My dog killed a cat this afternoon. What now?

[HarrietSchulenberg]

Out with dog this afternoon. Dog off lead in seemingly empty field. Cat jumped up from long grass in front of him and he pounced. Cat didn't really have a chance. It was still alive when I managed to get dog off so wrapped it up and took it to vet who lives locally. Vet just rang to say cat died. Owners on holiday till Tuesday but have been told.

First step is dog is staying on lead at all times. Next step is training classes, will ring when I get home tomorrow eve. What else?

Dog is insured so should be covered for vet costs for cat. Will have bill for him too as he was injured, but still waiting to know how much. Will offer to meet with cat owners, if they want to. Do I need to muzzle him if he's on a lead?

Really shocked at the mo and prob not thinking straight. I've always had cats until recently so I really feel for the owners.

Will be bwck in a while, need to get kids to bed.

[tobiasfunke]

I'm a cat owner and am not a great fan of dogs but I too would be understanding given the circumstances especially as the OP seems like a good pet owner. Open field, cat jumps out in front of dog.
My cats kill all sorts of things- birds, mice, voles, rabbits are their new favourite. Just because it's someone's pet doesn't make their instinct to hunt any less.

[OnlyLovers]

All those saying the dog was 'uncontrolled and aggressive', 'A well trained dog knows not to do this', 'If your dog is behaving like a wild animal, something is wrong' are just being ignorant. As people are patiently trying to explain, even pet animals have instincts that cannot be eradicated or 100% anticipated.

MrsWinnibago, the OP's dog did not 'run after' the cat. Why didn't you read her post properly?

Trillions, your comment about having the dog torn to pieces by a lion is beyond the pale IMO and much more deliberately aggressive than the OP's dog's behaviour.

I say this as someone who has neither dogs not cats but has had both in the past and likes them equally. If a pet cat of mine were killed like this I'd be devastated and, at least for a while, angry with the dog's owner; but I very much hope I wouldn't demand it was PTS or seek legal recourse.

OP, I think you've done and are doing all the right things. One thing I'd say though is, rather than going round with a present, perhaps (as other have suggested) say you wish to make a donation to a charity or cause of their choice and/or pay for any vet or cremation costs.

[NotAgainTrevor]

NaturalBaby if socialised together from young certain breeds will coexist happily with cats. Our neighbours have a cat and a Labrador and they'll happily play and cuddle up together, I think the cat wears the trousers though! I don't think this would have much success with terrier type breeds, pretty much all their play is around hunting and killing their quarry.

[chemenger]

I have cats and I was in two minds about this being "one of those things" until it was revealed that the dog is a lurcher - they are very well known to have a high prey instinct and a responsible owner would know that. Lurcher rescues are very clear about this, it isn't a secret. Good that the OP is being responsible now but its a bit late for the prey.

As for the argument that this is not a dangerous dog, its just instinctive behaviour, well no it isn't dangerous if properly controlled and managed. If not then any dog is potentially dangerous - its up to the owner to understand its instinctive behaviour, take responsibility for it and control it so that the potential harm is not realised. Cars are not dangerous when parked, sharp knives are not dangerous in a knife block, there is a difference between hazard (the potential to do harm) and risk, the probability that harm will occur. Dog owners should manage that risk.

And having delivered that lecture on risk management (which is my job) I will add that accidents are easy to prevent with hindsight, but all we can do afterwards is learn from then, and it is clear the OP has learned form this.

[mistlethrush]

I know quite a few friends with lurchers who also have cats - who often sleep curled up with the dogs. However, whilst they happily live with cats, they will still chase strange cats given the chance.

[NaturalBaby]

Thanks Trevor.

[SelectAUserName]

Yes, I think people assume that because a particular dog will learn to coexist with Specific-Cat, it can be trusted around all cats.

Depending on the dog's prey drive, it can take a LOT of training (and the younger the dog is the easier that training will be) to overcome its natural instinct not to chase Specific-Cat in Specific-Environment (home/garden). We actually ask quite a lot of dogs in doing this, and some just aren't able to cope with the unnatural demand placed on them to coexist with something that their hindbrain, where instinct lives, is telling them is prey. That's why you will see many rescues advertise some dogs as good with cats and some dogs as not, even within the same breed or type.

But just as it's unrealistic to expect all dogs to get on with all other dogs just because they're all dogs, you can't expect that a dog will know not to chase Strange-Cat in Strange-Environment. It can't extrapolate that just because it has been trained not to chase Specific-Cat in Specific-Environment that that extends to all cats, everywhere.

[tabulahrasa]

Naturalbaby - cats they live with are usually (you do get the odd exception) very different to cats suddenly appearing outside.

Mine lives happily with two cats, I wouldn't trust him as far as I can throw him with strange cats though...he may want to catch up with them and lick them like he does mine, but I don't give him the opportunity to find out.

[Martorana]

I have a very gentle Border who is intimidated by our cats- but I wouldn't trust her an inch with a strange cat......

[matildasquared]

Dogs need a certain amount of off-lead exercise for their physical and mental well-being, and an apparently empty field is one of the safest places in which to let them have it.

See above re: entitlement. "I don't have a garden but I'm entitled to a dog. I don't want to train it to stay under voice control but I'm still entitled to give the lead a rest. I'm entitled to take over this field which is here for everyone's enjoyment."

[TheScience]

I'm entitled to let my cat roam about, shitting everywhere and killing wildlife, I don't want to have to supervise it inside or deal with poo myself...

