Cats and Dogs: Living in Harmony?

CHAN SHER LIN — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 15:26:00 GMT

Think of this scene, the dog chasing the cat, and the cat chasing the rat and how the cycle will go on and on forever. Here, let us focus our attention on the cat and the dog. How many of you still hold on the belief that the coexistance of cats and dogs is impossible? Although such situations do happen in real life, but it is still possible for a cat and a dog to live together.

Cats and dogs are naturally mistrustful of each other and it is really difficult for them to accept each other. Most dogs are natural predators, and they are designed by nature to chase and catch smaller animal for food. Even though dogs are domesticated for thousands of years, this predatory instinct still stay within. On the contrary, the cats automatically defend themselves against larger predators. They climb trees, and will try to scare the enemy by spitting and hitting, or launch a counter attack with its claws and teeth. Therefore, it takes a great deal of patience and effort on the part of the pet owner to train and persuade the dogs and cats to learn to live in harmony with each other.

There are several ways of training both the dog and the cat to coexist with one another.

Training of the Dog

First, teach the dog that the cat is off limits altogether and shall not be disturbed under any circumstances. This can be done by placing the cat within the dog's visual range and then taking the dog through several short daily sessions and insist that the cat cannot be approached in any way. Repeat this procedure every day, bringing the cat a little closer each time, and if the dog makes a lunge for the cat, jerk him back immediately and order him to LEAVE the cat. When the dog sits calmly or ignores the cat even when it is right next to him, let it walk around the room while the cat is present. BUT, always keep a lookout and pull the dog away IMMEDIATELY if it shows signs of a chase. REMEMBER TO ALWAYS REWARD THE DOG FOR OBEYING YOU AND IGNORING THE CAT!

Training of the Cat

Cats are highly territorial and antisocial in nature and thus, it can be difficult to introduce new dog or puppies to a resident cat. Therefore, constant reinforcement of positive social behavior will be encouraged. Cats are not like dogs, where you can take it for an obedience course to teach them how to deal with a dog. Give them some space and time to accept the new 'friend'.

In addition, cats should not be introduced to a home with dogs that have chased and tried to kill cats. These dogs will probably find it difficult to see cats as anything other than prey, and even if they do not actually manage to catch the cat they can make his life pretty miserable. Similarly, a puppy have to be protected from a territorial bully of a cat that has, by virtue of his prior experiences, a lifelong hatred of dogs. Sometimes a dog in such a situation will learn to avoid a dangerous, unequable cat. In other instances, the cat may spend his life in trepidation of the dog. Neither of these situations is desirable be avoided by prevention or rehoming of one or other of the feuding parties.

If you are thinking of mixing species, ask whether they are predatory, aggressive, territorial, solitary, or gregarious. It will give you the genetic drift on what to expect. Then ask, how the species was raised, with whom, by whom, where, and when. Next you should also look into and additional information about prior interspecies interactions of the species in question.

Here is a clip to show that IT IS POSSIBLE for a cat and a dog to live together in harmony. Here, it shows how an adult dog attend to a kitten who had just lost its mother.

Here is another video showing how Lacey, a 14 week old puppy, and Hannah, a 8 month old cat, get along together.

Always give the cat and the dog their own territory. Do not force them together to let them settle down at their own speed. You will need time and patience if these two animals from entirely different species are to become friends. It probably will happen eventually, but until you are absolutely sure, DO NOT LEAVE THEM ALONE TOGETHER!

References:
Cats and Dogs: Peaceful Coexistance, Cat Care Tips, Retrieved on 19 March 2008
Cats Living with Dogs, Petplace.com, Retrived on 20 March 2008
Cat meets Dog, will they live together peacfully?, Gwen Bailey, Retrieved on 19 March 2008
Call Me Friend, A Kitten and a Dog, Retrived 19 March 2008
Are Cats and Dogs really Enemies?, Retrieved 29 March 2008
Cat and Dog Best Friend, Retrieved 30 March 2008

It's a pet, it's a best friend, it's a...19ft-long python?!

U0600701 — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 12:26:00 GMT

Ophidiophobia. Sound like anything you know? Perhaps it's something you might have. The fear of snakes is something that many people can relate to, and even if you don't necessarily faint at the sight of one, you might be guilty of the occasional shudder or cringe. Let's put it this way, there's a reason why a person might call themselves "a cat person" or "a dog person", but the phrase "a snake person" would, more often than not, conjure up a picture of a snake charmer in people's minds. There are people who keep the reptiles as pets, you might say. But how many of these people ride on their pet snakes piggy-back style, sleep with their snakes, and take baths with their snake?

None?

