Fuck, fuck, fuck! The dogs have just had the cat.

[DooinMeCleanin]

I've not stopped shaking since it happened. I'm sat at work now, still shaking.

I don't exactly know what happened. I was putting washing in when I heard what I thought was Devil Dog in the front window having a go at a passing dog. When I got in the room all three dogs had the cat surrounded. Whippet bolted as soon as I got in the room and hid under a table. I didn't see her have hold of the cat so I don't know how involved, if at all, she was.

Devil Dog and the greyhound had him between them like he was a tug toy. I couldn't get them both off him at once. I'm afraid to say I kicked one of them. I think it was Devil dog, I'm not sure. I was panicking and reacted without thinking. I somehow managed to get them off him and locked them out.

He ran behind the tv, I was sure he'd gone to die. When I managed to get all of the furniture moved to get him out, he is fine. Not a mark on him. They bit me in the process but only bruised me.

They had ample time to kill him, surely? They must have hold of him for at least 60 seconds. Was it a game gone too far? Why now? They've been with me for ages. The grey has only ever barked at the cat before, she has never seemed aggressive, just
Playful. Devil hasn't shown any aggression towards the cat for at least 18 months, if not longer, and has never done anything this bad before.

I don't know where to go from here. If it was just the grey involved I'd send her back and continue fostering other cat friendly dogs, but where can I send an aggressive terrier with an expensive skin condition where he will not languish in kennel for months or years.

Having him pts is not an option. I can try and train them, but what if it doesn't work?

I have a trusted friend, who has lived with me and cat before, and would take him in, but he's my cat. I don't want to rehome him either. He was there first.

I am still shaking. I feel sick. I can't think. I need someone to tell me what to do.

I'm feeling calmer now. Now I've stopped shaking and kicking myself things are a bit clearer.

My main priority is to all of the pets. It's not fair of me to put what I want first. If it comes down to having to re-home Devil or the cat, then it's going to have to be the one I feel would fare best outside of this house.

If my friend would take cat that would be perfect. Cat has lived with her before. Technically he is her cat. We rehomed two kittens together, when we were living together. When she moved out she asked me to look after Cat until she found somewhere to live. She got pg fairly soon afterwards and Cat just ended up staying with me. Mine moved himself into the church shortly after dd2 was born and I let him stay. I miss him, but he clearly wasn't happy with all the changes and the Vicar was very lovely. Cat stayed put, no matter what we went through, so I am loathe to rehome him. I adore him. But I must do what is best for him and Devil.

If my friend won't take Cat and she might not as he has a bowel condition and she is in rented accommodation, then I need to speak to local rescues regarding which pet has the best chance of finding a new, permanent home, the quickest and I'll make my decision from there.

Neither of them are obviously re-homable. Cat is ten now and has a bowel condition. Devil is young but has a skin condition and has shown aggression to people and other dogs in the past.

That is just the what ifs. None of them might be going anywhere just yet. I am going to give Cat a few days or so to settle back down, then I'm going to bring each dog in separately, on a lead, whilst Cat is Whippy's crate and judge how they react. If I am able to distract them from Cat, then I have a chance of being able to train them and I'd rather try that option first. They can be kept separate or under constant supervision, but I need to know that Cat is comfortable and they're not going to suddenly turn on him in front of us.

Whippy and the grey are not really an issue. I am fairly confident Whippy was not very involved and that she wouldn't act that way without encouragement from the others. The grey is not mine, if she is the one who is causing the problems then the rescue can do some shuffling about and I will foster a more cat-friendly dog from them.

Cat is fine. He is scared and hiding in the window, but physically fine. The vet nurse said to bring him back if I need to and they can give him something to help him get over the shock, so I might take him back this afternoon if he doesn't venture out from behind the curtains before that. If Cat cannot settle down around the dogs then I need to look at my options wrt finding more suitable homes for one or two of them, but I am fairly confident he'll find his feet again soon enough.

I am fine, I have a few bruises on my leg where one of them bit/snapped at me, but they didn't break the skin so I am confident it was not malicious.

Dh is not making things easier. The dogs are now a danger to his children. If that is what they are willing to do to a cat what could they do to his kids? I have explained that unless his children suddenly sprout hair all over their body and start moving at high speed on all fours, then they are in no more danger today than they were last week and if that happens then frankly, we have bigger problems than the dogs . I think he is using this as an excuse to get Devil out of the house

Looking back I am still not sure what exactly happened. I was too busy panicking and screeching to pay attention. Cat has no puncture marks. Both dogs involved are bred to chase and kill swiftly, they are more than capable of killing a cat in nano seconds. I am thinking they just held Cat down as some sort of game, either way, it is not acceptable and cannot be allowed to happen again, but if it was a game and not malice I have a better chance of being able to train them.

