Bluetick coonhounds are a favorite with dog lovers as they have loveable and adorable nature. They tend to act sweetly with their owners and are not at all aggressive in behavior. They may not be good guard dogs but for companionship, they are one of the best choices.
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Does bluetick coonhound get along with cats?
Bluetick coonhounds are one of the hound families that are bred and genetically designed to be off hunting nature. They do not bother much about the stray cats. But they do not get along well with the pet cats. They are mostly driven by scents and they may find the scent of the cat interesting and may think of the small creatures like cats to be their prey.
How can you manage the bluetick coonhound to stay with pet cats?
If you are planning to adopt a bluetick coonhound and already have a cat at home then you need to train the bluetick coonhound to behave and cohabit with the cat. This can be a tricky situation as the bluetick coonhounds are usually trained to attack the small creatures. They often start attacking the small cats when they see them around.
You need to hold the cat and keep it safe when they will be meeting for the first time. The cat and the dog should never be left alone without anyone’s surveillance for the first month of their interaction. You also need to keep the dog on a leash when you will take it for a walk as it may attack any cat that is seen in the neighborhood.
Why do bluetick coonhounds act aggressively when they see a cat?
Cat is a small creature in respect to the bluetick coonhounds. Even if some cat species have larger bodies, they are of feline species and bluetick coonhounds find them to be ideal for hunting purposes.
Hound dogs like bluetick coonhounds and other such dogs are usually bred to act in groups. So if you keep a bluetick coonhound and a cat together for a long time, they will be members of a pack and then they may act like they are companions.
Cats and dogs do have a language of interaction. They are naturally defensive of each other’s presence. But cats and dogs are much close to humans and they learn to behave along in the line of their owners. So when the cat and dog are kept together they can act individualistically and learn to be non-aggressive from the behavior of the owner to each other.
How can you train the bluetick coonhound to live with the cat?
If you have kept the bluetick coonhound previously then you may know that it is hard to train this species of dogs. They are intelligent and often act stubborn when they are given direction or tried to be taught something.
They need special tricks to be groomed. When you bring them home along with a pet cat then they need to stay apart for a few days. When you bring these two pets together, first let the dog sniff the cat and you will be present there supervising the situation. Make sure that the dog does not show aggression while seeing the cat.
Make sure to keep some treats handy. If you find that the bluetick coonhound is getting agitated by the presence of the cat, then take the cat or the dog away to another place and offer them some treat. The sniffing will make the dogs identify and mark the cat as a safe creature. You should also behave with some authority to show that the cat cannot be attacked.
Always remember that the dogs are best trained when their trainer or owner holds the right attitude. Your authoritative nature will make the dog understand that it should not act in any way that will be against your will.
Give them something to play with, like a small toy, a ball, or a chew toy that the dog and the cat can share and play with each other. This way they can come to close contact with each other and learn to stay together without harming the other.
How can you understand that your bluetick coonhound is cat friendly?
Not all bluetick coonhounds are aggressive or behave attacking with cats. These are individualistic dogs and they can have different kinds of attitudes towards cats. You can know the attitude of the dog from the tale-tell signs or the body language of the dog when it comes near the cat. If you are unsure of the dog’s reaction to the cat’s presence then do not bring it close to the cat at the first instance.
How long does a bluetick coonhound take to get adjusted with a cat?
It has been seen that the cats and dogs usually take two weeks to a month to get accommodated and adjusted to each others’ presence. You can keep them together within this period but you or someone else should be present there to avoid any kind of accident.
The time frame is not strict and it can vary with the type of cats and dogs. But in most cases, one month time period is enough to make the dogs and cats friends with each other.
How can you introduce your new cat to the bluetick coonhound?
In case you have already adopted a bluetick coonhound and now you plan to bring a cat home, you need to make sure that the pets do not confront you in your absence. Before bringing the cat to the dog, you need to practice some other steps.
It has been found in research that dogs usually react more prominently by the sound of the cat rather than their presence or smell. So if you want to make your bluetick coonhound adjusted with the cat’s presence, play some recording of the feline sound near it. You have to watch how is it reacting to the sound.
If this becomes a daily habit then gradually the dog will be adjusted to the sound of the cats. Then you can bring the cat before the bluetick coonhounds. It may not react fiercely and will accept the cat as a member of its family.
Can your bluetick coonhound happily coexist with the cat?
In most cases, cats do live peacefully with the various breeds of dogs and bluetick coonhounds fall into this list. They can actually learn to live with the pet cats of the house quite peacefully and sometimes they can make great companions of each other.
They can tolerate each other and of course, they can act lovingly with each other. They can also share their toys and spend a lot of time in a day with each other. They can even nap together and share their bed.
Can the cat act dominate the bluetick coonhound?
Bluetick coonhounds sometimes become really dominated by the cats. This happens when the cat is older and previously kept in the house and the puppy of bluetick coonhound often stays in awe of the presence of the cat. Cats are usually afraid of the dog’s presence but since the cat came to the house before the dog, they have a prolific and more stable position there.
The owner need not worry until the cat harms the puppy of the bluetick coonhound and with time the cat and the dog will be friendly with each other.
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