Cat Vs. Dog - General Discussion

[Meredith Quill]

Your Cat Vs Dog Topic!

[chenoa333]

I haven't had a chance to watch this new show yet. I hope it's going to help folks who love both dogs and cats and want to learn how to have them coexist peacefully. It is something that can be achieved if the OWNER is willing to invest the time to make it work.

[Jaded]

I caught a couple episodes this past weekend. It's a good show. I'm glad they stopped trying with that lady and man who wanted to merge her 18yr old cats and his dog after they basically didn't do much of anything they were advised to. 

I love the graphic they use when they show the animals that are going to be featured. 

[possibilities]

I like the show a lot. I've been watching some of the earlier episodes I missed on first airing, and so far I think they do a good job. It's painful to see how the people usually are completely neglecting and blaming the cats, who are being terrorized. Not that the dogs are having a great time, either, but they're usually bigger and more dangerous relative to the cats. And the people don't seem to get it. I wish every person who acquired a pet was automatically given info about how to care for it. I don't know how that would be implemented, but it would be great if it happened. it's so badly needed.

I don't like Jackson's mustache. I got used to his extremely stylized facial hair when watching "My Cat From Hell" but the over the top mustache is just too much for me. I don't get why he feels the need to make himself look so ridiculous. He's got a lot to offer, he doesn't need to get attention by being ridiculous.

I like Zoe. She's not the most tactful person, but I kind of appreciate her exasperation. It's not always the most effective way to reach people, but it's also not allowing totally terrible behavior to be normalized. And even though she's a dog person, she gets cats and cares about them. She's fair. I like that she and Jackson work as a team and don't pose the show as truly being dogs vs cats, but it's actually about solving problems between them. I was worried it would be a competition for who to blame, but they don't really do that even if some of the people they help start out thinking that way.

On the other show (My Cat From Hell), most of the time the people have really tried with cats who they deeply love, and they just couldn't figure out what to do, despite making sometimes heroic efforts. On this show, a lot of the time it seems like the people haven't tried much of anything and don't care about the cats at all. It's very upsetting.

I wish there were more people watching, though. It's not just on TV, but everywhere I look, that there are people who have no idea how to manage their animals, and it's sad! The solutions are there, but no one seems to know what they are or where to look for them. Even people who are smart, caring, genuinely love their animals and usually pretty resourceful. Somehow, there's a gigantic gap in the generally circulating information about animals, even among those who you'd expect to know. I've spent a lot of time educating myself and consulting "experts" and so on, and I still learn things from Jackson (and now Zoe), so I can't even blame people for not knowing things. It's a systemwide problem, not a failure on the part of a few lazy or careless individuals.

[Bastet]

2 hours ago, Jaded said:

I'm glad they stopped trying with that lady and man who wanted to merge her 18yr old cats and his dog after they basically didn't do much of anything they were advised to. 

I wanted to smack those two idiots.  Since TV doesn't work that way, I just yelled a lot. They didn't want to expend one ounce of energy towards making the situation work.  And the "I can't believe you said that" looks on their faces when Jackson and Zoe told them - far, far more nicely than I would have - that they failed were too much.  Total denial.

They have joined the guy with the rottweiler (from the episode discussed in the genre thread) on my list of owners too out of touch with reality to ever do right by their pets.

[SRTouch]

Watching the rerun of episode one, and 2 things jump out, both dogs have some training, but the humans negate the training by not utilting it to maintain control. Other thing is that the owners, all of whom have experience with their animals, have humanized the pets to the point that they don't even consider the animals natural instincts. Both Charley, the bulldog, and French Toast, French bulldog, have received enough basic training that it's not a big leap to reach the goal of coexisting, if only the humans knew what to do. The cats, well, so far into the season, all the cats are not the problem, it's the owners not knowing what to do and/or projecting weirdness onto the cats. In this episode, the Main Coon is a problem, just because it's rightfully timid around a dog that once attacked it, and doesn't help that owner was also traumatised by witnessing the attack. We see Jackson break out some aroma therapy with the scaredy cat Maine Coon - which I once thought was a crock, but tried and had success when introducing a new cat into my gang. Both dogs and cats are hardwired to give chase to animals acting as prey, so building confidence in a timid cat is bound to reduce conflict. That was really all it took with the Maine Coon and bulldog. Once Charley knew to stay put on his bed, and Max was confident enough to venture out, the problem pretty much solved itself... not to say I would trust the situation enough to leave them unsupervised, but things are definitely looking up, and that day may come.