Now after that mammoth post I and my sore throat are off to walk the hounds and buy Cat some mince

Glad you're feeling a bit calmer today. That must'vve been horrible for you. You've got 'a plan' now, and looks like you've got all bases covered. I hope it works out the way you're happy with as well.

I can see your DH point of veiw though, children can really push a dogs tolerance and you have one who shows aggression?

dooin - i have to say i think you are an amazing woman

you not only acted quickly despite the shock you are now able to calmly think what is best for the animals. it is incredibly kind and caring of you to think about which animal will fair better if they have to leave. at the same time you have covered all the bases regarding how to work it out if they all stay

one of my dogs had my favourite chicken in his mouth two years ago. i still remember the shock and fear. like yours he could have killed her instantly if he wanted to. in fact he looked a bit shocked and confused what to do once he had caught her. i shouted and he released her straightaway. she turned round and pecked him! i can never let them free range now though if wannabe hunter is in the garden

re dh and the kids sprouting hair

We've had a few incidents since houndsworthy arrived where she's taken an interest in the cat, and it's sparked the other dog taking an interest whereas usually he'd run away and hide from the hissing ball of fur - it just seems to spark a small change in dynamics. Having said that - both back right down the second the cat hisses a "fuck off" to them and they'll share sofas and things happily - so I'm cautious but not overly paranoid about it if that makes sense. No way I'd leave them unsupervised though - to the point I make the dogs come out and sit in the hall while I go up to the loo even!

Worst we have had was the hound deciding that she wanted to lick the cat's bum while the cat was in her litter tray having a crap (the logic of this wish escapes me), cat did not appreciate the arrival of a pointy-nosed toilet attendant through the door of the loo, belted the hound round the nose with a full force wallop, hound tried to back out, got the litter tray stuck on her head and we had the hound trying to run around with the litter tray with an increasingly irrate cat in it mid-shit!

I'd leave it a few days watched closely and see how the cat reacts - might be that she retreats upstairs (is that a possibility with a stair gate? moving her stuff so she's got that out of the way area), might be that she sulks until you give her everything she wants in life (nothing can sulk like a wronged feline), might be that she calms down quickly or is utterly traumatised - until you see how it pans out - you're not going to know - especially since cats vary so wildly in their personalities (I just happen to have the feline equivalent of Rambo).

For what it's worth - I think if they'd wanted to kill the cat - it would have been a gonner pretty sharpish.

Are you certain Devil is the instigator?

I think tat is what would worry me... That I had no idea who was the main culprit. In that scenario, rehoming Cat is the best option.

I would worry about whether they may turn on a child but not to a hysterical degree. I would just remind the children not to annoy the dogs.

Hmm. My DH said similar things about our dog aggressive boy attacking the children when he bit another dog a while ago. I think they just panick and aren't as 'doggy' as us tbh.

I can't imagine how upset you must have/must still feel. Poor cat. Poor dogs really, they were only doing what dogs do, but it's hard not to be cross with them. If it helps, I have noticed that when any trouble has broken out between a couple of our dogs, the others do 'join in'. In fact, that was what led to the problems between the two bitches we have that can't be together at all now. Even Poppy, the girl who is really placid and would never get involved in a fight, will bark and 'egg on' the others.

I think you can just be very cautious and see how things go from here. Keep the cat seperate from the dogs any way you can when you are not there to supervise totally. I know someone who's dog killed one of her cats after they'd lived together for years and she very foolishly left it unsupervised with another cat she got and he killed that too. Obviously the second cat was entirely preventable. . Just keep an eye on the cat or dogs for stress and be extra careful.

I have to say I do like (wrong word in the situation - but hopefully you get the meaning) goody two shoes whippet being that kid stood there yelling "fight fight" then legging it when the teacher showed up!

Like I say - I even drag the dogs to the loo with me (well at least the bottom of the stairs) when I go up there.

Yup, that's Whippy down to a tee Deja, she can give the perfect 'it wasn't me' look whilst sauntering sheepishly away from whatever the other two are eating that they shouldn't be.

Interestingly she is also called Poppy. I might just change all of my dogs names to Poppy and hope they all become placid, non-fighting whimps

Cat is happier. He's just had a cuddle and is purring again and has found his way out from behind the curtains. He ate all his mince.

I have no idea who started it. Devil has lived with the cat for two years and has chased before but once he's caught up with him has never known what to do. The Grey has been here a good few months now and has only ever barked at the cat. If I had to guess I would say the Grey barked at the cat, which sparked off Devil Dog's excitement, being a typical terrier he can go from 0-60 in seconds and other dogs barking does rile him. I'd guess he was one who first got physical with the cat and the Grey just joined in the fun, while Whippy watched from the sidelines. But I don't know for sure.

Either way they are never going to be left unsupervised again and both the Grey and Devil Dog are going to be trained hopefully to completely ignore the cat.

