We went to a rescue centre today and picked a lovely Jack Russell dog...about 2 years old.....brought him home and he has been fine with the family but whenever one of the cats comes in (we have 3) he barks and tries to go for them...thus frightening them. We are trying to bring each cat in on its own and introducing dog and cat and i know it is gonna take time but does anyone have any other ideas that might help....at the moment whenever one of the cats comes near the dog has to be restained and admonished for barking/going for said cat resulting in anarchy in the house lol......any help purlease??

I dont have cats so dont know if this would help, but do your cats like being cuddled, if so, could you sit near the dog, cuddling the cat, but also paying the dog attention, just so the dog can get used to the cat being there, also i no my friend did this, she fed them at the same time, and for some reason it worked, so maybe if you got something they could both eat and sit in between them or something and feed them it
hope they get one with one another soon

Was the dog described as cat friendly/cat experienced?

Would you say the dog is 'going for them' in an 'playful' way, or would you say it is 'prey' behaviour? Or would you say you wouldn't know the difference?

Terriers can get on with cats, especially if raised with them - My Murphy (Glen of Imaal Terrier) is testament to that - but to introduce a JRT that has no cat experience is going to be hard work and not something I personally would take on as I don't have the experience.

IF (and only if) the dog is definitely cat friendly, I would work on training a desired behaviour upon seeing the cats. One of my Chinese Cresteds had taken to chasing the evil cat - not the brightest CC alive. I had already trained a good 'leave it' command, so used that to get him to leave the chase, then used his recall to get him to me, then 'hup' to get on the sofa. With a pocket full of treats, I got the behaviour so ingrained that the cat comes in the room he (mostly) comes and sits on my lap.

Unfortunately the cat then comes and sits on my lap also, and I end up with a dog trying to play with a lethal killing machine close to my flesh Then the other dogs join in - then the other cat

Probably best not to take advice from me

HOWEVER, if there is any question that the dog is not cat friendly, please consult the rescue you got the dog from. A JRT is a proper terrier and can have a full on prey drive - if this dog has no cat experience I would be concerned for your cats' safety.

Had a bit of a breakthrough in the past hour, hubby managed to get all 3 cats in the same room whilst me and the son gently restrained and talked to the dog and urged him not to bark and frighten the cats.....all 3 cats are now sat on the settee with the dog laid infront of the fire looking at them but not attempting to move or bark....so we shall continue the training and see how the dog gets on, hopefully in time they may get along <fingers crossed>, the dog is rather intelligent and it looks like he has been partially trained by his previous owners so we may succeed <we hope>

Thanks for all your advice

I have 3 cats and a 9 month old JRT/Patterdale called Bailey who we have had since he was 8 weeks old. We are still trying to get him to leave the cats alone using the 'leave' it command. It works occasionally but most of the time he can't resist the thrill of the chase. He doesn't mean them any harm he just wants to play and he is the first to back of when they turn on him. I think I am just going to have to be patient until he calms down a bit. I am sure everything will be okay because one of the cats Dylan will now lay on the bed beside him during the night and I have caught my other cat Fergus letting Bailey lick his ear a couple of times. My third cat Murphy still wont go anywhere near him by choice.
I wish I could help you more as I think it's a great thing you have done in rescuing the little chap and I hope you manage to all live happily ever after.

We have a Jack Russell and a Staffie...the Jack constantly wants to jump at the staffie...give it kisses etc but the Satffie has none of it...think it's gona be a long process to get them getting along but I think patience and training is the key and seems like it's paying off in your case

AJxx

If your cats sleep on a blanket put it in the dog's bed. It'll get him used to the smell.

Also, whenever one of the cats comes into the room and he doesn't react, say 'Good Boy' in a high pitched voice and give him a small food treat. Eventually he'll see that having the cats around can be a positive thing.

We have cats and a Jack Russell. It took a while for the dog t understand that chasing the cats is a no-no. We made sure the cats had access to places the dog couldn't reach. We would restrain the dog when the cats come into the room. It takes a while. Try to be patient.