The other case, the Frenchy and two cats... boy, that lady has lived with cats and never really learned anything about their nature. Frenchy, obviously very trainable, but lady just watches as puppy acts like a puppy and tries to engage an adult and a senior cat, then is surprised that the cats are hissing and swatting. Then she thinks the cat is seeking attention as it gets older and has a few health issues. Really, I wouldn't be at all surprised that eating in/on the dog crate was a contributing factor to the one cat's urinary problems. Not to forget she just ignores all the animals wanting their own territory... really, feeding the cat inside the dog kennel! Not like that might cause a conflict. Lack of catification was pretty obvious from the start, also. Really weren't many places for the cats to retreat to when French was too rambunctious, since when they jumped up on the furniture French was free to follow and continue the chase. Ah, and I always kind of wonder when owners bring in dog and cat experts for problems they'ver been unable to solve, yet dig in their heels when the expert asks them to make changes. Here Jackson asks for catification, and she gives him a lapel pin. Yeah, cat furniture can be ridiculously expensive... but they really don't care, give them a couple book shelves to get up off the ground and a couple cardboard boxes and they're happy.

[SRTouch]

3 hours ago, Jaded said:

I caught a couple episodes this past weekend. It's a good show. I'm glad they stopped trying with that lady and man who wanted to merge her 18yr old cats and his dog after they basically didn't do much of anything they were advised to. 

I had a hard time watching this one... as soon as I saw lady holding her cat like some bait animal and the dog clawing the floor wanted to tear it up I stopped watching. Went back later and watched a little more, and heard dude saying experts were too young, but he'd give them a chance.... really, he'd give them a chance, but obviously not much of one. Still haven't watched the episode.... after reading the comments here, guess I won't watch.... costs to much to replace the TV after I throw the remote at it.

[walnutqueen]

1 hour ago, Bastet said:

I wanted to smack those two idiots.  Since TV doesn't work that way, I just yelled a lot. They didn't want to expend one ounce of energy towards making the situation work.  And the "I can't believe you said that" looks on their faces when Jackson and Zoe told them - far, far more nicely than I would have - that they failed were too much.  Total denial.

They have joined the guy with the rottweiler (from the episode discussed in the genre thread) on my list of owners too out of touch with reality to ever do right by their pets.

The owner of the two 18 year old cats was horrid - I wanted to smack her and kidnap her cats.  She obviously cares about catering to her new boyfriend more than she does about those sweet companions she's had for almost 2 decades.  So they have to spend the last years of their lives being terrorized by a dog and marginalized in their own home while she has fun with her new "boy-toy".  Bitch.

[chenoa333]

2 hours ago, SRTouch said:

I had a hard time watching this one... as soon as I saw lady holding her cat like some bait animal and the dog clawing the floor wanted to tear it up I stopped watching. Went back later and watched a little more, and heard dude saying experts were too young, but he'd give them a chance.... really, he'd give them a chance, but obviously not much of one. Still haven't watched the episode.... after reading the comments here, guess I won't watch.... costs to much to replace the TV after I throw the remote at it.

This is one of many reasons I'm afraid to watch this show. 

[SRTouch]

On 12/13/2017 at 6:10 PM, chenoa333 said:

This is one of many reasons I'm afraid to watch this show. 

I get what you're saying. OTOH, while the show doesn't always present a fairy tale ending, it does present ways which could help you work through a problem - not just with integrating a dog and cat, but really other problems as well. This last episode (yes, finally watched it) had a dog which was borderline food agressive, and Zoe had a really simple fix (simple, not necessarily quick and easy). As far as clueless owners, well that's pretty much par for the course on any of these dog/cat behavior programs (especially where an expert shows up, we see a few minutes of advice, then expert leaves owner with homework, which is often ignored after the first visit). There was definitely hope for that cat/dog pair to eventually coexist. Ah, but they completely sidestepped dog #2. #2 dog was ultra prey driven, and a definite danger to the cat. But, since it was a friend's dog, they solved the problem by telling owners not to let the dog visit. (Anybody else about to throw something when they filmed the cat trapped under the bed? Good grief, put down the camera and rescue that cat!!!)

