My Dog Mauled Our Cat To Death?

Question

I never thought he could be so deadly. He's such a passive dog. He let's my 2 year old niece ride his back.

My sister found the kitten (we named her Tinker) on Thursday and this morning about an hour ago my dog (Mastiff&German Shepherd mix) was in the house and I was trying to get him out and I let the room door where the cat was in open (stupidly) and I turned my back and I heard the cat hiss and the dog went after her and now she's dead.

This is all my fault. I'm such an idiot. To make it worse I don't know how I can ever trust my dog again. He's about 3-4 years old and it was a kitten (about 3 months old) that he just killed.

How do I re-gain trust in my not so gentle giant?

I just can't stop crying.

I can't put him to sleep. He's my baby! He's an outside dog anyways. I had him inside because it was raining last night.

I just finished getting the dog his rabies, distemper, and parvo shots. I've had him in my care since August of 2007. He's such a protective dog...

Answer 1

Hi. I own a mastiff and run a mastiff group. german Shepherds will have more of a prey drive from what I know. The combination just yields a bigger dog and both breeds are historically good with kids if not great. That is all assuming that you have taken on the necessary burdens of training and care of the dog. Also, all kids that encounter the dog need a word or two so that they dont startle the dog with normal kid action and so that they know how to approach any dog in general and not to try and interact around food, etc. It doesnt sound as much like this is your fault as much as it is just a very harsh learning lessons in that you may not have known better. There are many dogs that dont do well with smaller animals, especially cats. The person who posted from the shelter was making a good point to tell you that they place animals in homes all the time who cant live with other smaller ones or even children for that matter. He followed his instincts and you cant blame him for that. If he killed a squirrel on a walk would you feel the same way? Does it make it worse that it was inside where this happened? You need to ask a dog behaviorist some of those questions to understand what has happened and what impact it should have on you and the dog. I have seen my mastiff try and play with cats only to be clawed or hissed at and then he goes into PLAY mode fully and although there is nothing agressive about it, he could hurt them easily with his bouncing around to play just by stepping on them. It is hard to know what happened exactly from what you said but keep in mind that play with mastiffs can get very physical and yield injury to small animals, then making the small animals turn aggressive and it kind of spirals from there. My dog tried playing with another smaller dog yesterday at the park, scared the bejesus out of it, turned it defensive and ended up with a slight tear on his jowl. The thing is, animals who are physically very different can get their signals crossed very easily.
If he were mine, there is no way I would euthanize him.

Answer 2

Most dogs that have never been around cats or kittens see them as a toy or something to chase . You did things completely wrong . But understand that you learned from your mistakes . I would not get another kitten or cat . He doesn't like small animals that is all . There is no reason to put him down or give him up . Unless he has acted this way around people or children. Dogs and cats do not usually get along unless raise around each other. Plus he is an outside dog that watches other small animals like squirrels , rabbits , cats and cant get to them he was just able to finally get to this one . So I would give him the benefit of the drought . Please do not bring any more small animals in the house . I would also bring your pup in the house to become part of the family . I would also not let your niece ride on his back he is not a horse . You are just teaching the child not to respect the dog !!! Must be a pretty good dog to even endure the pain of a child on his back . You really need to study up on dogs and learn to respect them .

Answer 3

I'm a little opposite here. Had it been a rat or rattlesnake that your dog found in that room and killed, we would have been reading a note about your dog's heroism. Instead, we read of this very sad situation. The dog did his job. He found, what to him, was an intruder. The intruder hissed at him and appeared threatening. He killed it. Like I said he did his job. He is probably very confused now that you have scolded him and/or punished him for acting in what he considered a proper manner. I don't think the dog needs to be destroyed, however, I do believe he needs some professional training.
You also need to understand things more from his point of view and adjust your behaviors accordingly. Yes, he could later attack a child, if the child was mistaken as an intruder and acted in a threatening manner. This is true of any dog but especially those with a strong territorial and protective instinct. A professional trainer could give you better advice,
and guidance. The danger with bigger dogs is that when they err it can be catastrophic. Had it been a much smaller dog, you would have had plenty of chance to intervene as the kitten probably would have held its own for a while. It was just a case of your misunderstanding your dog's instincts and he misunderstanding your adding a new resident without introducing him. I am sorry for the loss of your kitten and the loss of faith between you and your dog. It was a sad lesson for both of you.

