When you go to get a rescue dog there are a few things to keep in mind if you already have a cat. Here are some things to keep in mind.

1) Some dogs dont like cats. – There are some dogs that just don’t like cats. This can be for multiple resons from a really high prey drive to past bad experiences with cats. It’s a bad idea to force a dog that doesn’t like cats to be around a cat. This could lead to your cat being highly stressed and in the worst case killed by the dog.

2) Make sure your cat has a safe space. – You should have a place in your house that your cat can go to when they want/need to get away from the rescue dog. This can be anything from a gated room to a basement that your cat can access with a cat door. This allows the cat a space of their own where they are not bothered by the dog.

3) Keep the food and water seperate from the dog. – When you feed your cat make sure that the dog doesn’t have access to their food. The last thing you need is your dog eating your cats food. Your rescue dog could also growl at the cat over the food or attack the cat if they guard the food. Cats also don’t drink as much water as dogs. So make sure your cat has a seperate dish so they don’t run out of water incase the dog drinks it all.

4) The litter box needs to be in an area where you dog can’t access it. – Dogs tend to want to eat what they find in litter boxes. Not only do you not need your dog eating from the litter box, litter is not a good thing to go through a dogs system. You also don’t want your cat to stop using the litter box because the dog is standing over them or stressing them when they are using the box.