This latest episode, with the bf, along with completely unruly dog, moving into a home with two senior kittys.... Pretty much a train wreck from the beginning, but still some kernels of advice which may have worked if the humans had been willing to do ANYTHING the experts told them. Pooky(?), the dog, was totally out of control... a red zone candidate for Cesar's old 911 show. Not trained to walk on a leash, barked and wanted to chase pretty much any moving object during their walk. Other dogs, kids, cars, pretty much everything, while ignoring the dude holding the other end of the leash. Oh, and dude acts almost proud to say dead squirrel - but did Pooky find it dead, or kill it as Jackson assumed? Zoe had a simple fix - swapped collar to head harness, owner amazed by how well behaved Pooky became... then absolutely no progress when they left owner with homework. Speaking of how Cesar used to do things, this is a dog which Cesar would definitely have taken back to his training center rather than leaving it in the home. Simple exercise, slowly acclimate the cats by keeping the dog leashed and at LEAST SIX FREEKING FEET AWAY, and distract the dog when it first started to fixate on the cat.... totally ignored, when experts come back, owners seem happy to report that they pushed the issue by letting the dog get closer - but yeah, there had been that one time when dog cornered a cat in the bedroom - hey, no blood, so no worries, right. Pretty much doomed from the start... should have started with basic obedience training before attempting to acclimate the animals.

Yeah, except for fact you just proved to the cat that he's right to distrust the dog. Heck, lucky cats having started to mistrust the human who is supposed to be their protector.  I totally agree with @walnutqueen about the lady with her 2 18yo cats. Really, call them furbabies, had them since they were kittens, the one was an absolutely wonderful, social cat who was headbutting and rubbing his head on Jackson when they first met... yet she banishes them to the pantry to bring in bf and his out of control dog.... horrid just begins to describe her.

Edited December 16, 2017 by SRTouch

[chenoa333]

52 minutes ago, SRTouch said:

I get what you're saying. OTOH, while the show doesn't always present a fairy tale ending, it does present ways which could help you work through a problem - not just with integrating a dog and cat, but really other problems as well. This last episode had a dog which was borderline food agressive, and Zoe had a really simple fix (simple, not necessarily quick and easy). As far as clueless owners, well that's pretty much par for the course on any of these dog/cat  behavior programs (especially where an expert shows up, we see a few minutes of advice, then expert leaves owner with homework, which is often ignored after the first visit). There was definitely hope for that cat/dog pair to eventually coexist. Ah, but they completely sidestepped dog #2. #2 dog was ultra prey driven, and a definite danger to the cat. But, since it was a friend's dog, they solved the problem by telling owners not to let the dog visit. (Anybody else about to throw something when they filmed the cat trapped under the bed? Good grief, put down the camera and rescue that cat!!!)

This latest episode, with the bf, along with completely unruly dog, moving into a home with two senior kittys.... Pretty much a train wreck from the beginning, but still some kernels of advice which may have worked if the humans had been willing to do ANYTHING the experts told them. Pooky(?), the dog, was totally out of control... a red zone candidate for Cesar's old 911 show. Not trained to walk on a leash, barked and wanted to chase pretty much any moving object during their walk. Other dogs, kids, cars, pretty much everything, while ignoring the dude holding the other end of the leash. Oh, and dude acts almost proud to say a dead squirrel - but did Pooky find it dead, or kill it as Jackson assumed? Zoe had a simple fix - swapped collar to head harness, owner amazed by how well behaved Pooky became... then absolutely no progress when they left owner with homework. Speaking of how Cesar used to do things, this is a dog which Cesar would definitely have taken back to his training center rather than leaving it in the home. Simple exercise, slowly acclimate the cats by keeping the dog leashed and at LEAST SIX FREEKING FEET AWAY, and distract the dog when it first started to fixate on the cat.... totally ignored, when experts come back, owners seem happy to report that they pushed the issue by letting the dog get closer - but yeah, there had been that one time when dog cornered a cat in the bedroom - hey, no blood, so no worries, right. Pretty much doomed from the start... should have started with basic obedience training before attempting to acclimate the animals.

