Can Cats & Dogs Mate? Breeding Facts Explained

Families with dogs and cats live entertaining lives, which are always full of surprises. However, many pet parents worry that if they have dogs and cats in their home that they could mate. Can dogs mate with cats? The answer is no, dogs and cats cannot mate with each other.

Why can’t they mate? We’ll discuss why felines and canines cannot produce hybrid litters and more below.

Can Cats & Dogs Mate?

Under normal circumstances, cats and dogs never try to mate with each other, as their mating cues and patterns are completely different. Hypothetically speaking though, a hybrid species couldn’t be produced even if they did.

In animal taxonomy, all animals are grouped into categories or ranks known as taxa, based on their characteristics. These taxa start as generally broad and narrow down until a species or subspecies is identified. The main taxa (in order) are:

For many hybrid species, such as a liger (a cross between a male lion and a female tiger), the parents are different species, however, share the same genus. This means that they have a degree of genetic similarity that allows for the hybridization.

This concept of similarity also makes it possible for other hybrids; mules are a cross between a horse and a donkey, and wolfdogs are produced by mating a dog with a wolf.

Cats and dogs however are far too distinct for potential hybridization, as they have different family classifications in their taxonomical identification. This means they are too different to ever have a viable hybrid.

Dogs & Cats Have Different Mating Signals

Another reason that dogs and cats can’t mate is that they each have different mating signals. The reproductive cues of cats and dogs can only be interpreted by another member of their species.

In other words, the signals of a cat will only be picked up and understood by another cat, and likewise the signals of a dog will only be picked up and understood by other dogs.

Female cats and dogs also have completely different reproductive cycles and mating patterns. Therefore, a cat can’t impregnate a dog and vice versa.

Why Is My Dog Trying to Mount My Cat?

Humping is something dogs occasionally do, and there are many reasons behind it. Some of these reasons include stress, excitement, or just being playful. It’s unlikely that your dog is exhibiting the behavior because it intends to mate with a cat.

If your dog is frequently harassing your cat with its mounting practices, it’s best to separate the animals when you see it occur and provide your dog some training. As most dogs are larger than cats, an overzealous dog may cause injury to your cat when they hump them. Therefore, the habit warrants appropriate intervention.

As a quick fix, your dog and cat need to be separated. Avoid giving your dog another toy to hump; while this may take their attention away from your cat, it will also reinforce a behavior you would like them to unlearn. Therefore in the long run, it will make unlearning the habit much more difficult for your canine.

For long term management, it is advised to consult a veterinarian or dog trainer for advice to curb your dog’s humping habit. The time it takes your dog to drop a habit varies depending on how consistent their habit is and how soon after developing it do they undergo corrective training.

Conclusion

In summary, cats and dogs cannot mate, even if it looks like they’re trying to when your dog tries to hump your cat. They aren’t the same species, so they don’t share the same DNA, which makes it impossible for them to mate. On top of that, cats and dogs lack the ability to interpret the mating cues of each other, and therefore they have no desire to mate with each other. In other words, dogs and cats are just too different for mating to work between them. An overzealous dog that repeatedly humps your cat might end up stressing or injuring your feline. In such a case, it is advised that you seek professional help to curb the habit and retrain the dog if necessary.

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Featured Image Credit: AJR_photo, Shutterstock