any tips for getting my dog used to new kitten?

[moschops]

we got a kitten on Friday. brought it home in a cat carrier.....slowly brought it into room and let dog sniff at it. got kitten out of box and while holding it introduced it to dog. twice the dog sniffed and then lunged for it (dp's quick reactions saved the day).......

currently i am keeping the kitten in our bedroom and dog in the living room.........all advice i have read/been given suggests keeping them apart and slowly introducing but my dog just doesn't seem to understand kitten is not a toy.

dog is 10 years old, collie cross and quite jealous............we have baby due in sept and am wondering if we will have similar jealousy problems with that too...

sorry i seem to have rambled a bit...........any suggestions would be very welcome.

[horseshoe]

moschops,

Slowly introducing them is the only thing you can do.

i find it helpful to put them a room apart for a few days and seperate them with a stairgate so that they can see and smell each other but cant get to each other. As the dog gets used to the smell he will get used to the cat. You may need to persevere with this for a couple of weeks.

try and do it in a room that your dog uses least. that way the dog will not perceive this as his territory as he would a room where you keep his basket.

If you have to go out though I would suggest putting the cat back upstairs.

[Chandra]

Oh no, pets are nicer and more tolerant with babies. (As long as you deal with them as pets and not babies they will respect thenew member of the family). As for the cat.... I really don'tknow, I have tried in the past and when I thought it was too dangerous to keep trying(for the cat or the rabbit, I just got thema new home)

[moschops]

the dog would normally sleep in our room but as the baby will be in there with us we are trying to get him used to a change of routine now as opposed to when we are trying to cope with a baby as well.

i think we have a few 'problems'......our dog just wants to play and is too rough with the kitten, the kitten is tiny (even for six weeks)and squeaks (we think to the dog she sounds like a toy) and she has been around a lumbering great big dog since birth so is not scared of our dog.

dp seems to think as the cat gets bigger integration will be easier, and the dog is getting less excitable each time he is around her.

if it comes down to it we can find good homes for one or both of them. the in-laws are quite happy to have dog when baby arrives IF he's a problem (his track record with children indicates he shouldn't be).

[TrophyWife]

what about putting somethings that smells of the cat in the dogs basket and letting him get used to the smell of the cat.
the idea of the stairgate between them soulds really good.

[moschops]

we live in a one level flat (till my kitchen gets done which is a whole other thread)so we could put a gate in the hallway door but my agile dog would jump that in about 2 seconds flat.

it would seem perserverance is the key............