Yeah, except for fact you just proved to the cat that he's right to distrust the dog. Heck, lucky cats having started to mistrust the human who is supposed to be their protector.  I totally agree with @walnutqueen about the lady with her 2 18yo cats. Really, call them her furbabies, had them since they were kittens, the one was an absolutely wonderful, social cat who was headbutting and rubbing his head on Jackson when they met... yet she banishes them to the pantry to bring in bf and his out of control dog.... horrid just begins to describe her.

THIS is exactly why I am apprehensive about watching this show. People who give up their pets for a new boyfriend/girlfriend/partner, are mentally unstable, insecure, impatient and extremely selfish. Not good qualities for a significant other. But I'm still pleased that this concept show is on tv. I hope it does well.

[Bastet]

Why was the boyfriend bringing his dog with him when he came to stay with her?  He was only there for a weekend at a time, so hire a damn dog sitter.  I know they wanted to move in together, but boo hoo; she can let those cats live out the life they deserve, safe and happy in their own home, and then move in together.

[possibilities]

I desperately wanted to adopt those 18 year old cats. That woman was shameless.

[walnutqueen]

There isn't a penis or a wallet on the planet that's worth fucking over an animal for.  Believe me.

[chenoa333]

3 hours ago, walnutqueen said:

There isn't a penis or a wallet on the planet that's worth fucking over an animal for.  Believe me.

Amen and Hallelujah! 

[PupCal]

Two new episodes tonight, folks!

[Bastet]

Holy crap, the “But we want to move in together” dipshits are on again right now, and I am watching the fucking Chargers/Chiefs game instead, even though I don't like either team, because I hate these total drips that much. 

He’s an asshole who never bothered to train his dog and then seeks to impose that dog on his girlfriend’s cats in their own house (I seriously do not understand why once he realized, duh, the cats do not appreciate having this unruly house guest, he didn’t just hire a damn dog sitter and leave the dog at home for his visits; I don’t see her showing up at his house with her cats in tow).  She’s an asshole who is prioritizing catering to her new boyfriend over providing her cats a safe place to live.  Shoving your cats into a pantry for the weekend instead of saying, “Dude, leave the dog at home”?

What is wrong with these people?  This would be inexcusable in a couple of 20-year-olds, but they don’t even have youthful stupidity to fall back on.  Asshats.

I have friends who, with one cat each, moved in together after a few years of dating.  After a year of doing everything right, the cats were still unhappy together.  It's rare, but it happens.  They went back to living separately, and everyone was happier - the cats who didn't have to either deal with each other or be separated, and the people who didn't spend every day stressed out over their cats' quality of life.  After his cat died, they moved in together again.  This played out over a period of years, and is an extreme example.  But these fuckwits can't wait until a couple of 18-year-olds go off to the happy hunting ground before combining households once it became clear integrating the animals was not feasible, generally, and certainly not with the non-existent energy they wanted to put into it?

Edited December 17, 2017 by Bastet

[possibilities]

It's worse, because they really didn't even try to integrate them, and basically rejected the homework that Jackson and Zoe thought would actually work if they did it.  Lazy and callous towards cats who have been with her for 18 years. It makes my heart hurt.

----

Tonight's two episodes were rough, but at least the people tried, and it seemed to pay off to some extent. Frankly the cats still seemed pretty stressed, but it got better.

There's so much pain in the world.

[walnutqueen]

5 hours ago, possibilities said:

There's so much pain in the world.

