9 April 2014

Cat killed by dog

| Deref
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My cat was killed by a dog a couple of days ago. Apart from my own sense of loss and anger, I’m dealing with two weeping and inconsolable children.

If I can find out who owns the dog is there anything I can do?

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montana said :

I hate dogs. Don’t know why everyone loves them. I see dog owners walking their dogs in my street and the owner smiles at me thinking I’m so impressed by their mut.

News to dog owners: not everyone loves your dog.

When I walk my dogs, I smile at people, not because I assume they like my dogs, but because I am being friendly. I doubt that people smile at you Montana thinking you are impressed by their ‘mut’.

montana said :

I hate dogs. Don’t know why everyone loves them. I see dog owners walking their dogs in my street and the owner smiles at me thinking I’m so impressed by their mut.

News to dog owners: not everyone loves your dog.

Perhaps it’s news for you but, like every other group, there are good and bad dog owners. Many dog owners care that some people hate or are even terrified of dogs and do their best to restrain and distance their dogs from strangers for that reason. Ironically, the bad dog owners don’t do anything and probably don’t care about your opinion.

FYI I feel the same way about cats as you do about dogs but wouldn’t presume that a cat owner’s smile was anything other than a friendly gesture.

I hate dogs. Don’t know why everyone loves them. I see dog owners walking their dogs in my street and the owner smiles at me thinking I’m so impressed by their mut.

News to dog owners: not everyone loves your dog.

wildturkeycanoe7:53 am 28 Apr 14

Masquara said :

Surely a well trained and disciplined dog won’t kill a local cat.

….just like well disciplined cats don’t attack native birds or poop on other people’s front yards? It is in their nature, their animal instincts drive them to do what they have done for centuries.

Surely a well trained and disciplined dog won’t kill a local cat.

wildturkeycanoe3:22 pm 27 Apr 14

The only solution to this problem is making it illegal for all pets to roam the streets without being on a lead with their owner. After hours curfews are just a ridiculous notion when pets have no idea what the time is. Sure, if an animal came into your yard and caused this kind of destruction it is totally different, but out on the street and nature reserves it’s every claw for themselves.
BTW Deref, still no answer here about where the cat was when attacked. Perhaps your silence confirms the probable that it was out of your yard and probably hunting native and non-native birds?

We’ve got a situation where a cat keeps coming into my yard and beating up my five month old rag doll kitten. First serious fight caused six punctures and $500 vet bill the attack this week has caused two punctures and he has a punctured eye. No idea where the cat comes from but it better not let me near it mongrel thing.

Oh here we go,

Domestic Animals Act 2000
Devision 2.6 – 53
Destruction of attacking dogs:
(1) A person may destroy a dog that attacks the person if
the destruction
of the dog is necessary to bring the attack to an end.
(2) A person may destroy a dog found attacking someone else or an
animal if the destruction of the dog is necessary to bring the attack
to an end.
(3) A person may destroy a dog found in an enclosed field if the person
reasonably believes that an animal confined in the field has just been
killed, injured or attacked by the dog.
(4) Subsection (3) does not apply if the dog cannot move freely about
the field because of a leash or other form of restraint.
(5) In this section:
field
includes a paddock, yard or other place.

Deref if you found the dog in the yard you can legally gank it yourself if you believe it killed your cat. How about that.

Contact the newly established Animal Defenders Office for free legal advice. Drop them a line at contact@ado.org.au or use their template contact form via their website at http://www.ado.org.au. They’ve just set up in the Griffin Centre in Genge Stree, Civic.

I am really sorry to hear that you have gone through such a traumatising loss of your furry family member.

My household has endured both our cats being attacked by a large dog, I only witnessed the dog on my property for the first attack.

Even though I heard the dog on my front porch, saw it flash past my window and then looking for the cat on my property by the time I got out the front door; DAS couldn’t do too much because I didn’t actually witness the attack. For the second attack, we only found my poor cat on the back door step. They did, however, agree that the same dog would have been responsible and both times wrote to the owner across the road (whose undesexed boxer dog was often off lead and roaming the street).

It scares me that a dog which attacks (and worse, kills) cannot be controlled and will end up getting a child.

My sister survived a dog attack when she was 12, she had over 40 stitches in her head. I still have scars on my hand from a chomp 40 years ago. When aged 19 I went through the trauma of dealing with a large dog attacking a school child. Dogs which show signs of aggression need to be destroyed, end of story.

Please let your kids know that this family really feel for your loss – but I don’t think you’ll get any luck with trying to find out which dog did this so perhaps focus on closure another way.

All the best.

I am sorry to hear that happened to your family. My experience of a similar situation happened ten years ago. Neighbours dogs tunnelled under our shared fence and mauled my poor old cat. Incredibly mr pusskins survived and my neighbours agreed to pay the vet costs. I did report the incident to TAMS (or whatever it was back then) but nothing came of it.

Yet another idiot who can’t be bothered to socialise their dog, and if caught its the dog that gets to pay the ultimate penalty (too, as well as your cat).

Sorry for the lose of your pet. Some people on can be so ignorant and dispicable. May their chooks turns into emus and kick their dunny down.

Queen_of_the_Bun8:49 pm 09 Apr 14

Hope your kids did not have to see the mauled body. Ignore the haters who just want a cheap reaction.

Roaming cats kill wild life. Dog kill cat. Maybe the dog was a vigilante looking to protect the local wildlife!

Captain RAAF3:33 pm 09 Apr 14

So sorry to hear that this dog entered your cattery and killed your beloved cat.

It’s a danger to society and must be put down.

however……

If your cat was wandering the neighborhood and was set upon by a dog doing the same thing, call it mother nature at work, you know, the same concept that allows you to turn a blind eye to all the native animals your cat has killed…..

How many native animals had your cat killed and who wept for them?

DeadlySchnauzer3:15 pm 09 Apr 14

If you can identify the owner or residence of the dog somehow, your best bet is Domestic Animal Services (DAS). Having been unfortunate enough to be involved in the reporting of a couple of dog attacks, I can tell you they are very good and responsive *only* if you have some way of positively identifying the dog involved.

Surprisingly (to me), they seemed unable to do anything unless I was able to tell them the address of the dogs owner…. which is really useful when you are attacked by a dog off a leash that then runs off down the street.

Of course that would depend on the circumstances ie. did your cat venture into dog’s backyard or was the dog roaming the streets?

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