what do you do when a neighbours dog attacks your cat?

Question

my cat ,missy, was attacked by a dog roaming our street. the dog is a mongrel and belongs to woman over the road from me. this happened at 4pm yesterday and i havent seen missy since. i was at work and another neighbour informed me of what happened.i was gonna wait to see if missy came back tonight but ive had conflicting opinions.also i dont know the full extent of my cats injuries..

the the first answerer: dont answer my question then u boot

tera duke: cats are independent and how can i supervise her if i cant see her. i dont live on a main rd either

panic over!. missy is safe and well and under the warmth of my duvet. she has a slight limp and i am taking her to the vets tomorrow. i told the dog owner before if i see her dog roaming again i will be calling the dog warden and its £45 to get it out so that makes it about even for any vet fees i hope if not, well im just glad my cat is back!!! thanks guys spec the one with the rottie and the girl who mentioned himxx

Answer 1

I'm so sorry to hear that, and I hope Missy has already come back. It would be quite rare for a dog to win a one-on-one confrontation with a cat, unless he were trained to kill. If that were the case, Missy wouldn't have been able to run off. She is probably shaken up and afraid and will make her own way back in due time. She is a cat, you say, and not a kitten?
I'd have another word with the witness if I were you, and get more details ... I'd inspect the place of the attack and look for blood stains or whatever. Maybe even have a calm chat with the dog's owner and sense her reaction to your questions; could be her dog has been known to attack cats before and of course she will try to hide this from you. I don't think I could trust myself to do that last piece of advice, but then you're not me!
Dogs do like to chase cats and cats sometimes turn the tables on them; it might all look very fierce to a witness with little insight on the matter.
Hopefully it will be alright; Missy will have learned a new lesson and hopefully so will have Mongrel. Fingers crossed!
P.S. I really liked the reply you got from the guy with a rottweiller ... so take cheer!
I am very glad you mentioned you don't live on a busy road because another possibility might have been that Missy was running away and wasn't paying attention ... might have been hit by a car. In which case, I'd have suggested investigating that one; starting at the vets. But seems that is one less thing for you to worry about.
Walk around when the area is quiet (maybe the witness can tell you where Missy was heading was she ran?) and keep calling her in a soothing voice ... she will eventually return. And if she is stuck up a tree, she will answer you and you'll be able to take it from there.
Will you let us know that she is o.k, please?

Answer 2

You have gone above and beyond the call of duty. You told her to keep her cats off your property and if she cared about them she would have done so. She knew full well they were at risk if she let them roam. I'm fairly sure my dogs would kill a cat if it was stupid enough to jump into my yard. I put up 9ft fences all the way around my yard but still I see cats walking along on top of the fence and my dogs go nuts. Though my dogs are trained to advanced level I'm not absolutely sure I could call them off a roaming cat the way you did with your dogs. I would not pay one red cent of her vet bill. She's darn lucky to have you for a neighbor who is caring enough to take her cat to the vet. Please don't feel bad. None of this is yours or your dog's fault. The cat shouldn't have been allowed to roam. Your neighbor is stupid and took a calculated risk with her cats life that didn't pay off. There is nothing else you can or should do. You've already done more than enough. Unfortunately because she put her cats at risk, good neighborhood relations will be a thing of the past. This is in no way your fault. I would be telling her under no circumstances will your obedient, well behaved dogs be muzzled in their own yard, let alone being put down, and to keep her other cat inside her house or build a cat run like responsible cat owners do and keep her cats off your property. Don't spend any more money helping this ungrateful neighbour with the vet bills. Most people wouldn't do half of what you've done to help her out.

Answer 3

I don't believe that a cat should be kept indoors. I think it's cruel to confine any animal. Don't let those narrow minded people blame you for it.
Dogs however can be dangerous and that's why we have leash laws. It's legal to let a cat roam free but not a dog.

Did the neighbors see the dog biting your cat or just chasing it?
I don't have a cat. I have a rottwieler. He likes to chase cats but he would rather chase them up a tree. If he corners them or if they turn and make a stand he backs off. He knows how sharp their claws are. I think missy is probably up a tree somewhere and will come home when she gets over her fear.
You do have to talk to the dogs owner about keeping her dog under her control.
If Missy is dead or injured I wouldn't hesitate to shoot the dog if it happened again.
I hope you find Missy unharmed.