Yes, there is.  Sadly, this show seems to be adding to the pain in my life.  My heart hurts for these poor animals, and my blood boils with rage at the ignorant owners.  Not a good combo for someone who already has a broken heart and high blood pressure.  :~)

[msrachelj]

On 12/13/2017 at 3:38 PM, Bastet said:

I wanted to smack those two idiots.  Since TV doesn't work that way, I just yelled a lot. They didn't want to expend one ounce of energy towards making the situation work.  And the "I can't believe you said that" looks on their faces when Jackson and Zoe told them - far, far more nicely than I would have - that they failed were too much.  Total denial.

They have joined the guy with the rottweiler (from the episode discussed in the genre thread) on my list of owners too out of touch with reality to ever do right by their pets.

that was horrific. i don't think they should have just ended it like that. they needed a much more stern lecture with the words dead cats, blood, ripped apart, etc in it. she needs to have a wake up call the piece of shit.  i was hoping jackson would tell the woman he would like to take them and rehome them. i don't have high hopes for those poor cats. what a disgusting woman. putting her new "boy toy" (it felt to me that he was with her because it looked like she had a nice home and was older. ) ahead of her elderly children made me sick to my stomach. and what a friggin idiot with the wobbly obstacle course she set up on chairs etc. a five year old could have done a better job. 

On 12/17/2017 at 6:01 AM, walnutqueen said:

Yes, there is.  Sadly, this show seems to be adding to the pain in my life.  My heart hurts for these poor animals, and my blood boils with rage at the ignorant owners.  Not a good combo for someone who already has a broken heart and high blood pressure.  :~)

i agree. i don't know if i can continue. people are so damn ignorant. i am way too animal sensitive to not want to reach into the tv and throttle them. then take their cats and find new homes for them.

is there anyway besides facebook ( and has anyone commented on this on jacksons fb page) we can contact jackson and have him look into this situation again? i hate this woman with the heat of a thousand suns! 

Edited December 20, 2017 by msrachelj
spelling

[SRTouch]

Hmmmm, two hours today, but really the same old predictable cases where 99% of problem is the humans. First up, dude and his cat moving into house with gf and her two adult children. Dude moves into the house, and suddenly his cat is faced with an established cat and a dog. His cat is understandably timid in the new surrounding - poor kitty's whole world view has been uprooted, and these people have no idea how to go about introducing a new cat. So, a year goes by with new cat not really having a territory and being picked on by the established animals. Other problem is the two adult children are spoiled special-snowflake children who have "their" pets, but do nothing to care for the animals, leaving everything up to mom. Heck, when Zoe asks, the son doesn't even know where his dog's food is kept, since mommy takes care of feeding the dog. So, mommy has always done everything, and "kids" think that's the way things should be. Now, mommy's bf moves in, they resent him telling them they should take care of their pets, and mommy realizes he has a point, and she's getting fed up with her brats taking advantage. Oh, and mom figured out that pooch has food allergies, and yet nobody has taken the simple next step of modifying the diet and sticking to it. Instead, they put dog in a sweater so it won't scratch itself bloody. That pretty much sums up these folks... they know there's problems, but cover them up instead of finding solutions. The adult son comes around pretty fast, but daughter digs in her heels a bit... she doesn't appreciate being told it's her responsibility to empty the litter box, feed and water "her" cat, etc. Once clueless humans get a hint, pretty simple solution. Typical Jackson solution to cat problem - give timid cat some confidence so he stops being a victim, get daughter to play with her cat so it isn't so eager to chase new cat. Get dog's allergies under control, a little exercise and training, suddenly dog isn't irritable and acting out.

Second case is one of those where you just wonder WTH is the human thinking. She had a hairless spinx cat, but her business is running a dog boarding/day care place.  For some reason, she thinks it's a good idea to have her cat as the business mascot. Amazing that the cat is as well adjusted as it was. Of course, the idea horrified Jackson, as does the fact that she transports the cat back and forth loose in the car. Then the lady gets a bloodhound puppy. Ok, now cat has lost his safe place at home, cuz lady lets puppy do anything his wants... he's just so darn cute! It takes awhile - she resists not taking the cat to work, but she gets on board finally, realizing it makes more sense to take the dog to work to be a mascot at a dog business. Little obedience training, puppy stops jumping on guests and chasing the cat on the furniture.

