Shelter Cat Lands Job of Testing Adoptable Dogs for 'Cat Friendliness'

An animal shelter in Butler County, Kentucky recently shared a video of one of their hardest working employees, a cat named Cactus.

What's her job? She tests the cat-friendliness of shelter pups before they are adopted out so the shelter knows which dogs do well in a home with cats! She's really good at her job too!

It's a hard job, but someone's gotta do it! The adorable video was shared by the TikTok account for @friendsofbca and everyone loves how helpful Cactus the cat is. One person commented, "Showing this to my two indoor cats who are scared of my harmless Labrador." Another added, "I love it I’ve been thinking about adopting a dog and wondering if they test them with cats cause I don’t want to have to figure that out for myself alone."

Related: Our Dog 'Adopted' His Very Own Kitten & Now They Can't Live Without Each Other

If you are considering adopting a cat to your dog-occupied home, here are some steps you can take to make sure introductions go smoothly.

How To Introduce a Dog To a Cat

Before you even think about introducing your new fur baby to your old fur baby, make sure they have separate living spaces. Each pet should have their own "territory," so to speak, with their own bedding, food bowls, water bowls, and litter for the cat, so they can feel like they have a safe place.

Before you introduce them in person, you can prepare them by scent swapping. Rub a clean towel or blanket on your cat and put it in your dog's sleeping area, and vice versa. That way they can get used to each other's scent.

When you're ready for the first meeting, it helps if you have another human to hold your dog on his leash while you hold the cat or have them on a harness. If they seem calm and okay, let them smell each other. Give treats and lots of praise. If the dog barks or growls, separate the animals and try again later.

Gradually increase the time of supervised interactions between the dog and cat, always making sure the cat is safe. Be patient, give them time to get to know each other.

An excellent thing to consider is your local shelter may have a cat for adoption that has lived with dogs before and gets along well with dogs. That way it will be way less traumatic for the cat to get acclimated to their new dog friend!

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