Answer 4

I can't speak to the mastiff portion of your dog's breed but German Shepherds will occasionally turn violent though otherwise docile. One of the previous responders was right... don't be angry or sad because the dog is doing what comes naturally to it. Dogs generally do not like cats and cats generally do not like dogs. It's a fact of life you have to live with. Be more concerned about the dog's behavior around people. You say he allowed your niece ride him around. Chances are you or someone else was around when that what happening and the dog knew that. You turned your back on the dog with the kitten and the dog acted instinctively. I would say to decide what you want to do from this point forward... if you are looking for something you want to trust completely, get a stuffed dog. Otherwise, be aware that the dog is an animal and needs to be treated as such. Be cautious, but don't destroy the dog because it acted naturally. Just keep it aware from cats.

Answer 5

I have 6 Dogs and 2 of them will kill a cat if they get the chance even though they grew up with cats. The other 4 live side by side with 5 cats in the house and outside. Dogs and cats are natural enemys in the wild and sometimes in the home. The best you can do is not stop loving your dog. He is an animal but he is also one of your best friends. I do not fault my 2 for being what they are. I look at it this way. They accept me with my faults and attitude, so who am I to judge them for being who they are. I just know not to let cats around them. Your dog is still the same, he is still your gentle giant. Just respect him a little more and he will respect you as well. No reason to be afraid of him.

Answer 6

Small animal aggression isn't connected in any way to human aggression. All these people saying he will turn on a child next are severely uneducated about animals in general. A dog CAN tell the difference between Human and Animal. They have been bred for centuries to be submissive and bonded with humans of all shapes and sizes. He will not "turn" on a child next, that's not the way it works.

Consider this, he's a large powerful breed with a strong herding(GSD) and prey(Masstiff) drives. He is an outdoor dog with no regular exposure to the kitten. He of course is going to see small and fuzzy running thing as prey. Would you be surprised if your Beagle did the same to a rabbit? Would you assume human aggression for the poor beagle and have him put down for doing what he's been bred to do? No.

People are telling you to put him down because of breed hysteria's. Ignore them and just try and get past what happened. It sad that your kitten died but the dog isn't the one to blame. Give it a few days and see how he acts around you. I am willing to bet that he's the same dog he's always been and the only thing that's different is YOU.

Answer 7

A mastiff/german shepherd is a very strong and potentially dangerous animal. I would only trust one as a pet if it had a very gentle and passive nature.

You might want a dog to protect you but an attack dog is not the answer unless you and the dog have extensive training. A dog that growls at a threat and stands by your side is one thing. But to have a dog that attacks can be very dangerous.

Killing a kitten doesn't mean it's a killer dog and can't be ever trusted by anyone. The dog might be just fine in someone else's hands. Putting it down doesn't have to be the only option if you gave her up.

I think you have to get over the horror of what just happened and really think about if this is the right pet for you to have.

Answer 8

no, if this was the first incident you do not want to put you're dog to sleep. If you have never seen your dogs behavior around kittens then your dog may have not been exposed properly to them as a pup. The two logical reasons are that your dog went into defense mode and flipped the kill switch on when he saw this new animal in the house, or maybe your dog has aggression problems. as you said, the dog has finished all of its shots so I dont think it would be caused from illness.

Answer 9

dont know if this will help but you said you keep your dog outside. is he outside all the time,that could be the problem most animals left outdoors are not trained how to act when let in the house.aslo he might of just been acting like he does outside and keeping animals out of the yard, he viewed the kitten as prey. i have a mastiff and a cat and they do fine together. sorry for your loss

Answer 10

This is normal dog behavior. I know you are sad because of the loss of the kitten, but the kitten was a "stranger" so your dog was doing his job and protecting his pack (you and your family) I had a rottweiler for many years and he was the sweetest, gentlest dog i have ever had, especially with small children, but one day the neighbors cat wandered into the yard and that was the last mistake that poor cat made. It wasn't because he was violent, it was because when the cat hissed, he took that as a threat and he had to defend his threshold and protect his family. Squirrels and rabbits could run through the yard with no problem, but anything that acted as if it wanted to attack was history.
If you decide to get another cat, read up on how to properly introduce them so that this doesn't happen.
And don't let this shake your trust in him. Again, he was doing what he thought best for YOU. Don't put him to sleep either. He has done nothing wrong. I am sure he is a beautiful, loving creature and that is not going to change. Mastiffs and German Shepherds are both very loyal breeds and were bred to protect herds of sheep from predators. You and your family are his sheep and he just needs to understand the cat is one too. Good luck in any future cat endeavors!