Second hour we get a truly clueless owner of three out of control dogs and two cats. This lady is just blind to the needs of her animals - she cares, but just misses obvious signs. Her dogs are little rat terrier types, bred to hunt and kill vermin - totally out of control. The first time the experts meet the dogs, one of them runs up and bites Zoe on the leg. Like I said, this owner is just blind to danger signs...  not just to the danger to the cats, but danger her dogs pose to others people and the dogs themselves - as the experts pointed out, animal control in some places has zero tolerance for agressive dogs. Closest I can come is a hoarder situation where it is obvious to any outsider there's big problems, but the hoarder thinks everything is peachy. Anyway, the dogs are easy enough to control once Zoe starts training the human to control them. The cats... well more trouble there for Jackson. Now, I like Jackson, but I have to admit I don't always agree. He is firmly "inside only," while I'm more inside-outside where safe (not safe here for my gang, not just traffic not far away, but also open pasture with the occasional raptor and/or coyote). The owner here was just as firm in her view that cats have to have access to the "OUT" to be happy. Problem here is that she was willing to forget safety to let her cats go out. Jackson definitely has a point. If you look at the statistics, an inside cat has a far greater life expectancy then an outside cat. First, her cats had to run the gauntlet to get to the "OUT", she opened the door and the cat ran out and had to escape through the pack of dogs. Then, once outside, the cats roamed the city streets. To me the nice little back yard was just screaming for a catio... heck, when I saw her setup on the roof I immediately started thinking that she could make a pvc pipe/net enclosure up there if there was some way to bridge over to a window in the house. It took a couple visits before Jackson suggested it. Anyway, happy ending once they opened Tami's eyes.

Edited December 19, 2017 by SRTouch

[possibilities]

I like that Zoe frames her training efforts in terms of "impulse control" rather than just calling it "obedience." She notes that if they have impulse control, they can think, and make choices. And I love that. The dogs on this show often seem to me to be utterly stupid and just frantic and not really lucid. In real life, the dogs I meet seem to be more able to think, unless very stressed. So, basically, the dogs on the show are stressed. Calming them down makes them happier and also easier to work with. But it requires humans to be thinking, too, which is where these problems are usually solved. Dogs make choices, when not over the top stressed, they're not trying to cause strife. I suppose that's true of the humans, too, but it's harder to see because I think humans have a tendency to have more complex and often mixed motives. They will resist change even when given clear information.

[Bastet]

9 hours ago, SRTouch said:

Now, I like Jackson, but I have to admit I don't always agree. He is firmly "inside only," while I'm more inside-outside where safe (not safe here for my gang, not just traffic not far away, but also open pasture with the occasional raptor and/or coyote). The owner here was just as firm in her view that cats have to have access to the "OUT" to be happy.

That one perfectly exemplified why I disagree with both the "cats should never set paw outside" folks AND the "cats should never be confined within four walls" folks.

I think whether a cat can safely have any outdoor time depends on the circumstances - the cat and the environment.  First, some cats have no interest in it, or are scared by it, so those who insist their cat wants to be outside simply because she or he is a cat are starting off on the wrong foot.  Then, among those who do like being outdoors, if, when, and how they can be allowed outdoors depends on the totality of circumstances.  Maybe they can't, maybe they need a catio, maybe they can be walked around on a harness and leash, maybe they can be out free in the yard with constant supervision, maybe they can be outside with only intermittent supervision (during the day; my only bright-line rule for all mostly-indoor cats with outdoor access is no unsupervised outdoor time at night).  Each step in outdoor access requires more and more things about the cat's temperament and the home environment to fall into place to make it reasonable, and thus becomes less and less likely to be safe.

So Jackson's "No outdoors!" and the client's "They shouldn't be shut inside!" stance as a starting point were equally annoying to me, and I hope it was just for the show that the "catio" happy medium took so long to hit upon.  Because, duh. 

Edited December 19, 2017 by Bastet

[possibilities]

Jackson has often advocated for catios, and he's also built total yard cat-proof fences in some cases, and assigned some cats to leash/harness walks, so I think this episode's drama was for drama's sake. I definitely thought the cats in this particular situation were terrified and not safe, and the catio was an obvious solution. She even had a yard to put it in!