[matildasquared]

Nice try, that's been debunked long ago.

[SelectAUserName]

No one is entitled to a dog. A dog is a big commitment and anyone considering becoming a dog owner should consider all aspects of care, including how they will train and exercise it responsibly, before making that commitment. It's regrettable that that isn't always the case in the real world, but making sweeping generalisations to suggest all dog owners take that entitled view is disingenuous and childish.

You are also making a huge assumption that an empty field is there "for everyone's enjoyment". Where I used to live, dog walkers had express permission from the farmer to use two setaside fields for walking so long as we poo-picked. That permission was not automatically granted to any other group who might wish to use it for their own fancy. It was not a public right of way so anyone in the field for any purpose other than walking their dog was trespassing.

[LillianGish]

Really I think it is just one of the very shit but real risks for outdoor cats. There would be too much irony in declaring it unnatural when cats naturally kills vast numbers of smaller feathered and furry critters too. ... It was an accident and my cat would prefer time outside to a longer life of indoor living.
What a sensible post - and by someone whose cat was actually killed by dog.
The OP sounds like a very responsible dog owner and having had this awful experience is now planning to take steps to ensure it doesn't happen again. The cat owners were on holiday and obviously happy for their cat to take its chance rather than locking it up in a cattery (it could just as easily have been run over by a car or attacked by a fox). The person I really feel sorry for is whoever was looking after it while the owners were away - I always have a terror of other people's pets dying while in my care.

[LtEveDallas]

All dogs need time off lead, even the smallest yappiest Chiuhauha needs the opportunity to run without hindrance. The OP did nothing wrong here - and empty field is the perfect place for a dog to run.

What happened was unfortunate, but nature. The same way it is unfortunate when a cat kills a bird or pet rabbit. There is no reason to believe that the dog showed any aggression or determination to get to the cat - simply his instinct took over and he had no more idea that is was a domesticated cat over a wild rabbit or squirrel.

I have sympathy for the cats owner, of course, but actually I am more concerned about OP at present - Having recently been through the horror of a dog fight in which one was killed I know how awful, how distressing and how gory the aftermath can be. The owners are 'lucky' (subjective) in that at least they did not have to see it happen. OP is possibly having flashbacks and will relive this for some time.

OP, I hope you are OK. Please take time for yourself and don't play the blame game - it helps no-one. Take care.

[matildasquared]

Where I used to live, dog walkers had express permission from the farmer to use two setaside fields for walking so long as we poo-picked.

Yes, that was a space set aside for dogs to run. Which was not the case here, was it?

[LtEveDallas]

Which was not the case here, was it?

How do you know? OP has NOT said anything to that effect. She could have meant farmers field, common land, park land etc. Whichever way, OP was not breaking any laws, legally or morally, but having her dog off lead in an empty (meaning not containing livestock or humans) space.

[matildasquared]

If it had been a dog-designated space, she would have said. Someone else posted upthread with similar wishful thinking.

Having a dog out of your control is in fact against the law. If only the laws were published somewhere! This is quite boring now.

[LtEveDallas]

The laws are published and I am fully conversant with them - I train rescue dogs in conjunction with the local Dog Warden.

A dog does not have to be on lead to be in control. The owner of a dog that is "dangerously out of control" can be prosecuted, but this dog wasn't.

You aren't psychic, so you cannot say anything other than what the OP has posted, and she has not posted either way regarding the field she was exercising her dog in.

Sorry you are bored, maybe you should go do something less boring instead

[SelectAUserName]

Bye bye then.

[TheKitchenWitch]

Well no, it was a field which everyone can use, from the sounds of it. The cat is entitled to be in it (and while I truly love cats, let's not forget that pretty much the only reason a cat is going to be lurking in a field is to catch mice), as is the dog. Anyone sensible assessing the situation would have said it was ok to let the dog off lead.

Unpredictable things unfortunately do happen.

So if you are driving along, totally within the speed limit, and a cat jumps out into the road and you hit it, it doesn't necessarily mean that you were being negligent and should have your licence taken away, does it?

Sadly, if your cat is run over in those circumstances, then it is an accident. Likewise if it gets poisoned by eating something which has been put out to kill rats (we've had a few cases of this recently :( ).

Not everything is realistically preventable.

[matildasquared]

Well, exactly, and if it had been a kid in the long grass, playing hide and seek?

Yes, cats kill wildlife, and that's a red herring.

I am getting stuck at the idea of a dog walker coming to a field and assuming they're entitled to let their dog bound off, like it's first-come first-served as opposed to a shared space. Do you all do that? It's really selfish.

The driving analogy is too ridiculous to discuss, sorry.

[Lilcamper]

I can't speak for anyone else, but yes, when I arrive at the place I walk my dog I have a quick glance around and providing we are on our own I let him off lead. They ALL need off lead exercise.

OP did not realise the cat was there, I doubt very much she would have let her dog off otherwise.

[patienceisvirtuous]

Sadly, if your cat is run over in those circumstances, then it is an accident. Likewise if it gets poisoned by eating something which has been put out to kill rats (we've had a few cases of this recently sad ).

This is not an accident - it's totally preventable. There are products on the market that can control rodents without the use of poison...

This, among other reasons (as evident on this thread) is why I have an indoor cat...

[matildasquared]

Lilcamper, my question was rhetorical but thanks for proving my point.