Introducing Your New Dog to Your Cat

Diamond's Friends Pet Rescue
Jun 16
5 min read

Introducing your new dog to your cat can feel a bit like mixing oil and water. A rushed or careless introduction can lead to fear, aggression, or stress for everyone involved.

Fortunately, with the right steps, many cats and dogs can coexist peacefully. Here are some tips to safely introduce a new dog to your cat.

1. Choose the Right Dog

If you're adopting a new dog, talk to shelter staff or foster homes about the dog's behavior around cats. Look for phrases like "cat-friendly," "calm around cats," or "lived with cats."

However, take most of these labels with a grain of salt. Dogs can change once they get into a new home based on the environment and how dog-savvy the cat is, so don’t always bank on “cat-friendly” labels.

Also, keep in mind that some dogs have a high prey drive, meaning they instinctively chase smaller animals like cats. Certain breeds (like terriers or herding breeds) will often fall into this category.

Make sure you understand what breeds your potential new dog might have, and avoid any breeds or breed mixes known for having high prey drives.

Learn More: How To Choose the Right Dog for Your Home

2. Set Up Safe Spaces for Your Cat

Before your dog even walks through the door, set your cat up for success with safe zones they can escape to. This space should be off-limits to your dog at all times and can house your cat’s food, water, and litter box.

Also, be sure to:

Give your cat plenty of escape routes and high perches throughout the house.
Use baby gates with a small gap or pet doors to allow your cat access while keeping your dog out.

Cats feel most secure when they can observe from above or retreat when overwhelmed.

3. Let Your Dog Decompress

Don’t try to introduce your dog to your cat immediately. When your dog first comes into your house, the goal should be to get them through their decompression period.

Give your dog at least a few days to a week to start settling in before trying to make introductions. Those first few days, your new dog is just trying to get their bearings. Keep the excitement and new experiences to a minimum.

Learn More: The 3-3-3- Rule

4. Work on Training With Your New Dog

Making sure your dog understands basic commands can be a great building block when it comes to integrating them with your cat. At a minimum, your dog should know:

Sit, stay, and down
Come
Leave it
How to be calm on a place bed
Walking nicely on a leash

If your dog doesn’t know these things yet, take the time to work with them on these commands before trying to do any sort of introduction to your cat.

5. Let Them Smell Each Other First

Scent swapping is a gentle first step to introducing your new dog and your cat. To get them used to each other’s scents:

Rub a blanket or towel on your dog and place it where your cat hangs out, and vice versa.
Let them get used to each other’s smells before meeting face-to-face.
Feed them on opposite sides of the same door so they associate each other’s smell with something positive.

This helps lower stress and builds familiarity without confrontation.

Pro tip: As you start trying to integrate your dog and cat, remember that you can never take the interaction steps too slowly. However, you can move too fast. So don’t rush any of this process.

6. Use Controlled, On-Leash Meetings

Once both pets are calm and curious, it’s time for a visual introduction:

Keep your dog on a leash or in their crate and have them in a “sit” or “down” position
Allow your cat to approach on their own terms (never force the interaction)
Reward your dog for staying calm with treats and praise
Keep the session short (5–10 minutes max), and repeat daily

Never let your dog chase your cat, even playfully. One bad experience can seriously set back the relationship.

The goal is curiosity. Not chaos.

Pro tip: Make sure your dog has plenty of exercise prior to this first meeting.

7. Read the Body Language

Both cats and dogs speak volumes with their body language. Knowing what to look for can help you stop trouble before it starts.

Signs your dog is too excited or overstimulated:

Staring or fixating on your cat
Whining, barking, or lunging
Ignoring commands

Signs your cat is stressed:

Hissing or growling
Ears flattened or tail flicking
Hiding or swatting
Not using their litterbo

If you see any of these signs, separate them and give both pets time to decompress.

However, if your cat sniffs, seems calm, and nonchalantly walks around the room while your dog stays seated, responds to commands, and shows interest, those are good signs.

Learn More: Dog Body Language

8. Supervise Every Interaction

Until you're 100% confident that your dog won’t chase or corner your cat, never leave them alone together.

Use gates, crates, and closed doors to keep them separated when unsupervised. Cats, in particular, need to feel they can come and go freely without being pursued.

We also highly recommend keeping your dog and cat separated if you leave the house. There’s no reason to roll the dice if you aren’t around to interfere if something goes sideways.

9. Be Consistent and Patient

Building trust takes time. Some dogs and cats become friends, while others just learn to tolerate each other. Either outcome is fine!

Here’s what can help:

Daily positive exposures
Lots of praise for calm, respectful behavior
Zero tolerance for chasing or aggression

Your job is to:

Go at their pace
Reward good behavior
Manage the environment to avoid stress

In time, your cat and dog may surprise you. You might even find them curled up on the same couch! But if that doesn’t happen, that’s ok, too.

10. Have a Backup Plan

The reality is that sometimes cats and dogs won’t ever be able to be able to integrate successfully. If that ends up happening, you need to make sure you can still follow through on the commitment you made to your new dog when you brought them home.

If you never feel like you can trust your dog around your cat, what safety measures can you put in place to keep everyone safe? Think about:

Using baby gates for separation
Keeping your cat upstairs and your dog down if you live in a two-story home
Giving your cat their own designated room/rooms

It is possible to live under the same roof as a dog and cat that don’t get along. It just takes consideration and proper management.

Pro tip: If you are really struggling with the integration process, consider enlisting the help of a trainer. They may be able to get you headed down the right path!