I wish they wouldn't do things for drama and suspense or to create conflict. Solve problems! Make everyone happy! That's way more engaging than struggle and strife.

[Rlb8031]

On 12/16/2017 at 10:34 PM, Bastet said:

Holy crap, the “But we want to move in together” dipshits are on again right now, and I am watching the fucking Chargers/Chiefs game instead, even though I don't like either team, because I hate these total drips that much. 

He’s an asshole who never bothered to train his dog and then seeks to impose that dog on his girlfriend’s cats in their own house (I seriously do not understand why once he realized, duh, the cats do not appreciate having this unruly house guest, he didn’t just hire a damn dog sitter and leave the dog at home for his visits; I don’t see her showing up at his house with her cats in tow).  She’s an asshole who is prioritizing catering to her new boyfriend over providing her cats a safe place to live.  Shoving your cats into a pantry for the weekend instead of saying, “Dude, leave the dog at home”?

What is wrong with these people?  This would be inexcusable in a couple of 20-year-olds, but they don’t even have youthful stupidity to fall back on.  Asshats.

I have friends who, with one cat each, moved in together after a few years of dating.  After a year of doing everything right, the cats were still unhappy together.  It's rare, but it happens.  They went back to living separately, and everyone was happier - the cats who didn't have to either deal with each other or be separated, and the people who didn't spend every day stressed out over their cats' quality of life.  After his cat died, they moved in together again.  This played out over a period of years, and is an extreme example.  But these fuckwits can't wait until a couple of 18-year-olds go off to the happy hunting ground before combining households once it became clear integrating the animals was not feasible, generally, and certainly not with the non-existent energy they wanted to put into it?

Damn, the Chiefs and Chargers??? You must really hate this couple. My assumption about the dog coming with him was that he was very clear that his dog was uncontrollable, and there wasn't a sitter or a dog walker or friend who was able or willing to handle the dog for two days while he was away. 

22 hours ago, possibilities said:

Jackson has often advocated for catios, and he's also built total yard cat-proof fences in some cases, and assigned some cats to leash/harness walks, so I think this episode's drama was for drama's sake. I definitely thought the cats in this particular situation were terrified and not safe, and the catio was an obvious solution. She even had a yard to put it in!

I wish they wouldn't do things for drama and suspense or to create conflict. Solve problems! Make everyone happy! That's way more engaging than struggle and strife.

I think that Jackson starts from the "no outside" perspective because so many people are clueless about what the myriad of risks are, and giving them an opening by saying "that My Cat from Hell said its okay to let cats out" allows for clueless owner to not do anything. He's never taken "no outside" position with people with the means and the ability to provide proper enclosures and supervision to their cats outdoors.

[lovesnark]

I want to know why the idiot with the two 18 year old cats couldn't go spend the weekend with her new boytoy instead of him bringing his untrained, cat killer to her house? One of the beautiful things about cats is that you can leave them for a couple of days and not have to worry about someone having to come and feed them and let them out to go to the bathroom. Both of those idiots infuriated me with their selfishness! Forcing 18 year old cats  to live in the laundry room  made me want to lock her in a tiny space for days while some crazed and dangerous stranger had the run of her home.

The woman with the bloodhound also infuriated me. Her first two strikes were that she lined the pockets of two breeders when she selected and paid a ton of money for her cat and her dog. If she really just HAD to have a sphinx, she could have found one through a breed specific rescue. It probably wouldn't have been a kitten, but there are sphinx cats out there that need homes because people bought them without doing the research into their unique needs. She boasted about her puppy being the pick of litter which means she paid a hefty price. Bloodhounds are expensive, especially one from a show dog breeder. Because he's going to be shown, he can't be neutered. I sure hope she's equipped to deal with a very large and strong dog that will do anything to get to a female in heat that he can smell from miles away. She just seemed to look at these animals as accessories and the dog as something to win ribbons for her. She didn't consider their needs at all. I will say one positive thing about her. I had a bloodhound for two years and they are incredibly messy, smelly dogs. Every time they shake their head, drool flies everywhere, everywhere they lay down gets covered in drool and it stinks. Those ears and all the loose skin on their muzzle gets covered in food, drool and anything else they come in contact with and makes for a powerful stink, even if you clean them every day. Her house was very clean and either she spends hours every day cleaning drool off of the walls, furniture and windows or she has a great housekeeper!