Answer 4

Remember.. it is NOT the dog's fault.. It is the owner's fault.... I know most people blame the dog but it should not be so.. it is the owner of the dog. The dog should not be roaming loose unless it got out by mistake. You could call the city pound if the dog is pervasively out. As for the kitty*(your kitty), I am a person who feels that IF the owner of a cat allows the cat to get out, they the owner of the cat must understand that the life expectancy of a cat is down from 15-18 years to 3 to 5 years and it is the owner of the cat that is responsible. You took your chances by letting the cat out and letting the cat get into all sorts of danger... You could go to the owner of the dog but if I was t he owner of the dog, I would say and do nothing

Answer 5

If I were Missy I'd avoid home for a bit too since the attack was probably rather traumatic for her. Cats are rather good at looking after themselves, and chances are the injuries are not hugely substantial. I'm sure she's just steering clear out of fear.

If Missy returns home and is clearly injured you should broach the subject with your neighbour. Although it is natural for dogs to want to chase and potentially hunt cats, a dog with a potentially aggressive nature should not be roaming round unsupervised, for the safety of other animals, if not people. If she requires vetinary attention you may wish to consider asking your neighbour to help ou out with the bill since their dog was responsible, although they likely will not react favourably to this reasonable request.

If Missy appears unharmed you may wish to keep her in for a few days so you can keep a close eye on her in case something is awry that you may not otherwise notice.

If she does not return, try callinga ny local services that might collect strays, or to whom found pets may be entrusted for collection by their rightful owners. Also try posters in your local area as a well-meaning individual a few roads away may have taken her in if she appeared distressed.

I'm sure Missy will be fine, and I hope she returns home safely soon. In the meantime, I think you should try speaking to your neighbour about their dog anyhow, as dogs certainly should not be roaming the street regardless of their temprement, which in this case, is clearly problematic.

Answer 6

I am sorry to hear about your cat and I do hope Missy comes back soon.
In any case you must speak to the dog's owner, and if your cat needs veterinary help, make a compromise with your neighbour to go halves. I mean it is not your fault, that you were at work, whilst this awful thing happened.
Also, my advise would be, to keep Missy indoors in the future or
ask the vet's advice about the incident and for now, advertise your cat missing at your local shops, etc.

Good Luck!xx

Answer 7

Firstly I would have a word with your neighbour and let her know that your cat was attacked - however, if you cat entered her garden and the dog attacked it in its own territory then there is little you can do. If, however, the dog was loose in the street then she has a clear responsibility for its behaviour and you could inform the council and ask them to write to her and tell her not to let it loose.
Now you could get an estimate from the vet for your cat's injuries and ask her to pay half - I think you would have difficulty getting her to pay for all of it; after all, you have to prove that it was her dog attacking your cat and your other neighbour's word might not be sufficient. So you have to reach a compromise - after all, your cat was loose in the street and not under your supervision, as was her dog, and the two animals are natural enemies so you are both to blame. So I think the best you can hope for is that she pays for half of the vet's bills, and keeps her dog confined in the future. Your local Council will advise you better, however, on what recourse you can take in law. Good luck

Answer 8

I'm glad Missy's back and relatively unhurt. I'm not a violent person and I like dogs, but if that happened to one of my cats, the dog would end up dead. I almost had to do that with a pit bull in Colorado several years ago. My cat got out and was chased up my fence by that dog. Scared the h e l l out of me.

Answer 9

I would suggest you go and ask your neighbours if any of them has seen missy. If missy usually returns home, and hasn't tonight, then you really have cause to be worried. Go look for her, because cats when they are dying, they will hide underneath a tree or somewhere. Also cats sometimes get caught in branches or other places, particularly if they are injured as well. Take your mobile with you and have someone at home ring you on your mobile if missy returns.

Answer 10

your cat should be allowed to go out if it wants to go and see the owner of the dog and tell her that you have prof that her dog went for your cat and you will be sending the vet bill to her and tell her if you see the dog walking the street again you will call the dog warden to pick it up and that will cost her to get it back if she allows her dog to wonder the streets she shouldn't be allowed to keep him i hope your cat will be OK I'm not a cat lover but i would never hurt one and that nasty person who said they hate cats and kill it then she has a nasty tongue ignore her and keep your cat in the house for a while i would if i was you