Cats, Running, and Dog Odor

[vitaman]

I am considering a Labradoodle and would love some advice. I have a rescue cat who has rarely been around dogs. How have yours done around adult cats? The only dog she has coexisted with is a friend's Miniature Poodle whom she basically ignored. I have a friend who has a 7 year old Standard Poodle that gets along famously with a new adult cat.
I would like to jog with my dog. Do most Doodles (gosh that sounds silly!) enjoy a 3 to 4 mile run? At what age would that distance be appropriate?
Lastly, I have read that Labradoodles have minimal doggy odor. I realize that there are many factors that affect this, diet being one important one. Is bathing frequency a major factor? All feedback appreciated!

[lmtoth2]

I can't help you with the cats (but I'm sure Sue can)...

I've heard you shouldn't run (long distances) until the dog is 1.5-2 yrs old. I have just recently started adding short jogs into my walks w/my 1.5 yr old doodle Dexter.

Our F1B labradoodle Dexter has no odor unless he's due for a bath (we bathe 1x per month unless they get filthy in between). Our F1 Irish Setterdoodle has a small odor, but it's nothing bad or offensive (I do keep air freshners everywhere in our house just because I get anal about smells).

Good luck with your search

[annieG]

Running - 1.5 to 2 yrs

Odor - Tanner doesn't smell except for his feet that smell like Fritos

Cats - All cats react differently to dogs, depends on their experiences.

My cat is declawed and that actually is a problem because Tanner wants the cat to play with him so if the cat runs, Tanner chases. The rest of the time, they co-exist very well. The cat has a perch plus a cat door through to the basement where he can bet away from Tanner. They do both sleep in our bedroom at night with no problems.

I would plan ahead for the cat to have a "safe place". Be patient about running until doodle is old enough, re smells...I guess that depends of your nose. I don't like artificial smells so I don't use air freshners or such.

[KGarro]

We don't have a cat in the house, but there are several in our neighborhood. Uma is extremly curious about them...consitantly trying to play with them despite a few swats to her nose. If you get a dog, it'd be your responsibility to let the pup know to leave the cat alone. Luckily doodles are incredibly smart and catch on quickly to what's ok and what's not.

As far as running, we bring Uma on a run a few times a week and she loves it. Always comes back with a big smile and sleeps like a rock after.

Uma is the only dog I've ever had that is virtually odorless. It doesn't matter if she's bathed every week or every six weeks (which is what's we're pushing now). I'm not sure if this is the case with all poodle mixes, but it's true with Uma.

Good Luck!

[Jac]

Hi, welcome!
Cats can generally get away from a dog and hide, but you want to avoid the chase and the activities, I am sure.
I think that you either need to get a puppy that has never been exposed to a cat or a pup/dog that has been raised with cats.
My dogs loved cats and wanted to play with them, until the cat hissed and swipped at them...then the chase was on and the cat became an enemy. It is a learned response, I think.
The buyers that I have sold pups to (who also own cats) have never reported a problem, even though we dont' have cats in our house. - Hubby is allergic.)
Generally, but not always, doodles don't get doggie odor...but they do love to roll in stinky stuff! I bathe them to freshen their look, mostly.
Because doodles are a large breed, their bones are growing until they reach 18 months of age. You should not jog with them. Walks are okay, but limit the distance until they are used to it. And always keep in mind that pavement gets hot on their feet.
Playing frisbee is also bad for the hips of a doodle. Any activity where the dog has to land on less than all 4's can potentially be harmful...and, by the way, may void your health warranty for hip problems.

[blueteal]

Denver lives with nine cats
I got him when he was a puppy and the cats learned to tolerate him
All cats react differently, all my cats were around the same age and
three will cuddle up and sleep within inches of him they are true
buddies the others are indifferent except for maybe two who still wish he would go away. The cats rule in my house and Denver has learned to respect that, as they were here first. He has been taught that he is
not allowed to chase them period and that is very important otherwise it
would be a free for all and chaos and there has to be some kind of control. All my cats have their claws and Denver has learned what that feels like as well. All the cats will check out what is in Denver's food bowl and he backs away while they check it out, this was taught as well so
there would be no food aggression. It all takes time and there are no
guarantees as some cats just automatically get along with dogs and others just do not. Just make sure that the animal that was in the house first is treated with respect and is alllowed to set the pace and be the leader. Good luck

PS
If you show a positive attitude that you expect that they should get
along or at the very least tolerate each other respectfully then they will.

and hopefully it should all work out.

