cat attack

[Jedismom]

I occasionally walk Jedi alone to build his confidence without Cadi. Tonight was one of those nights. We were walking by a house and a cat ran out as we were walking by and attacked Jedi. Well Jedi just started screaming and trying to get away while I fought the cat. I kicked it and kept it away as best I could while trying to leave but the cat kept following. A neighbor across the street heard the commotion and came over with a rake to contain the cat. His comment to me was "well that sure is a mean cat ain't it". I wasn't amused. I asked him to give me the rake, but I guess he saw the look in my eye so he refused. I then told him to keep the cat away from me then or I'd kill it. I'm not proud of myself for that. I should have thanked him for helping but at that point I was furious. Obviously the cat has a reputation for being aggressive, and the owners don't seem to care to keep him inside. I've worried about dog attacks but never about being attacked by a cat. I frankly don't know much about cats. It never occured to me that they would start a fight with a dog. Are they also territorial? If Cadi was with us she would not have screamed and tried to get away, she would have fought the cat. What kind of damage could the cat have caused? I'd like to go back when I'm calm and talk to the owners but I'm not sure what good it would do. Any advice? I don't know how Jedi will react to another cat now. He's ignored them in the past. I'm sure it hasn't helped his confidence. Sigh....Not a good week for us.

[Allie Oop]

Bummer. We have a neighborhood "bully" cat and my own cat has about $300 worth of vet bills because of this little beast's proclivities. The cat, who the neighbors all call "Satan", will take on any of the neighborhood dogs of any size, so I avoid the side of the street that the cat lives on and we always cross over. I've spoken with the cat's owners (his name is actually "Shadow", but "Satan" seems much more appropriate) and they seemed very surprised that their little kitty would ever attack another cat, let alone a dog. They don't let the cats live in the house (the cats have an upstairs "apartment" in the garage), because they have African Parrots that fly lose in the house and Satan . . . ummm, I mean, Shadow has tried to eat them, hence his banishment outside.

 

I was concerned that my dogs would be frightened or want to chase cats after the last bad encounter they had with the beast, but I just give Satan/Shadow's roaming range a wide berth and they are fine with most other cats. Avoid the area, if possible, but if the cat continues his aggression, you might want to contact animal control -- I hate to turn any animal in, but an animal that will attack a dog accompanied by a human, could very easily attack a small child.

 

Most cats are not that territorial or aggressive. Good luck with Jedi.

[tualizzy]

Eeeek!

Now that's a mean cat.

Is Jedi ok?

 

I have two cats... one is kinda snarly, and occassionally enjoys chasing Jak across the kitchen. But Jak usually deserves it. He stares at her as if she was a flock of sheep. After as while she has enough and chases him. Both cats are indoor cats, so I've never known them to be territorial.

 

Having a word with the owners couldn't hurt.

At the very least it might make you feel better

Cheers.

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

Outdoor cats do tend to be territorial. I had a cat living in my basement for a while, my room mate did not seem to care that I was allergic and he would let it outside all the time (in freezing weather). Here it is a $250 fine for a cat running at large and another $250 fine for no city license. So I called the bylaw officers on him. That cat would always threaten my dog, it actually bit me, he never took it to the vet the whole time it was here, hardly fed it (my bf and I frequently bought it food and so did our neighbours) and never cleaned the litter box, so I don't think he should have had it in the first place. (Some people! ) It did however keep all other cats out of my yard and garbage, which was a bonus I guess because I just found cat prints on my car, no doubt trying to get at the robin family that has nested about where I park. I would be very leary of an outdoor cat, it could be feral and someone is feeding it, it could have rabies, or even the feline equivalent to HIV (forgot the name of it) or any other disease for that matter. An angry cat could potentially do quite a bit of damage if it wanted to. I would first check to see what your city bylaws are on outdoor cats, then find out for sure if it has owners. If your city has laws about this, then they can do the dirty work for you. If not then perhaps talk to the owners yourself and voice your concerns. We've just recently had an episode in Calgary where a few cats and dogs were poisoned by someone with rat poison, so I have a HUGE problem with people who let their pets outside alone. Not to mention we've actually run over a cat from across the street and now those people think we are horrible, despite the fact that I knocked on every door till I found the owners because it was still alive and brought it towels and did the best I could bawling my eyes out the whole time.