Then you might find these next couple of videos pre-tty interesting...

here's one I found on the National Geographic website...

and here's another video about the same story.

7 year old Kuon Samnang lives in the province of Kandal in Cambodia. When Samnang was but a 3-month old baby, a python that was, at the time, 20 inches long showed up at his family's doorstep. Samnang's father had attempted 3 times, when Samnang was still a baby, to return the snake to the forest, but the snake kept returning to the child's side! Since then, the family has named it Chamren (which means lucky in Kmer). After some searching on the internet, I found some information on Samnang's best friend and his kind...

"Native to the jungles and grassy marshes of Southeast Asia, Burmese pythons are among the largest snakes on Earth. They are capable of reaching 23 feet (7 meters) or more in length and weighing up to 200 pounds (90 kilograms) with a girth as big as a telephone pole...Burmese pythons are carnivores, surviving primarily on small mammals and birds. They have poor eyesight, and stalk prey using chemical receptors in their tongues and heat-sensors along the jaws. They kill by constriction, grasping a victim with their sharp teeth, coiling their bodies around the animal, and squeezing until it suffocates. They have stretchy ligaments in their jaws that allow them to swallow all their food whole."

What struck me when I came across these videos was how the boy was interacting with the 19 ft. long reptile, that was inherently a wild, carnivorous animal, with such a level of comfort and a total lack of inhibition, comparable to how one would interact with a puppy! Out of curiousity, I ran more searches for records of human-python interaction, and here are some articles that I found.

Here's one about a 5 metre long python that reportedly "stalked" this family's pet dog before proceeding to devour it.
And here's another about a man who was crushed to death by his family's 14 ft. pet python.

Evidently (and somewhat unsurprisingly), there aren't exactly a whole lot of "My boy and the snake have been living very happily since he was born 7 years ago. They are the same age." stories out there. So what's the reason behind this strange, seemingly unnatural relationship between a 19 ft. python and a 7 year old boy?! Would one deem this a case of unnatural domestication?

The video mentions how Chamren started living with the boy and his family since both the boy and the snake were very young, that the both of them are the same age. Eversince, the snake has been raised on a diet that is similar to that of the boy's. Instead of rats and frogs, which are natural prey to pythons, Chamren eats chickens and ducks that have been slaughtered beforehand. (The family believes that eating live animals will bring the snake bad karma.) During their 7 years (and counting) of friendship, Samneng would spend his days playing with his pet, hugging the snake, riding on its back, teaching it tricks and even sleeping with it.

Chemren has never attempted to attack Samneng and his family.

Why?! Because Chamren was the family's pet? Why, then, was the man killed by his pet python according to the msnbc article above? Well, one can never be sure, I feel. But in my opinion, it could have something to do with the fact that Chamren was taken in as a pet at a very young age and has spent most of her life with the boy and his family. Thus, adapting to the diet that was incongruous with that of her species as well as learning how to behave and interact in a non-threatening way with humans would not have proven to be as much of a challenge compared to the snake in the msnbc article, who was only adopted as a pet 5 months before the incident.

However, among the overwhelming number of comments given in response to the video of Chamren and Samneng on YouTube, conflicting opinions have been expressed. While some viewers think the video is a good example of how wild animals can be tamed if treated properly, others think it is only a matter of time before something awful happens if Chamren is not released into the wild. After all, that snake is not growing any smaller. A snake of its size could easily overpower a fullgrown adult if it wanted to, let alone a 7-year old kid who is riding on its back or snuggling up to it, sound asleep.

what do you think?

Perhaps the Kuon Clan chose to name the snake "Lucky" for a good reason - it sure looks like they're going to be needing a whole load of it.

For yet another example of wild animals in unlikely, domesticated situations, read about this barhopping kangaroo!

Sources

Videos:
"Boy's best friend: Cambodian python - 05 Feb 08," by AlJazeeraEnglish. http://www.youtube.com, 5 Feb 2008.
"Video: Boy Plays With Giant Python," National Geographic, 28 Sep 2007.

Articles:
"Photo in the News: Kangaroo Goes Barhopping," by Victoria Gilman. http://news.nationalgeographic.com, 11 Aug 2005.
"Monster Python Eats Pet," by Sophia Browne. http://cairns.com.au, 27 Feb 2007.
"Man Crushed to Death by Family's Pet Python," The Associated Press. http://www.msnbc.msn.com, 5 Sep 2006.

Pictures:
"Burmese Pythons Mating," by Joe McDonald. http://animals.nationalgeographic.com.

Websites:
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/burmese-python.html

LSM1303 Animal Behaviour Student Blog : domestication

Cats and Dogs: Living in Harmony?

It's a pet, it's a best friend, it's a...19ft-long python?!