PetLvr.com - [The Blog]

Dear PetLvr Mailbag,

My 4 month old kitten totally dominates my 8 year old Australian Shepherd.

The kitten, Freckles, is 4 months old. She’ll walk up to the dog, Luke, and he’ll freeze in panic. She’ll rub around his legs, purr, snuggle against him, and he’ll stand in one place with the most pathetic look you’re ever seen on a dog’s face.

Dinner time? If she’s in the same room, she runs to his dish and starts to eat his food, even if he’s already there. She’ll whap him on the nose, and start to eat his food. The kibbles are bigger than her mouth, but she’ll chew on one until it’s eaten, and them move on to another one. It’ll be a good 15 minutes of this before she’s finished and the dog can eat.

And no, I don’t under-feed her. She’s got a dish of her own Iams kitten kibble that’s kept full at all times.

Is my dog just a big wuss, or is there more to it than I’m seeing?

Signed,

Erich

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One question that I frequently hear from prospective rat owners is, "I have a cat. Will the rats be safe with a cat in the house?"

Unfortunately, there is no single right answer to that question. In fact, there are as many answers as there are cats and owners. Some cats have a very high prey drive and will attack any small mammal introduced into the home. Other cats couldn’t possibly care less that a "prey item" is sitting on the kitchen table stealing tidbits from the humans’ breakfasts. Most kitties fall somewhere between these two extremes.

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