Cat attacked..by dogs, then had to put down.

That's a different situation though: the cats came onto the dog's property. In the OP's situation, it's the reverse, the dogs came onto the cat's property.

 

My wife had a bit of a to-do with an angry/deranged old woman some months back, as she was walking our dog. Long story short, a policewoman (in civvies) was a short distance away at the time, and got talking with my wife afterwards (the policewoman had offered to testify in support of my wife, if my wife wanted to take things further: the old woman had threatened her with a walking staff). According to the policewoman, if anything had 'happened' between the dogs, it would have been 50/50 regardless (and 0/0 so far as the police is concerned) because it was on a third party's private property (farmer's field).

That's very interesting as my dog was attacked on a third party's property and the policeman involved did move to prosecute the muppet owner for having a dangerously out of control dog.

Sadly all he had to do was evade the police for long enough (there's some sort of time limit on these things), although the lovely policeman tried his best to arrest the idiot, and they could do nothing more.

My dog has the physical and mental scars still

this is horrific! - I cannot believe there isnt a case of animal cruelty that the dog owner is answerable for. Not in control of their dogs is bad enough but trying to walk away after this is utterly unacceptable - have you called the RSPCA for advice?

If it was me I would get the police involved ASAP via 101 or via their online crime reporting page

https://www.reportingcrime.uk/SYPincidentreport/

I think more needs to be done to highlight the dangers of not properly controling your dogs.. And i'm not pin pointing out any particular breed because i have a lovely little JRT who loves people and kids but i have to keep him leashed at all times cus he's a little sod and WILL attack small animals...

I know some people hate to see their dogs on leashes because they don't think their dog is dangerous but it's amazing just how many breeds (even the really placid ones) will chase and potentially kill cats..

It's not just dogs attacking other dogs that should be focused on..

That's very interesting as my dog was attacked on a third party's property and the policeman involved did move to prosecute the muppet owner for having a dangerously out of control dog.

 

Sadly all he had to do was evade the police for long enough (there's some sort of time limit on these things), although the lovely policeman tried his best to arrest the idiot, and they could do nothing more.

 

My dog has the physical and mental scars still

My (rescue) dog came with the physical and mental scars. Baited for fights as a pup. Regrettably, all permanently leashed that he is, he's got a few more in the past 6 years, by untethered dogs with no recall.

To the extent that nowadays, seemingly any dog is 'the enemy'. Regardless of size, colour or breed. With the extra salt in the wound irony that other owners with unleashed dogs take offence, when I or my wife ask them (politely) to recall and leash their free-roaming dogs coming for a look. It always ends in tears when their dogs don't listen and manage to get too close.

If anything, it shows that your mileage with the police about such matter will vary

 

My (rescue) dog came with the physical and mental scars. Baited for fights as a pup. Regrettably, all permanently leashed that he is, he's got a few more in the past 6 years, by untethered dogs with no recall.

 

To the extent that nowadays, seemingly any dog is 'the enemy'. Regardless of size, colour or breed. With the extra salt in the wound irony that other owners with unleashed dogs take offence, when I or my wife ask them (politely) to recall and leash their free-roaming dogs coming for a look. It always ends in tears when their dogs don't listen and manage to get too close.

Same here, our dog was terrified of the outdoors and everything in it (we couldn't let her off lead at first as she'd run back to the car and cower at the door), and more worryingly scared of belts when we got her

She did say there is a field at the side of where she lives though.. Maybe he let them off early and didn't see the cat???

 

I'm not trying to defend him or the actions of the dogs but there is always three sides to a story..

This sounds likely to me, the dogs will have been excited just off the lead, seen the cat and bam

A horrible incident caused by someone not thinking things out clearly, I bet he has done the same thing a hundred times before and the dogs just walked into the field but today there was the cat, its a bit of a leap to think that he did this on purpose...I am sure that he walked off because he was scared by what happened and didn't know how to handle it, at least he left his number and that isn't the action of someone who did it purposely.

I am so sorry for the cat and its owners, it must have been a terrible thing to come home to and an awful way to lose a loved pet

The very least the man could do is to apologize sincerely even if only by letter and to pay for the vet bill.

Don't apologise and yes i did...

So what do you think "It’s against the law to let a dog ... attack someone’s animal" means then?

So what do you think "It’s against the law to let a dog ... attack someone’s animal" means then?

I think it means just that.... What's your point??? Are you bored?

This sounds likely to me, the dogs will have been excited just off the lead, seen the cat and bam

I once saw our dog drop down a 10ft wall (vertical drop), then jump clear over a 5ft-high stone wall into the neighbour's garden, going after a cat he'd clocked a good 50+ yards away (the cat made it up the conifer in good time). He'd never "dared" to drop from that wall before that one time, and I never imagined that he ever would, so we'd never tethered him in the 'top garden' before. Must have been something particularly bad the cat said or taunted

Same with a big solitary wild boar, that looked to be about 4 times his size. As soon as the dog clocked it, straight off at it like a rocket. I did sweat. A lot.

No prey stimulus and he's got decent enough recall, for a terrier. Put in a prey, and there's just zero recall there, just a dumb adrenalin- and rocket-powered house brick that ain't stopping for love or money a treat, never mind a heel command.

I have zero doubt that, in the same circumstances as the OP, he'd have done exactly the same as these two greyhounds. Though (a) mine wouldn't be off leash to begin with and (b) I'd have jumped in right away to pull the dog away/save the cat

To OP, hope you can find the strength to get over this and find a new feline friend to share your home soon

Just to add to make it clear I don't think it was deliberate, he was going to the fields which is two houses away from my house.

And I think he just let them off assuming they'd go to the field. I know it sounds daft because it was my cat that got attacked. But like a lot of dog owners when there approaching the field they let the g

Dog off the lead.

As I stated before I was away at work when all this happened

, but neighbours told me that he casually just walked up to the dogs and put on there leads and started to walk away.

And I lost the phone number cause it was on a little piece of paper and when I called them in the heat of the no I just lost it...