[msrachelj]

16 hours ago, lovesnark said:

I want to know why the idiot with the two 18 year old cats couldn't go spend the weekend with her new boytoy instead of him bringing his untrained, cat killer to her house? One of the beautiful things about cats is that you can leave them for a couple of days and not have to worry about someone having to come and feed them and let them out to go to the bathroom. Both of those idiots infuriated me with their selfishness! Forcing 18 year old cats  to live in the laundry room  made me want to lock her in a tiny space for days while some crazed and dangerous stranger had the run of her home.

The woman with the bloodhound also infuriated me. Her first two strikes were that she lined the pockets of two breeders when she selected and paid a ton of money for her cat and her dog. If she really just HAD to have a sphinx, she could have found one through a breed specific rescue. It probably wouldn't have been a kitten, but there are sphinx cats out there that need homes because people bought them without doing the research into their unique needs. She boasted about her puppy being the pick of litter which means she paid a hefty price. Bloodhounds are expensive, especially one from a show dog breeder. Because he's going to be shown, he can't be neutered. I sure hope she's equipped to deal with a very large and strong dog that will do anything to get to a female in heat that he can smell from miles away. She just seemed to look at these animals as accessories and the dog as something to win ribbons for her. She didn't consider their needs at all. I will say one positive thing about her. I had a bloodhound for two years and they are incredibly messy, smelly dogs. Every time they shake their head, drool flies everywhere, everywhere they lay down gets covered in drool and it stinks. Those ears and all the loose skin on their muzzle gets covered in food, drool and anything else they come in contact with and makes for a powerful stink, even if you clean them every day. Her house was very clean and either she spends hours every day cleaning drool off of the walls, furniture and windows or she has a great housekeeper!

the old bag with the boy-toy does not deserve those cats. she is sickening. i fear for their lives and am so disappointed that jackson did not tell her off , lecture her, tell her straight out what the deal was. makes me loathe people more every day the more i see how stupid , selfish , and horrible most are. 

[Jaded]

I finally watched the last episode of the season finalize where the lady had three dogs, two cats and was wearing that annoying pink tank top. Do Zoe, Jackson and the participants always wear the same thing throughout every episode? If so I'm ashamed that it took pink tank top lady's top to make me notice this. They made it look like they were going back to her home at different times but they all had on the same clothes during each "visit".

[Rlb8031]

Yes. I noticed it with the black couple. The guy had on a stripped shirt and I thought "wow, he must love that shirt, he's had it on every time they visited!"

[CoderLady]

Weird. I noticed that, too. The trainers' clothes change for each visit but the pet owners wear the same things no matter how far apart in time the visits are. One woman managed to change her nail polish color between visits but hair and outfits were the same. I wonder why they're doing that? 

[hisbunkie]

The couple with the dog who needs a large, heavy chain on his neck for exercise needs to be reported for animal abuse.   What a damn idiot. Hope he does not have any children. 

[CoyoteBlue]

On 12/18/2017 at 2:49 PM, SRTouch said:

Typical Jackson solution to cat problem - give timid cat some confidence so he stops being a victim, get daughter to play with her cat so it isn't so eager to chase new cat. Get dog's allergies under control, a little exercise and training, suddenly dog isn't irritable and acting out.

I think some of the issue with the dog was that dogs don't like when pack members fight, so when Loop and Isis would go at it, he felt compelled to dive in to break it up.

[SRTouch]

6 hours ago, CoyoteBlue said:

I think some of the issue with the dog was that dogs don't like when pack members fight, so when Loop and Isis would go at it, he felt compelled to dive in to break it up.

Yep, thinking back to old Cesar shows, I'm sure he'd say that if the humans weren't going to be pack leader, the dog will step in and try to fill the position... often with results the humans don't appreciate.