dog attack on cat

sheramber

Contact the police and tell them you want to lodge a complaint that the dog was dangerously out of control reference the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Insist on a Crime Number. That means it has to be followed up.

If the dog has bitten your daughter then she should see a doctor. Dog bite can introduce bacteria deep into a wound which gets blocked in when the surface of the wound heals over.

The critical part of your evidence that the dog continued to be aggressive to a human after the cat was removed.

elsien

Please also bear in mind that the police do talk cobblers sometimes when it comes to civil law. Just because they're telling you something doesn't necessarily make it correct.
Did you not have insurance?

elsien

Silvertabby wrote: »

I'm so, so sorry. I'd be devastated if this happened to my furry madam.

Even if your cat strayed into the dog's garden, this should never have happened. What if the next 'intruder' happens to be next door's toddler, chasing after his football?

Whatever the circumstances/outcome, this needs reporting to the police.

Sorry but I have to correct this. Dogs chasing cats generally speaking bears no relation to dog attacks on humans and a dog that chases cats does not mean it will attack a human, child or otherwise. Some dogs chase cats in the same way that some cats kill mice and birds.

ETA - that's a general comment. In this case if it were my dog I'd be mortified, and would certainly be paying the bills.

Fire_Fox

Welcome to MSE. Sorry to read of this sad situation. (((Hugs))) from someone else with anxiety.

You and your next door neighbour need to formally report the whole incident to the police and get a crime reference number or copy of statement or whatever the police offer for you to use as evidence. You can report incidents after they have happened if you have a good reason (as you do not realising your daughter was injured by the dog).

Whether the police consider it a civil case or criminal case you need documentary evidence. You may need to take your child to your family doctor to record any injuries and document any mental effect on your child and on yourself. You also need a printed report from the veterinarian as to your cat's injuries, their professional recommendations and the end outcome.

Taking out a small claims action in the County Court is not expensive at all, you do not need a legal representative (no solicitor or barrister) and ALL of your costs can be included in your claim against the dog owner. You can even claim for things like taxi fares to the vet if you can get a dated receipt from the taxi company you used. The Citizens Advice Bureau can help double check your court paperwork.

County Courts also deal with custody and other family/ children issues, so cases can seem quite relaxed, just sitting around a table not in a proper courtroom. Judges understand completely that small claims actions are taken out by good genuine people, and they can be very patient and very kind if they know you are anxious or upset. If the dog owner does not turn up and you do turn up to court with your witnesses (eg. next door neighbour, daughter) you win the case automatically! :T That is quite likely if the dog owner knows they do not have a leg to stand on.

Unfortunately it is your responsibility to have money set aside for unexpected accidents, illnesses and veterinary bills, but the vet practice may well be willing to take staged payments over a few months if you make a reasonable offer. Do not panic: write an offer letter or e-mail to the practice owner or practice manager.

PDSA normally have a free or discounted out-of-hours service via other local vet practices. Are you currently registered with the PDSA, did you ring the PDSA telephone number, listen to the message and follow the instructions?

Be sure you are claiming all the state benefits you are entitled to as a family. If you have debts or mortgage payments that are crippling you financially post your SOA (= detailed budget) on the MSE 'Debt-free Wannabe' board. Lovely helpful knowledgeable regulars.

Post again as much as you want on this thread. I will especially try to watch out for your posts here, or you can hunt me down on the MSE 'Old Style Moneysaving' board (I am a regular on Cooking for One and 2019 Clutter-free Life).

Hope that helps, and sorry I wrote you an essay.

franklin.adele

I have been to the citizens advice and they helped with a letter that needs to be sent to them before going to small claims. I know it might sound stupid but i am worried if i make an official complaint to the police the dog could be destroyed,i dont think it is a smart idea to have a dog they know to be aggressive towards small animals in an area with so many small animals and i blame the owners not the dog it was doing what it was trained to do and i believe lurchers have a high prey drive. Maybe i am not thinking straight its been an emotional time and traumatic especially for my daughter who witnessed it not only did she lose her pet but saw him attacked and she is scared to play out in her own garden as the dog owners said their dog can jump over 6 foot fences and that is how it escaped (their gate/fence i can see over so its certainly not 6 foot). I did agree a payment plan at the vets at the time but i may have to ask them to make it less they were very understanding but explained he was my pet and had to be in my name no matter if the dog owner said they would pay. Apart from the money i am scared they cannot look after the dog and am very anxious letting our other cat out,i dont think the dog would attack a person though if someone has hold of a cat and it wants to get at it i dont know what would happen then. thank you all for the help and advice its been helpful and a lot to look into its a struggle to get my head around it all at the minute if i was to go to the police is there a time limit?

onwards&upwards

Silvertabby wrote: »

I'm so, so sorry. I'd be devastated if this happened to my furry madam.