ANYWAY, sorry for the rant. I would suggest finding out what kind of laws your town/city has and getting the appropriate people to the talking first if you can. You don't want it to turn into a "he said/she said" and your dog end up in trouble....

[Dixie_Girl]

Sorry you had to go through this with Jedi. I have to say, I used to have one of those attack cats! Sammy, (RIP) was an indoor/outdoor cat. He was neutered at 5mos. and he never roamed more than two or three houses away, and that was rare. BUT, there were some dogs he chased out of our yard. Some he didn't. He seemed to know which ones would harm him and which would run. But, he just chased, he never attacked, except once. I was coming home with KFC for everyone. I get out of the car with both hands carrying a bag. Some dog comes up, and I tried to shoo him away. The front door opens, and Cheyenne and Sammy come out. Cheyenne remains on the porch, barking her fool head off, and my cat, comes to my rescue, and stands on his back legs, swatting and hissing at this dog! (Sammy was declawed, so no danger of real harm)The dog didn't know what to think at first, but soon decided Sammy was more than he wanted to deal with! Sammy got extra chicken that night!

 

 

Hope Jedi has no long term issues with cats due to this.

[vanillalove]

I own one of these monsters. His name is Toby and he absolutely is the most loving cat - well to his family, that is, and a very very select few that find their way into his cold heart. He isn't an outdoor cat, he lives inside with my other pets. He is protective of his sister, which we also own, but not towards the family or any of the other animals. He doesn't attack other animals at all actually! He hunts down and preys on people; no lie!

 

We have cleaning ladies that come to our house every second Monday, and he stalks them and waits for them to get near his hiding place (ex: under the bed, under the couch, etc.) then pounces like he's a wild cat. He's a strange one..t here are just some people he loves and goes out of his way to show you, like running from behind, and jumping up on your shoulders while you're walking and lick your face raw, and then there are those who he gets one sniff of and he's hissing and hunting like they're threatening him.

 

Poor Jedi though! Most cats aren't like that. I've never known a cat to run up to a dog more than twice it's size! You should really talk to the owners and tell them you'll take this to the city. If they find out the cat isn't licensed, they'll do all the nasty work for you. That just isn't right. I really hope Jedi is alright though!

[silhouettestable]

Something to consider is that most cats hate water so you could carry a water gun with you to douse the little beast if you're going to be near where he lives again. Also most cats react to anything resembling a hissing noise, so if you were to aggressively get in his space while hissing and spraying him with water he just might think attacking is more trouble than it's worth. I've never known a cat to be that aggressive though, so I can't promise that it will work. I have an outdoor cat that's nothing like that, and neither are my neigbour's barn cats (one one of hers and mine will occasionally fight with each other, even though both are neutered). A cat we used to have was always willing to stand up to a dog a swat them, but that was if they came to him,in his face. He wasn't an "attack cat". One thing to watch out for with dog/cat interactions is that your dogs eyes don't get scratched, and also be aware the cat bites and scratches get infected easily. The bites can appear very tiny but sometimes they leave deep punctures so if you find any bites on Jedi make sure to clean and disinfect them well.

 

ETA: regarding Jedi's confidence and behaviour around cats, can you let him visit with a nice dog-friendly cat so he knows that they're not all like that?

[2 Devils]

I used to have a german shepherd named Meesha. When I would visit my then boyfriend the neighbors cat would hide in the bushes and would attack the dogs as we walked them. This cat would attack 2 german shepherds... This cat was actually just playing.

 

If that cat keeps attacking, call animal control. If nothing else, I would want to make sure that cat has all the shots required. A cat bite will become infected quickly and often. You don't want to take chances.

 

In the meantime, just walk Jedi some place else.

 

The only good thing about a cat acting that way is it might teach a dog not to chase cats in general. My acd was beat up by a cat when she was a puppy and she is terrified of cats now which I am happy about.

