When my friend Sue brought her guide dog Wonder over the other night, I wasn't sure how my cat Riley would react. Although the shelter wasn't sure exactly how old he is, we're guessing about eight months. No one knows his history, so it's unclear whether he's been around other dogs or cats.
When Wonder first passed through the room, Riley looked over at her, his eyes grew wide and, he hunched up in fear. Wonder was about six feet away from him and I rolled near Riley to reassure him. Wonder remained calm and completely still. Then she blinked. Riley blinked back. His body relaxed. Wonder blinked again and then Riley blinked too.
A good start.
So I found this YouTube video about raising a guide dog puppy and toward the end it shows how the cats and puppy learn to get along. It's an interesting series called Growing Up Guide Pup which teaches about the training that goes into a service animal and there are other videos to watch if you like this one.
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