Golden Retrievers and Cats - Can the co-exist?

[Caution]

I have two cats that I love beyond words (I never had a pet before the first of the aforementioned two cats and I always scoffed when I would hear of people saying they spent $XXX absurd amount of money on a sick pet...well I now get it. They are just smaller, furrier family members!).

I would love to adopt a dog and have done a bit of research and found that a few of my preferred breeds simply aren't suited to cats and I would never want to endanger my two girls! So, I'm curious to find out DU'ers experiences when it comes to Golden Retrievers and cats in the same household. I've found a breeder online that seems very humane and reputable. They raise their puppies in a household with children and cats along with the other dogs, and they absolutely require spaying/neutering, etc etc. So does anyone have any experience introducing a Golden Puppy into a household with a couple of full grown (and in one of my cat's cases well over-grown) cats? Thoughts? Advice? Any other breeds I should consider? My research indicates that Goldens get along well if raised with cats early, but I also know that Goldens can naturally be hunters which isn't a good thing for a mix with two smaller animals.

[NV Whino]

1. Goldens are really gentle people and good around just about anything

I would say that would be a good choice to introduce with cats, especially if the dog is a puppy. The cats will whip him into shape in no time. Also, remember that goldens are retrievers and have the instinct and are trained not to harm what they retrieve. Very gentle mouths, very gentle dogs period.

Dogs that are used for protection or trained to attack (German shepherds, pit bulls, dobermans) are not a good choice.

[Lisa0825]

2. Do they allow sleep-over trials?

We had someone request that at our shelter recently, to make sure they'd get along OK, and we said they could give it a try, and if anytime in the trial period, it didn't look like a good match, they could bring her back so we could find a more suitable home.

[Ayesha]

3. Goldens are great!

I had Goldens in the past and now have a Lab and 4 other dogs. The Goldens were both WONDERFUL with cats, and in general Goldens will only chase in play, not to hurt the cat. I would be more concerned about your cats' adjustment to the dog, and that will depend on your individual cats. I had 2 cats, both of which I got as kittens and I had my elderly Golden at the time. One cat grew up to love all dogs, and the other hated all dogs except the Golden she was raised with (who passed on a few years ago). I eventually had to find her a new home because she was miserable in my multi-dog household. The other cat is still here and loving life with 5 dogs. However, most cats can learn to live with one dog with no problem. They will set limits with the puppy and the pup will learn to respect them or have a sore nose!

[AirmensMom]

4. Ours were wonderful together.

When we got Sundance as a puppy, we had a 10-year-old Siamese. They weren't exactly friends (not Sundance's fault -- Sesame was an "old man"), but they never fought. And Sundance certainly never tried to hurt the kitty. We got Satchmo as a 12-week-old kitten, when Sundance was 10 years old. As you can see, it wasn't a problem. We had three other cats at the time. Some of them ignored Sundance, but he wanted to be friends with all of them. He was a great dog.
:loveya:

[Caution]

5. Thanks folks!

[IndyOp]

6. Definitely! I got my Golden Ben when he was about 8-months-old

and he was so desperate to get the cats to like him that when he first arrived, when they walked through the room, he would lie down and stay very, very still. They could walk all around and he would not move a muscle. As they became more comfortable, he was more likely to move around when they were in the room. The big exceptions here: If food appeared or the leash was brought out (signaling a walk) then all bets were off -- cats or no cats you saw an excited dog.

The cats had each other and were older at the time I got him, so they never became 'friends' - but it was not for lack of Ben trying! :-)

[Eurobabe]

7. Goldens are very wonderful dogs

they are absolutely lovely, just be careful, because of terrible inbreeding they can have a whole host of health issues (heart, hips, eye, etc.) My poor friend has about gone to the poorhouse because of her two goldens, their vet bills are astronomical. But she loves her dogs just the same. Best of luck, do your research on the breeder, check Golden Associations so you know what to be wary of...