[nancy in AZ]

Keep checking for open sores inflicted by the cat because they can easily turn into abcesses. I had a similar experience and did speak to the cat's owner,just to alert him to the possible vet bill he would be incurring as a consequence of the attack Boo suffered, and to determine if the cat had been vaccinated (he never did show me proof). It was a moot point because there were no ill- effects, fortunately. I did carry a water pistol with me for a while afterward. I dug up the thread from last summer:

 

http://www.bordercollie.org/boards/index.p...c=13826&hl=

[Jedismom]

Thanks for all the great responses!

 

I've checked Jedi over and am very relieved to have found no scratches. I read the thread posted and I guess it's not unheard of for cats to attack dogs. I think a squirt gun might be a good idea for awhile. Luckily, that street is not in my neighborhood so I can easily avoid it. I tried to go back today to talk to the owner but I'm afraid I was so engrossed in trying to get away, that I didn't get the address, so now I'm not sure which house it is and the cat wasn't out. I'm allergic to cats, so we will never own one, and besides Cadi would kill it. So I guess I'm going to be ok with Jedi wanting to avoid cats. I just don't ever want to hear those sounds coming out of him again...that upset me more than anything else. On the positive side, he seemed to get over it pretty quickly once we got out of sight of the cat so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for no long term effects.

 

Georgia

[bc4ever]

Thanks for all the great responses!

 

I've checked Jedi over and am very relieved to have found no scratches. I read the thread posted and I guess it's not unheard of for cats to attack dogs. I think a squirt gun might be a good idea for awhile. Luckily, that street is not in my neighborhood so I can easily avoid it. I tried to go back today to talk to the owner but I'm afraid I was so engrossed in trying to get away, that I didn't get the address, so now I'm not sure which house it is and the cat wasn't out. I'm allergic to cats, so we will never own one, and besides Cadi would kill it. So I guess I'm going to be ok with Jedi wanting to avoid cats. I just don't ever want to hear those sounds coming out of him again...that upset me more than anything else. On the positive side, he seemed to get over it pretty quickly once we got out of sight of the cat so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for no long term effects.

 

Georgia

 

Lord!! I never worried about at CAT attacking us!! Like the charging dogs off leash aren't scary enough! Now I'm even more paranoid! I too carry a water pistol, partly for getting Scooter's attention when his mind wanders. I also carry a small air horn. This serves two purposes--hopefully to scare off a menacing beast, and partly to alert the neighbors something's going down!! I don't want to hurt them, so I figure the air horn might just rattle their brains for a few minutes!

[hsnrs]

My cat will do that to our Aussies if I tell her to "get them." So funny but the dogs don't think so. I think the cat is just protecting me (or herding the dogs away). N

[mbc1963]

Buddy got attacked by a cat exactly ONCE: his own fault. He chased the poor thing under a bush and was snarling and lunging at it, and it came out with a defensive posture, scratching and hissing. Since then, Buddy has given cats about a 6' radius; he won't approach any closer. If a cat so much as twitches, Buddy jumps straight up in the air and darts away as fast as he can.

 

I would definitely contact the owners! No one's pet should be allowed to terrorize other people!

 

Mary

[Geoffrey]

I have one of those kitty assasins as well...

 

In the case of my cat (sometimes cats as her brother will join in if he feels like it) the reason she goes out of her way to attack dogs is the value of the pre-emptive strike. She knows (from experience - she was an outdoor cat before I got her) that if she runs, she will be chased and if she sits still...she'll be spotted and chased anyway. In her eyes, the most self-preserving option is to attack the dog before the dog notices her and, by the element of surprise, "neutralize" it....meaning she reduces dogs to cowering lumps, screaming for help. She does not attack because she is aggressive; she does not want to GET attacked, so she becomes the attackER. My dogs (except one, who wants to eat the cat) are petrified of her. The largest, my 70lbs Labrador, will not enter the house at all if he sees her.

