How to Teach Cats and Dogs to coexist
If you are unlucky enough to own a dog and cat that have not been socialized, you may have an ongoing battle on your hands . One solution is to find another home for one or other animal but if you have time and patience you can sometimes make the best out of a bad situation.

Introduce the feuding pair to each other at a distance, or across closed doors, with each animal 'especially the dog' under good control. While each animal is calm and relaxed, this state of affairs should be rewarded . If this process is repeated frequently, each pet learns that, in the presence of the other one, good things happen. The distance between the two should then be incrementally decreased and the time the pets spend together increased, until they can coexist peacefully.

Managing such a reintroduction program takes strong leadership on the owner's part, plus patience and good physical control. The feuding parties may never become the best of friends but can at least be taught to tolerate each other's presence.

Just in case your newly trained animals suffer a setback, it is prudent to provide a place in every room of the house to which your cat can retreat, should this prove necessary. A climbing frame, a springboard to a tall piece of furniture, or narrowly open, firmly secured cupboard door will provide safe harbor for the cat in times of emergency or exasperation. Sometimes the dog is on the receiving end, but in such instances, it will usually learn to give the cat a wide berth, thus circumventing trouble.