My mom's cat wants to kill the new puppy?

Question

The cat had kittens about 6 weeks ago and my sister just got a new pup yesterday. It's about 5 months old. She doesn't show any interest in the cat or the kittens, but the mother cat seems headstrong in thinking that it wants to do the kittens harm. Is there anything they can do to show her it's okay? They've been spraying her with a water bottle [not a lot of course] to discourage the behavior, but it doesn't seem to work. They have been thinking about taking her to the humane society because she has been hissing since the kittens were born, even though she allows them to be held, but my parents have a lot of younger kids over so they don't want her to bite anyone. Should they go ahead and take her to the humane society?

Answer 1

I would keep the puppy and the cat & kittens separated.  The mother cat is probably hissing because she's affraid for her kitten's safety.  6 weeks is still pretty young.

Answer 2

Keep the puppy away from the cat and the kittens as long as possible.

Answer 3

Well im not a pet expert but i do know a little something about animals

if shes hissing well shes just very protective for her babies an its just and instinct for cats not to like or trust dogs most of the time

just wait to see how it goes give her some space but if this keeps happening then it would be best for her to go to the Humane Society

i hope that helps your decision

Answer 4

Hi Kitty,

You'd better keep the pup separate from the mother and her kittens. Mama kitty has every right to be upset. She's very concerned about her kittens. The puppy is making her very stressed. Remove the puppy to a separate room. Getting a puppy right after your cat having kittens wasn't a wise thing to do. As for taking your cat to the humane society. Absolutely not! When you get a pet, you have to be responsible for it. A pet is a lifelong decision.  

Answer 5

She should warm up to the dog after the kittens are gone - but she'll have another litter - and almost right away if you don't get her to home that will spay her or have her spayed yourself. In that case, the problem will keep repeating.

Take care of the problem one way or another - or it WILL continue.

If you can't get her spayed then move her indoors until you can get her a home.

Answer 6

Removing her from the household because she wants to protect her kittens seems a little extreme.  That's ultimately your choice, but I wouldn't, especially if it's just a preemptive measure to prevent her from biting anyone (from the way your question is written, it sounds like she hasn't actually done that, at least yet?).  Her protective behavior with the kittens should diminish around 12 weeks when the kittens begin to become independent of the mother, and she'll just need time to adjust to the new puppy.

Just hang in there!  You say the kittens are about six weeks old, so you've only got six weeks to go!