 

ETA: Her and her brother are both nearly 12yrs now. They don't mellow with age

[Tranquilis]

I *could* have one of those cats, but I keep him inside - He's a mean one. I don't need someone come knocking on my door after El Gato Diabólico has shredded their kid/cat/dog/what-have-you. 20+ pounds of maniacal fury with outsized claws is a bit much to have on the loose, so in he stays. Mind you, he's neutered - I'd hate to see what he'd have been like, intact! So, I clip his claws, and deal with him. Fortunately, he's learned that I am He Of The Squirt Gun, and he'll bolt for cover when I make hissing noises at him.

The dogs in the neighborhood have no idea the favor I've done them!

[Skyler]

Something to consider is that most cats hate water so you could carry a water gun with you to douse the little beast if you're going to be near where he lives again.

 

 

Might as well make it a Super Soaker and cure him for good.

 

Ryan

[Laurae]

El Gato Diabólico!

 

I *could* have one of those cats, but I keep him inside - He's a mean one. I don't need someone come knocking on my door after El Gato Diabólico has shredded their kid/cat/dog/what-have-you. 20+ pounds of maniacal fury with outsized claws is a bit much to have on the loose, so in he stays. Mind you, he's neutered - I'd hate to see what he'd have been like, intact! So, I clip his claws, and deal with him. Fortunately, he's learned that I am He Of The Squirt Gun, and he'll bolt for cover when I make hissing noises at him.

The dogs in the neighborhood have no idea the favor I've done them!

[ZoZo]

Poor Jedi, that must have been a terrible experience. I confess that we has also had one of satan's cats and he had to be kept indoors because of his behavior. Felix was mostly very nice to us, but he had to be carefully managed around other people and animals that visited. He lived to be 20 years old, I think it was his meanness that kept him alive so long. I'd be super angry too about being attacked by a crazy cat like that. Maybe some walks in his territory without Jedi and a little pepper spray at the ready would be a good science experiment.

[fotobridget]

I occasionally walk Jedi alone to build his confidence without Cadi. Tonight was one of those nights. We were walking by a house and a cat ran out as we were walking by and attacked Jedi. Well Jedi just started screaming and trying to get away while I fought the cat. I kicked it and kept it away as best I could while trying to leave but the cat kept following. A neighbor across the street heard the commotion and came over with a rake to contain the cat. His comment to me was "well that sure is a mean cat ain't it". I wasn't amused. I asked him to give me the rake, but I guess he saw the look in my eye so he refused. I then told him to keep the cat away from me then or I'd kill it. I'm not proud of myself for that. I should have thanked him for helping but at that point I was furious. Obviously the cat has a reputation for being aggressive, and the owners don't seem to care to keep him inside. I've worried about dog attacks but never about being attacked by a cat. I frankly don't know much about cats. It never occured to me that they would start a fight with a dog. Are they also territorial? If Cadi was with us she would not have screamed and tried to get away, she would have fought the cat. What kind of damage could the cat have caused? I'd like to go back when I'm calm and talk to the owners but I'm not sure what good it would do. Any advice? I don't know how Jedi will react to another cat now. He's ignored them in the past. I'm sure it hasn't helped his confidence. Sigh....Not a good week for us.

 

 

We had a 'satan' type cat in the neighborhood about three years back. Unfortunately my Norwegian forest cat ( a whopping 4 pounder) managed to sneak out of the house. She hadn't been spayed (car accident left bad scarring and the vets won't spay her) and she 'met' this evil stranger.

 

I kept one of the babies--he weighs in at 24 pounds and is the sweetest little monster ever.

 

But, anyway, we called animal control because he was terrorizing alot of neighborhood animals. They came and caught him--he was so vicious he was attacking the metal cage he was in, making his face bleed.

 

My point is, if he is so vicious he'd attack a dog--you might want to report it so that it's next victim isn't a child!

 

I hope your dog isn't too upset--poor little thing. I'd be hopping mad if some monster beast (be it dog, cat, or human) attacked Libby--especially if she was minding her own business! So I fully understand how you feel!

[Lunar]

Oh, your poor dog. I'm sorry. People need to clue in that cats should not be roaming the streets any more than dogs should be, and an aggressive cat is just as much the owner's issue as an aggressive dog. It really drives me crazy, the attitude of "eh, it's a cat, what can you do."

 

And yeah, I've seen a cat stalk a dog before.