To tell the neighbours the cat isn’t my problem

[Miniminxymoo]

We have neighbours who own a cat. The cat is a bit of a pain in the backside and continually came in our garden. Obviously, we couldn’t stop it and it treated our garden as its own causing some damage to toys and crapping in the flower beds.

We have recently got a lab from a rescue who, as we quickly discovered, doesn’t like cats. As soon as we brought our dog home and let it in the garden it immediately chased this cat down. The dog didn’t catch the cat and is likely never going to but likes to terrify the cat. Thankfully, the cat seems to be trying its luck a little less and our garden isn’t suffering so much mess and damage. Most of the other houses have had dogs for a fair while so cat hasn’t gone into the other gardens, ours was the only one it went into because of the dogs.

The neighbours have now complained that they are worried that my dog is going to harm their cat and possibly kill it. Now, as I’ve said, the dog is likely never to catch the cat and my garden is very secure so will never escape. The neighbours have said they will charge us for any vet bills if their cat gets injured and they will complain to the council.

neighbours have also said that if the cat is in my garden then I shouldn’t let the dog out for a pee. The issue is, I often don’t see the cat before I let her out.

My dog is pretty chilled, never any bother in any other way other than when the cat comes in.

AIBU to tell the neighbours that it isn’t my problem if their cat is scared. It’s my garden and my dog’s home and if they have an issue then they’re the ones who should keep their animal in? I’ve suggested for them to put rubber spikes or similar on their fence to hopefully prevent the cat, who is a twat, coming in but they have said the expense to do that should be on me and they don’t like to do things like that!

Cat owner and lover here. It's your dogs garden. Cats are VERY intelligent animals. It'll very quickly learn your garden is no longer its territory.

Plus the chance of a proper lab (as in, purebred, rather than a crossbreed) mauling a cat are small. Added to the fact that actually, cats are more than a good match for a dog, if it came to a fight, which it probably won't.

How ridiculous, they need to keep their cat in their garden, not expect you to be cat surveillance!
Suggest they invest in cat proofing for their garden. They sound as entitled (to your land) as their cat!

The cat is antagonising your dog and trying to assert authority over what he/she sees as her territory cats are fuckers for this (I have always had cats)

if the cat was scared it wouldn’t be in your garden

until the cat is scared (unlikely to happen) the terf war shall continue

the neighbours are being ridiculous if they are that concerned they need to either cat proof their garden or keep the cat in

Next doors three cats never come into my garden because they are afraid of my little girl cat who sounds like an air raid siren going off when they dare to come anywhere near 😂

Oh I agree. It’s not her problem at all.

There’s only one solution:OP must buy a dozen more dogs and they can work in shift to keep her garden cat free.

Nope, they don’t complain. The other houses already had dogs when they brought the cat, as a kitten, home so it learnt from a very early age. Now it’s just got into a habit of being in our garden as ours was the only ‘safe’ one until now.

My kids are determined to have a pack of dogs, my hubby however has a one dog rule 🤣

I actively use my dogs to scare cats out of my garden. Their habit of burying poo in flower beds is disgusting. YADNU!

OP make sure you’ve got indemnity/liability insurance for your dog. All dog owners should have this.

There is possibly for fine & prison sentence if your dog is deemed out of control (on public or private land) but it only applies where there’s humans or service dogs involved.

cat in your garden would be a civil matter and you neighbour could claim for vets bills/damages (which would be covered under liability insurance).

https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/61877/what-happens-if-my-dog-kills-a-cat-in-my-garden-uk

Your neighbours however should consider cst proofing so their cat can’t escape .

@Miniminxymoo

they are nuts.

tell them you will charge them 100£ a day for their cats use if your garden.

When I got my lurcher I made sure my small garden was secure but did worry about the neighbours’ cat. The neighbours sensibly said I’d done all I could and the cat would soon learn to avoid it.

The dog shot out when I opened the back door and the cat escaped over the fence. Since then she sits on the roof of my shed in the sun and jumps down into her own garden if the dog comes out.

I would be very distressed if anything happened to the cat but would be astonished to be held responsible in my own garden.

Theres always the risk the cats and dogs will gang up together - one of our cats has befriended the neighbours dog! He eats his foods, sleeps on his bed and our neighbours say he acts like he owns the place 😂

As long as the dog NEVER leaves the garden without a lead, YANBU. And I say this as a cat owner with a strong preference for cats!

The cat will eventually mainly avoid your garden. The only time to be more vigilant is if you’ve been away and the cat has become more complacent. I have sighthounds and local cats do still occasionally come into the garden, my garden is secure but plenty of cat escape routes.

The "right to roam" for cats is the reason there are differences between the legal responsibilities of cat and dog owners.

Cat owners do not have a responsibility to keep their cat "under control" when the cat is outside which is why, unlike dog owners, they are not fined for cats shitting wherever they like.

I would remind your neighbour about this and tell him/her that the cat is not your problem. Your dog is secured inside the boundaries of your property so you are doing nothing wrong.

It is unlikely that your dog would kill the cat even if he cornered it, most dog breeds enjoy the chase but freeze when they catch up with a hissing cat. Cats are ferocious when cornered and the dog would probably learn a painful lesson.

Dog is insured and is stupidly friendly with other dogs and humans. She just seems to have a thing about cats. I still don’t know if she would actively hurt the cat though, so far she’s just chased the cat and barked but has never caught it.

We spent a summer firing the jet hose at the 3 cats that used our garden as a toilet. They don't come in anymore. If they did I'd soak them again. We had a large golden retriever for years. They didn't come in when he was around.Your garden is your space. If their cat comes in and is hurt then so be it

From experience, unless it's a very dumb cat, it will soon be sitting on the top of the fence taunting your dog. Cats are clever and it will soon work out the situation. I don't think it's at all likely your dog will ever catch it. Your neighbours can't dictate about your garden. I'm sure after a while the situation will settle down.

Tell them to keep the cat out of your garden, but your dog has every right to be there.

We would only let her off lead when we are n walks in the woods and the local fields. We would leash her until we get to those places. To be honest, we are still working on recall so she’s only been off lead in a secure field until now whilst we work on it.

Cats literally do have the right in UK law to roam and shit in your garden! Just like wild animals as they’re classed as semi-domesticated. Doesn’t mean the op has to do anything different though.

Op, seen your update that’s it’s been 3,months. That’s plenty of time for the cat to know!! If it’s still choosing to come in your garden it clearly doesn’t view your dog as much of a threat! If it’s mistaken in that then that’s not in your control.

We tried the same before we got the dog but the cat never seemed to learn. It seems to be very determined!

The neighbours are daft. I'm intrigued by the 3% on here who think YABU!

I have cats and attitudes like your neighbour's really annoy me. As a cat owner, you can choose whether to let your cat roam or not. If you let it roam then you also accept the associated risks whilst you are not supervising your pet - it might get run over, chased by dogs etc. That's on them, not the rest of society. And no, you don't have to pay any vets bills.

I agree with the above ^^

Neighbour disputes can very quickly turn very nasty. It’s best to do what you can to avoid years of future problems for yourself.