My new kitty is afraid of our dog!

[laurieb]

Most of you have seen me in the Degu section, if you look around. This time I have a kitty problem.
We adopted an absolutely delightful 9 month old kitten on Monday.
He is beautiful, and exactly what I was looking for! We named him Richard.
We were told that he gets along well with children, cats and dogs.
Well, our cat didn't care too much for him at first, but she's coming around. She is 12 years old and set in ways. Richard wants to be friends, we'll see. Not to worried about this.
Now for the problem. We have a medium size dog named Julie that would LOVE to be friends with Richard! The second that Richard saw her, however, he was absolutely terrified! Julie didn't bark or anything to scare him. It was just the sight of Julie that scared him!
How do we make this OK? I'm afraid we'll never see Richard, as he is always hiding from Julie!
I need ideas to try. What worked for you? We will try anything to have our family happy!
Thanks,
Laurie

[kathydip]

I have found that kitties take time to adjust to their new homes. I am surprised that the kitties are getting along so well already. Over the years we have brought tiny little kittens into our house and the full grown cats freak out and hide for days like the kitten is going to kill them. I have also seen kittens freak over the cats and others just want to snuggle up with the older cats.
I would make sure that Julie is always calm around Richard. Do everything possible to make sure Julie doesn't chase him. I am sure that once he gets used to his new surroundings he will begin to come out to look around. Maybe you could treat him when you expose him to Julie. Although I am not sure how easy it will be to keep Julie calm around treats and Richard.
Don't worry too much. He has only had a few days in his new home. I am sure before you know it they will be best friends.

[mulder]

yeah i'd say just give it more time

[Mel]

My cat is deathly afraid of my dog too. *shrug* They were friends when the dog was little, but now that she's big (HUGE), he freaks around her. I've been told I may just have to live with them not being friends.

[Nikko]

Yeah , I have a problem with my two cats and dog too. I've had my cats for 3 years and my dog for 1 year. I tried to get them used to eachother and like eachother, but I don't think they'll ever be friends. I always have them seperated, they can see and sniff eachother, but that's all. My dog always tries to bite them, but in a playful way. Fun for her, but not the cats, lol.

I hope everything works out for you though, it all depends on the cat and the dog.

[Mousey]

I have a pitbull lab mix and my old roommate had a very tiny cat who was scared of my dog first at but she eventually warmed up to him after she realized he won't hurt her.