can restrain the cat when the dog is eating, but I need to know if this seems like a more serious problem in the making. Also, after dinner, if there are acceptable scraps for animals, the dog and cat will sit side by side and each take their treat nicely. No growling or anything. Just the food bowl thing today. Thoughts?

Answer 1

i would not enjoy someone sticking their nose in my plate and your dog doesnt either. my dog does this but never takes it any further than a bark or growl. just to let the cat know she doesnt like it. its hard to tell whether it will go any further. my alpha dog also growls at the others at meal time just to let them know her food is hers and to back off. but it never goes further. the other animals respect her and know that they are being warned.

Answer 2

Your dog sounds pretty tolerant. If you choose to play it safe however and keep every one friendly, simply separate the cats from the dog while she eats ( separate room etc. ) I had a similar situation with My Great Dane and a pom. The larger dog would growl at her and even snapped at the smaller dog who was being extremely bossy and wouldn't take the hint. For her safety although it hurt I had to find another home. So please even if you are "sure" that the dog wont hurt the cat, if the cat doesn't seem to take the hint play it safe and separate them during feeding time.

Answer 3

I don't think it's too much to worry about.

Neurotic or not, cat's are generally pretty quick learners...and seeing as this was a one-time occurance, I wouldn't lose too much sleep over it. But, I would however monitor the cat while the dog is eating, and keep a spray bottle handy just in case the kitty gets too clingy.

Rocco (my male pit) used to be very curious about my resident female DSH. One day, he got a but too curious, and Mini beat the living sh*t out of him. He was much more respectful after that.  

Answer 4

I wouldn't worry as long as she doesn't growl at you or other people when you go near her food.  I would also keep a watch and maybe restrain your cat as you said, just in case your dog ever became aggressive towards your cat.  

Answer 5

I think maybe your dog was just not in the best of moods.  Maybe the cat was just really bugging him and he growled to let the cat know that he had had enough.  

You should closely monitor the dog's behavior, and try to keep the cat from driving him bonkers all day!  

I feel things will be fine, as I said, maybe your dog was just in a grumpy mood.    

Answer 6

your dogs just getting sick of the cat annoying her all the time, and the cat has gone too far this time, its just your dogs way of saying back off. feed them at he same time too, or when your dogs eating, feed your cat some treats and when your cats eating, feed your dog some treats. don't let the cat annoy the dog as well.

Answer 7

There is no way to know if this will escalate or not. Your dog has shown admirable self-control around the cat so far. If she were to escalate, I would expect her to follow the "normal" path of threats: deeper or more prolonged growl, lowering her head over the bowl, then a snap, then eventually a bite.

For the most part, I tend to allow dogs to tell cats to keep away from their stuff, provided the cat isn't in danger. If you are not comfortable with this, feed the dog in a crate or confine the cat during feeding. Watch for changes in their behavior when receiving treats, but these are two separate situations so you won't necessarily see any problems developing there.  

Answer 8

In my opinion only, the dog's well within her right's to warn the cat out of her bowl while she's eating.  It would be different if she were done and ready to walk away, but this cat is really pushing it!

She sounds like she's taking care of the problem herself quite well.  As long as the "idiot cat" backs off with her warning, this doesn't sound like a dog who's going to take it farther.  Especially if they still sit side by side nicely for their treats.  

Answer 9

If you can reach down and take the food away without the dog growling/snapping at you then thats a good sign. Has the dog only done it once or a few times? He could have been annoyed with the cat or just telling it to back off. If the cat backed away then he understood. I would keep an eye out and see if it was a one time thing or if it persists. The cat may easily learn on it's own from the dog's growling to stay back.

Answer 10

I don't think this is a problem. Your dog is just asking the cat to respect some boundaries, please. :)

I certainly don't think it means that your dog intends to hurt/eat your cat.

Answer 11

I have two dogs... they are friendly and happy. But, neither of them likes the other one eating their food.

The dog probably though the cat was going to eat it's food.

And no you shouldn't be concerned for the idiot cat...I'm sure that he's gotten the message.

If it happens again... make sure you let the dog know that it's not okay to growl and teach the cat to back off by pulling it away whenever it tries to go near the dog while he's eating.......

From the sounds of it though.... your dog sounds EXTREMELY patient. So, I wouldn't worry about it.

Answer 12

well i wouldn't be angry with the dog the cat is being a little pushy with the climbing and now this some dogs cant tolerate all of that, but i would have a bit of a concern with the cat. if you do meals as appose to free feeds i would recommend separating the cat from the dog at that time and maybe playing with the cat keeping it on your lap or just in another room. if the dog is getting very irritated it can escalate into something worse so you should work out a plan to keep them busy so the cat isn't bothering the dog or talk to a trainer to solve this problem.

I wish you guys the best of luck