My 2 cats are 6 yrs old and have always had very distinct personalities. Tori is the shy timid fraidy-cat and Mya the more social one. A month ago we rescued an Aussie shepherd mix 10 wk old puppy from a shelter and things aren't going very well. We followed the expert's advice and made sure the cats had a safe place to get away from the puppy- we gated the staircase off so the cats could get upstairs but not the dog. Well, at this point the only time the cats will even come downstairs is if the puppy is crated (about 3 times/day). If the puppy is out of the crate for most of the day (usually Saturdays) we don't see the cats hardly at all. The more social one will sometimes come down but as soon as the puppy gets within a foot or so, she is growling and hissing and swiping at the pup. The timid one rarely ventures downstairs unless to get food and water and again, only if the dog is crated. They both used to enjoy their huge cat tree every day in front of the window - they haven't been on it in a month.
The puppy doesn't chase them but she wants to play so will scoot toward them, yip a bit, and just want to play.
We have been resistant to moving the cat food and water upstairs as that is the only time they will come down and be in the prescence of the puppy and I want them to get used to her being around. But I feel badly that they don't enjoy the roam of the house anymore or their cat tree. Should I just give in and make an upstair spare room a cat room and move all their stuff up there? Then they would have no need to ever come downstairs. We miss them and I'm sure they miss us. They do still sleep with my daughter every night so we're happy about that but I'm just not sure what to do. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.