Devil Dog was on his best behaviour on his walk this morning. There was a moment where some eejit tried to use him to socialise his Bichon Frise puppy, without checking with me first. I had awfull visions of my mud covered, shaggy Terrier dry humping their pristine white puppy, but he restrained himself and let the pup sniff him. It's like he knew I was annoyed and wanted to show me he can be a good dog, when he wants to be . The Grey attempted to chase a squirel but then spotted a small child and small children are infinately more interesting than small furries because they give cuddles and sometimes have treats.

Dooin - IIRC have we had a discussion about cat/terrier behaviour via PM and you told me you were fairly near me in the Gloucester area or was that someone else?

Regardless, if and this is a big IF it comes to it and you decide that someone has to be rehomed, and it has to be cat and your friend won't have him for whatever reason (hopefully everything will calm down and the situation will resolve itself), PM me first. I have extensive no-kill cat rescue contacts and may be able to help. God forbid that it comes to that, though.

I don't need to tell you to keep an eye on moglet - he's had a bad scare and you may well have out of character behaviour from him for a few days.

quiettiger - that was me, not dooin. sorry, not followed it up. rl been not so good the last two months. will follow it up though. thanks for all your help via PM

Dooin, so, so sorry to read this. You must be in bits. Firstly, sending you a big hug and a stiff . Also sending a very gentle hug to your Dear Cat.

Fortunately your grey is a foster and can go back to rescue/to her forever home so will not be a long term issue for you. My take on this may sound a bit bleak but is meant to be positive. At least you've had this experience and your cat has survived it - major thing to be thankful for. Greys unfortunately are fast enough to kill quickly - the fact they can and do, easily, makes me think that killing your cat was not on their agenda this time. However, that's not to say it couldn't happen again in the future, if things continue as they are. Options - while waiting for grey to rehome, suggest wearing a muzzle if separating is a problem? Also, if nothing else, this confirms grey as going to cat free home.

I think the £50,000 question is if DD will still be as keen without grey there as partner in crime?

It's natural and understandable for DH to be worried about children - give him time to come round and just keep gently reiterating that cat chasers are not child eaters - actually most greys are very good evidence of this, being incredibly gentle, placid creatures with us humans which then makes the cat chasing/killing even more upsetting and shocking.

Once again, thinking of you and hoping things continue on an even keel.

I don't know if Devil Dog would be as keen without the grey there. The cat was an issue with him when we first had him, so retraining now he's interested again is going to be a must.

I have some new options after speaking to my Dad, whose Lurcher goes for my mums cats. He reccomended putting a door/gate on my stairs. I hadn't thought this was an option due to the layout of my house, but he reckons it is and he's a builder so he should know. Unfortunately he is too ill to work but there is another builder/handyman who I work with so I'm going to ask him to come and look and see if he could fit one. It'll look a bit silly, but meh! My pets are more important to me than interior design.

This would mean that during the day, when the dogs are not allowed in the living room anyway, the cat can have access to upstairs (we'll leave the door open) and the front room and once the dds have come home from school and the dogs have run of the downstairs of the house, the cat can go upstairs and we'll close the door. He uses the window on the stairs as his entrance/exit anyway, so this would be practical.

Been away from computer, but happy to be back and see plans are falling into place

We also have a gate at bottom of stairs (new rescue pup, nervous dd2 needs options for peace and quiet) and it does feel like a backwards step in terms of interior design, but hugely worth it!

Re-training for DD and a new home for the grey, plus stairgate, sounds really sensible to my amateur ears.

One of our lurchers who isn't cat friendly in any way once had the cat in his mouth in the garden, I'm so glad I wasn't there to see. The cat was shocked but unharmed and we have managed to keep them apart and very closely supervised ever since. The cat has upstairs and is very wary of the dogs. I always check he's not in the garden before they go out and he has loads of escape routes. Good luck, it can be done and becomes second nature.

How horrible, really scary for you and the cat.
I would have said my 2 cats accepted the puppy and were happy together, cleaning out each other's bowls, climbing into the dog's box for an nice warm pillow and sitting side by side to see if anything fell on the floor while I was cooking. Until the dog was about 18 months.
Then suddenly the tabby took fright. (I think he may been chased in the garden by the dog). The cat moved upstairs, permanently open window to go out by and went next door for cuddles, he was fed downstairs but bowls not put on the floor. We fixed a child gate on the stairs. Peace was restored and we adjusted.
The dog never crossed swords with the burmese (too scary). The 2nd dog was not agressive to the house cats, although she does meercats if she spots one on a walk. Both cats now gone to dig holes in the garden of cat heaven. Their successor, a rescue tortie, had to spend 3 weeks in a crate when I first got her (broken pelvis and no tail). She could see the dogs and they could see her. She now plays pouncies with both dogs in the garden and bags the best bit of the sofa.
I can't work out the psychology, but would say that you must always be wary if you have both.
You have to make your own decisions but if you can work out separate territories you might find a solution.
Good luck