Even if your cat strayed into the dog's garden, this should never have happened. What if the next 'intruder' happens to be next door's toddler, chasing after his football?

Whatever the circumstances/outcome, this needs reporting to the police.

Loads of dogs are reactive to cats but absolutely fine with humans of all ages.

sheramber

franklin.adele wrote: »

I have been to the citizens advice and they helped with a letter that needs to be sent to them before going to small claims. I know it might sound stupid but i am worried if i make an official complaint to the police the dog could be destroyed,i dont think it is a smart idea to have a dog they know to be aggressive towards small animals in an area with so many small animals and i blame the owners not the dog it was doing what it was trained to do and i believe lurchers have a high prey drive. Maybe i am not thinking straight its been an emotional time and traumatic especially for my daughter who witnessed it not only did she lose her pet but saw him attacked and she is scared to play out in her own garden as the dog owners said their dog can jump over 6 foot fences and that is how it escaped (their gate/fence i can see over so its certainly not 6 foot). I did agree a payment plan at the vets at the time but i may have to ask them to make it less they were very understanding but explained he was my pet and had to be in my name no matter if the dog owner said they would pay. Apart from the money i am scared they cannot look after the dog and am very anxious letting our other cat out,i dont think the dog would attack a person though if someone has hold of a cat and it wants to get at it i dont know what would happen then. thank you all for the help and advice its been helpful and a lot to look into its a struggle to get my head around it all at the minute if i was to go to the police is there a time limit?

it is possible the owner would be required to take steps to prevent the dog escaping again. If it can get over the fence then they have to decide how they are going to prevent it happening again. Whether fixing something to the fence or returning the dog to the rescue.

the police can advise the owner and come to an agreement with them.

While nobody wants to see a dog pts how will you feel if the dog escapes again and kills somebody else's cat?

Do you have a dog warden on your area.? Some can be very helpful and will speak to a dog owner when there is a problem. Unfortunately, not all are like that.

You can log a complaint with the police but say you don' t want the dog destroyed but you want assurance that steps have been taken to prevent it happening again, due to the affect this had had on your family.

I hope the owners have already realised their responsibility and will pay the bill and take steps to prevent something happening in future.

charlie3090

Much as I dont want to disagree,
I think you will struggle to get anywhere,
my cat was killed in my front garden,well he died 2 weeks later from the injuries, firstly the rspca were useless, gave me a ref number and
said they could do nothing as cat were property.

The police went round to the house where the dog had got out from, they only went because I was injured trying to get the dog off my cat(not bitten though).

The police said they couldnt do anything as the dog was secured in the garden and they were not letting it roam, it attacked another cat a year later.
It does not matter what the dog owner said,proving it is another matter, I personally think that its not worth the grief.

I understand your worry about it attacking people but its probably fine ,just likes attacking furry things.

I know you feel that something should happen as a result of this but dont build your hopes up, my vets bills run into thousands of pounds trying to save my poor baby but I dont think about it as it was making me crazy.

What I did do was take an old stray from the rspca and he had a couple of nice years with me, that was the best legacy I could do for my cat.

Im so sorry for your loss x

elsien

It is very unlikely the dog would be destroyed for a first offence in the circumstances you describe.

It is more likely that the owner (if prosecuted) will be required to ensure the dog is kept under proper control.

I know someone whose dogs escaped when a visitor to the house left the door open. They attacked another dog who was being walked and the other dog's owner was bitten while trying to protect it.
The dogs were subject to a control order meaning that they had to be muzzled and on a lead when out and about, and the owner was given a short suspended prison sentence which would be enacted if the dogs were allowed to escape again. That was a very punitive sentence, probably because the dogs were bull terriers.

franklin.adele

Ive been told they take the dog out to public parks and let it off its lead,they told me themselves they are aware of its history of being trained to kill small animals is this ok?! Surely is should be kept on a lead even though i dont think it would attack a person what about the other animals?