My dog attacked the neighbours cat

[SappyStaffyMum]

Hi! I'm a bit stuck here and wondering if someone could or advise if this is actually legal!

My dog attacked the neighbours cat, they rushed it to the vet and thankfully it was ok just had an injection, metacam and a few days on house rest..

Obviously I paid the bill as I felt awful! But today the police came as she has reported my dog as dangerous and the police said they had to attend because she said it's an xl bully (he's a staffy lab cross) and she needs the crime reference for the insurance claim?

If I've paid her for the vets bill can she still do an insurance claim?

I'm a bit upset about it as I'm 17 weeks pregnant and obviously I could do with the money rather than her profiting from this horrible situation especially after attempting to get my dog seized and destroyed… and now sending me abusive texts about how he’s had the taste of blood and will attack my baby…

If the cat was in my garden then I wouldn't have paid a penny. Perfectly normal for a dog to chase a cat that's in its garden.

For what it's worth, my dog, who happens to be smaller than your average cat, would chase anything she found in her garden. Not sure what she'd do if she caught it but she's territorial and she'd have a go.
It's the nature of dogs. She's fine round people.
Let's not get silly.

The cat was in your garden, this is not your fault. You paid so why do they need insurance. Reporting to police is unecessary for a dog going after a cat in its own garden. Does you dog have any history of aggression? If not there is no issue

Exactly. My Border Terrier would ho after cats. I have netting up and have warned neighbours. If their cat comes in it could end badly

And what if the cat wins?
It happens. The dog doesn't always prevail.
Should the cat owner take responsibility for the injury incurred to the dog in its own garden?

It is still the policyholder commiting the fraud. The policyholder signs a declaration when submitting the claim and agrees to terms and conditions when they sign the initial insurance contract.

Insurance companies do take fraudulent claims seriously.

Same. To a dog, a cat is a prey animal. They chase them.

Your neighbour is correct, that dog will not be safe with a newborn baby. Dogs that attack should be PTS, not rehomed.

I wouldn’t of paid tbh. Cats do have the right to roam because they are essentially wild animals.

Just because your dog attacked a cat doesn’t mean it’d attack a baby. Many dogs have an instinct to chase. My dog is lovely with the kids but takes down the odd rabbit / pheasant / grouse. Obviously you don’t leave them alone.

How many dogs do you have @Redburnett

But the cat has the legal right to roam and is considered property, your dog damages someone else's 'property' your liable to be sued and for significant harm caused to a well-loved pet, of course any cat owner would pursue it against the dog owner.

You're the owner of a dangerous dog. That's why the police attended. You need to sort that out before your baby arrives. A horrible situation for you to have to deal with, but I would never risk any dog like that near a newborn. All dog owners believe their dogs won't attack. This dog does

You could try to pursue it but you’d really only be successful if the owner was negligent in some way. For example a dog in an unsecured garden went next door and bit their cat. Or if they were encouraging it to attack.

A bit like hitting a cat with your car. Obviously if you mounted the pavement to hit it then it’d be dangerous/ negligent behaviour and they’d have a claim but in the absence of negligent behaviour it’s just one of those things that happen.

Does your dog/s live happily with your cat @dreamingofpalms

It would be dishonest and grabby of your neighbour to accept money from you to pay the vet then claim from the insurance. She is profiting from her cat's injury.

If the dog was contained in your garden, I would not have paid any of the neighbors expenses. The neighbor was responsible for what happened to the cat, not you. The dog was in its own space and the cat entered uninvited. The neighbor was the one who didn’t properly supervise her pet.

If this had happened on the street or other public space it would be entirely different

This may be true, but it's not a protection from accidental injury. Cars, dogs and even other cats can cause injury to a roaming cat. The responsibility is with the owner.

It isn't a dangerous dog it's a normal dog.
It's a normal dog instinct to chase a small furry creature that has entered its territory.

My dog (part saluki, strong prey drive) would chase any cat in the garden. And probably try to kill any she caught. We have cats on both sides and they are intelligent enough to recognise the danger and avoid our garden in the day. I would not pay vet fees. It's the risk an owner takes if they choose to let their cat free roam. If my dog runs in front of a car because I have her off lead by a road, I'm not going to expect payment from the driver.

I have two cats and I am a big animal lover in general.

But in this case the way I see it is that the cat was in your garden and there is always a risk that any dog will react to another animal entering his territory.

If your neighbour does not want to risk her cat being attacked she needs to take responsibility for keeping it indoors or creating a catio.

As cat owners we understand that if we choose to let our cats roam freely it means they could end up fighting with other cats, dogs or in our neighbourhood foxes!

'@dreamingofpalms You're the owner of a dangerous dog.'

Nonsense. Most dogs will chase another animal that enters their home/garden and the OP does not own a banned breed.

Why is the dog dangerous, exactly?

I wonder if all this hysteria is because op mentioned she had a Staffie/lab cross, and the police came round because they were misinformed about the breed. If the neighbour had said it was a Jack Russell or other smaller dog that attacked her cat they’d not have been the slightest bit bothered. They only attended because an XL bully is a banned breed and not because the dog attacked the cat. If they thought that dog was dangerous, the op would not still have the dog.

Exactly. Most cats learn quickly to avoid gardens with dogs. One round here hasn’t clocked on and I’ve put up all the netting etc. I also told the owner. Can’t do much more. My dog is a terrier, they hunt and are v territorial. She is the sweetest little dog and great with children

Totally agree -

Op - I would not have paid - cat should not have been in your garden. My ddog got injured chasing a cat in our garden - I wanted to bill the cat owner! Cheeky fucker spent his time tormenting my dog!