by Marianna Lamare

Created on: December 15, 2008

Gazing down at the large dog bed in the living room, my heart is warmed at the sight in front of me. Curled up together like ying and yang are our two beloved animals: Zelda, the grey and white cat, and Lizzie, the big red golden retriever. Who would have ever thought it possible?

In the past, we've had cats and dogs who rather tolerated each other. One cat we had for twenty years, named "Jupiter Venus" as a kitten by our then three year-old son, never was able to warm up to our canine companion we rescued when she was only fifteen. After losing our beloved dog, we needed time to grieve before we could adopt again. When our aged feline sadly passed away two years ago, we began to feel open to finding a new dog. When we adopted Lizzie a year ago from the NorCal Golden Retriever Rescue Organization, we were uncertain how Zelda would respond.

Zelda came to us as a stray cat who had spent the first three or so years of her life wandering around with a group of feral cats. She lived literally in the wild under some cabins in the woods. I spent nearly three years rescuing as many of the cats as I could and fell in love with the talkative grey and white dumpling of a cat who became a member of our family. She and Jupiter Venus didn't get along well, either; I was told our aging tortoise shell cat was a very singular animal who didn't like sharing our affections with others. Zelda was very skittish at first and had lived in a place where coyotes certainly were to be feared. With these facts in mind, I was concerned how she would perceive a new large dog in the house. So, we studied up on how to introduce a new dog with an established cat.

First, we kept Zelda in our bedroom with her food and cat box and lots of extra attention when Lizzie arrived. We let them become aware of each other's scents, and aware of each other's presence without being too close. Little by little we introduced them, never allowing Lizzie to approach Zelda. As time went by, and Zelda was free to roam the house again, we could let them smell each other. When we were petting Lizzie on the floor or when Lizzie was lying down, Zelda would cautiously approach her new 'sister' and smell her. They would touch noses sometimes, curiously exploring each other. There was no doubt they were going to be comfortable with one another, but to what degree, we did not know.

I think our comfort and energy really made a huge difference. We were relaxed with them together and also set clear boundaries for Lizzie around

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