How Do I Know If The Way My Pets Play Is Safe?

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Q: My dog and cat like to wrestle and bite each other. I know they are just playing, but is it safe or should I stop them?Q: My dog and cat like to wrestle and bite each other. I know they are just playing, but is it safe or should I stop them?

A: It is ok to let your dog and cat play with one another but it is important to make sure that their play does not get too aggressive. Cats that have long claws can cause a lot of damage to your dog. Not only can long nails cut your dogs' skin but also they can cause serious damage to their eyes. Scratches to the eye are considered emergencies and require immediate medical attention. Remember that dogs have powerful jaws that can harm your cat. The force of your dog's bite or even just wrestling with the cat can be enough to break or dislocate the cat's delicate bones. Just be sure that your animals do not play too rough and also be careful not to let yourself get injured trying to break up a fight!

Dr. Lauren Brickman Dr. Brickman started as a veterinary technician at Garden City Park in 1997 and went on to…

Filed Under: Health & Home, Training & Behavior, Behavior
Tags: aggressive, biting, cat, dog, playing, safety

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Comments (6)

Janey (Unverified)

Added 07-17-2012 02:34pm

My 2 week old kitten that I rescued has blood in his stool is it o k to use over the counter meds for hookworm

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Debi (Unverified)

Added 12-20-2011 12:11am

I have a dog and two cats that play. Somehow my one cat was left in the backyard alone w/ the dog while I went shopping. The dog was chewing the cats neck for almost 2hrs. Did not break the skin, but now my cat is very traumatized..He hid under the cupboard in the garage for a long time. It was like he was treated as a stuffed toy...Why did the dog do this? Why would the dog not let the cat go?

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Mike (Unverified)

Added 03-11-2011 12:20pm

Interesting! I hope that everyone has a great weekend! Please pray for the people of Hawaii and Japan. Thanks! I also hope that they enjoyed the recent holidays that we've had!

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mike (Unverified)

Added 03-11-2011 10:37am

i have 2 week old kittens and their is 6 of the cut little fellas an fellers bet they all have this green type of puss or liquid coming out of their eyes and its making their eyes be matted shut what is going on can some one give me some a advice

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Jackie

Added 11-04-2010 06:44pm

My Boxer/Pitt mix (mostly boxer) plays with my Cockatoo! He will nip at her and vice versa! They tend to enjoy it. Sissy the Cockatoo comes off her cage to initialize the play. Slick my boxer sits on the floor and moans and wines at her and nips at her talons. All feathers get raised and Slick gets excited and starts barking. But I have yet to see any harm coming! Slick is 7 months and Sissy is 32 years of age. This is the first dog Sissy has been around. She seems to be in control of the situation. I have videos of both animals on YOUTUBE. Please enjot them!