Whats the best way to introduce a puppy to a cat?

I plan to get my girlfriend a puppy for her birthday in April but I'm not sure they best way to help it get along with the male cat we already have...

Supervision! some questions though:1. What breed of dog? Some dogs just don't do well with cats. Weim and pointers, and some retievers with a strong prey drive, among others. Most can be trained not to kill the cat, but this takes time and supervision.2. Are you sure she wants the puppy? Lots of present puppies end up in shelters. Good Luck!

Have the puppy on a leash and 1 of u hold the cat let them sniff eachother. bring him over every day and for only a little bit. : )

DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT get a puppy as a present. Do you know what kind of dog best suits your lifestyle? Do you know what time commitments you'll be able to make? Puppies are just as much work and commitment as a newborn baby. So many "look what I got you for your birthday/christmas" dogs end up in shelters or are euthanized. Talk to your girlfriend. Discuss what you are both looking for in a dog. Seek out local shelters and interact with the dogs there. Find one that fits your lifestyle that you bond with. Arrange for a meet and greet. Make a request to see if you could bring the puppy home for a weekend to see how well it interacts with the cat. Start off slowly with the pup on a leash or preferably in a cage. Let the cat sniff and check it out. It's a slow process so don't get discouraged if they don't instantly take to each other. Never leave your pup alone with your cat and ALWAYS firmly but gently correct your puppy when it chases, tries to bite or rough house with the cat.

there is no best way to be honest when i intiduced my puppy to my cat a few weeks later my cat was dead i will never frogive myself for that but it has worke with friends so give it a go and keep an eye on am

Depends on how old is current cat is. I am not sure how it would work to introduce, i actaully introduced oppsite way, ( I had a dog first then brought a kitten home) It was diffucilt time for me and the dog, it took me about 3 months to finally got kitten and dog become best friends as I never leave them unattented in case one of them get hurt. anyway, what i did was, swap cat and dog's toys to them to let them sniff at, even bedding for each 24 hours to get them to used the smells,(if your cat hisses its normal, it will grow out of it once it get used the idea to have a dog around) and I put baby safety gate on door so the dog wouldn't hurt my kitten. few days after that, i removed baby gate i put my dog on leash and let the kitten come in and have a sniff about in kitchen. Once when kitten is old enough to defend herself I let dog and cat get on their own time as long as I know cat has hide place to escape if she had enough of my dog till I trust them completely. I was worried when my kitten and dog was fighting looked like if it was serious but i left them to it to sort it out themself then they become best friends!!( I would step in if fight look bad with crying noises) Maybe you can try this oppsite way, but remember give your cat alot of loves as much you give the puppy love. I am sure your cat and new puppy will get on fine, but slowly introdcing is always best result..

you see dogs and cats don't really hate each other street cats for example are just scared of dogs and that is why they hiss at them house cats are just unfamiliar with dogs and for the first few days will hiss and paw but then it will eventually stop but if you have a full grown dog and want a cat that might not be a good idea because it might kill the new cat so if a dog grows up around the cat it will not attack it

We had a cat also, when we decided to adopt a puppy. First thing you have to determine is if the dog is cat aggressive at all. The way to determine this is to keep the dog on a leash and introduce it to a cat. If the dog seems to be non-reactive to the cat, then that’s a very good sign. However, if the dog starts to be aggressive or seems to be fixated with the cat, by lunging at it or staring intensely at it, then that’s not a good sign. You may need to keep the animals separated, such as keeping the dog crated around the cat, until you’re sure the dog and the cat are comfortable around each other. Then you’ll need to make sure someone is always around them to make sure the cat is safe. Unfortunately, this process can take months and still may not help.The other thing you have to know is how well your cat will accept a dog. Some cats are used to being around dogs and will run and play with them. Some cats don’t like being around dogs and will hide from them the whole time. Some cats will antagonize dogs. It took our cat a couple months to really feel comfortable with our dog.So I don’t want to discourage you from getting a puppy, but it’s going to be a lot of work. Puppies are a lot of work in general, but it’ll be harder with a cat involved. The good thing about getting a puppy though is it would be easier to get the puppy to accept a cat than trying to get an adult dog.

Get a baby gate (or two or three). Make sure your cat has access to his food, water, litter box...and gate the room off so that the puppy doesn't. That way they can still see and smell each other, but the cat can get away if the dog starts to chase. Don't be afraid to let the cat pop the dog one either...that's the only way he's going to learn how to treat the cat! One of my cats hid in a closet for three months after we brought our puppy home, but now they lay together and sleep. Also, make sure your girlfriend wants a puppy and that you're ready for the responsibility and all that jazz.