[Tink]

I have a litter of doodle pups and have had them around our cat since they were very young. Every one of them pretty much ignores the cat now unless they're looking to play. To them he's just a fact of life... If they want to play and the cat doesn't, he just leaves and they find something else to play with.

So perhaps you should try to look for a doodle that's already been raised around a cat if possible. I have to say though that they're smart enough to learn not to mess with things fairly quickly, so with supervision at first you should be able to get one to be good with a cat.

[Cinsmom]

Cinnamon doesn't live with cats, but she is around them when we visit our kids - they have 3 collectively. I find that she respects them and won't chase them unless they start something. We leave them in the house alone a lot and nothing's been damaged and the cats are still alive. They will even play with her toys. My daughter's female is in love with Cinnamon's chew rope! She acts like there's catnip in there. Cinnamon doesn't mind. She just looks at her like "you go girl!"

We do make sure that the cats have a safe haven somewhere in the house. I really don't think it's a big deal with her.

[annabelles mom]

Annabelle has not been around cats so can't help there

As for odor, she doesn't get that doggie smell. She will roll in rabbit dodo occassionally, though not as often now, I think the rabbits finally figured out she patrols her backyard so we dont see as many

I bath her to keep her fluffy and smelling babypowdery , we use CrazyDog babypowder scent shampoo, it's very thick so I dilute it and Groomex Spa baby scent conditioner and both work very well.

She usually gets a bath every few weeks and we groom her every couple months ourselves.

I comb and brush her every or every other day to keep her matt free and I mist her with "ice on ice" detangler before brushing/combing, Diane, Dakotas mom recommended it and it works nicely

Lots of doodles here are bathed with Best Shot products and their Moms and Dads rave over it, unfortunately the slight scent set off my allergies but I understand it's great for keeping their hair silky soft

My cat was 9 when I brought the puppy home. Before I got th puppy I would dog sit for a friend of mine that had a choc lab and bring the lab around the cat for longer and longer periods. I think that by doing that Morgan (cat) got used to a dog and it wasn't a big deal when the pup came. Most of the time the ignore each other now.

Maya doesn't smell. She gets a bath once a month.

[gracielou]

I make sure my puppies are introduced to our cat they love him he tolerates them when he gets tired of them he just gets somewhere that can't get.

On odor most doodles don't smell like the doggy dog smell but I think any would have to have an occasional bath to stay that way.

[cheesedoodle]

This is all good stuff as we are considering a labradoodle, and have a 10-year-old cat. Callie the cat got used to having our late border collie around, but we are anticipating there would need to do some gradual introductions with a new dog. The cat at this point would probably be okay with the puppy, but we would need to make sure that the puppy is not too interested in the cat.

Fortunately, it seems like many breeders socialize the puppies with cats, so we'll see how it goes.

Good information about when to start running with doodles too ...

[cheesedoodle]

We are dealing with the cat introduction thing now with our newly adopted labradoodle. Fortunately, our cat had gotten used to our previous dog, but is freaked out a little because Willow is taller and of course loops and smells different than Cici did.

We are taking it slow, and that is probably the best approach. We have regular training sessions where we hold the dog on a tight lead and give her really wonderful treats as the cat is moved closer and closer. We also let the cat explore the dog when the dog is in her kennel. As of today, the two can be in the same room without any restraints (after four days of work). We'll continue to work on this though.

Running ... any dog I am sure can benefit from running with people. Before we got Willow, she was running with people on horseback.

She doesn't smell much, except when she passes gas, which is frequently (probably attributable in part to all the treats in our cat socialization training regimen).

[MaxandMe]

NO cats but Max and peanut ignore our neighbor's Cat who hates them

Max and Beau do NOT have doggy odor unless way overdue for a bath and have rolled in something

peanut's coat seems to hold odor's like being slobbered on by max and beau alot OR if she finds deer poop

jogging...i'd wait till their 18mos at least or older

[gene]

Originally Posted by cheesedoodle

She doesn't smell much, except when she passes gas, which is frequently (probably attributable in part to all the treats in our cat socialization training regimen).

Thank you for my morning giggle......gas,giggles....it's a guy thing...