I have listed 7 dog breeds that “hate cats”. Fortunately, I have bumped into a website1 where the author did her homework judging by the references she used which are listed on her webpage. I trust what she has written. Having read the webpage I think that it is fair to categorise the kind of dog breeds which euphemistically “hate cats” are those which have been trained to hunt small animals like rabbits.
Hunt small prey
These need not be large dogs. No doubt they were utilitarian dogs i.e. working dogs and they were trained to hunt small prey perhaps thousands of years ago. However, this personality trait has come through to current times and so below I list the dog breeds which don’t necessarily hate cats the most but which are trained to chase them and hunt them. This gives the impression that they hate cats. I think the concept of hating another species is entirely human and inapplicable for dogs.
The Dogs
The Australian Cattle Dog was historically bred as a herder which I guess translates to chasing cats if one is available. The dog may do it in an attempt to keep a cat within the pack. This dog breed is not necessarily aggressive towards small animals but of course it is quite a large dog and would no doubt frighten a cat if they were chased by it.
The Beagle was traditionally trained to hunt small game and therefore may be predisposed to hunt domestic cats. They are also energetic dogs and need to burn off that energy. If not they may use it to chase a cat or your cat.
The Greyhound was also used historically to hunt small game such as foxes and rabbits. They have a strong prey drive which may compel it to chase a cat. I live next door to a guy who had two greyhounds as pets. One day he came by and told me that he had had a hard time preventing one of his dogs chasing a local cat. I lived in a place where there were lots of indoor/outdoor cats because the grounds were extensive. I can therefore support the idea that the greyhound is not ideal as a cat companion.
The Jack Russell Terrier or indeed any type of terrier are feisty dogs, once again bred to hunt small game and they have a strong propensity to chase small animals such as cats.
The Miniature Schnauzer are said to be high-energy and intelligent companion dogs. They need to burn off energy and chasing cats could be one way to do it. Apparently they’re not necessarily aggressive towards cats but just chasing a cat may be frightening for the feline. They can be trained not to chase cats that were bred to hunt and therefore the instinct may be deeply embedded.
The Siberian Husky is a popular and attractive dog companion but they are notoriously headstrong and energetic with a desire to chase cats which may be difficult to train out of their personality.
The Weimaraner is a large, handsome and affectionate dog. They are friendly and enjoy family life. They are, however, traditionally a hunting dog and therefore have an urge to chase small animals. This trait can be trained out if you work with the animal as a puppy.
I think, too, we have to remind ourselves that each individual dog has their own personality despite the fact that breeders have bred into these dogs both their appearance and as a secondary matter character traits. This does not preclude the possibility that a substantial percentage of the dogs of a certain breed do not have personalities in line with that particular group of dogs.
1. https://scratchpay.com/
