Our cat was killed by a dog, It ran out of control and viciously killed our cat well into our private land. The whole thing was captured on CCTV and the guy even admitted it but NOTHING was or could be done.

The current laws are bogus, the animal welfare act does not protect your animal from other animal attacks unless you can absolutely prove 100% the owner commanded it to do so. I urge everyone to push for change however which way you can, one day this person may come round your way and let his dog run all over your garden killing your cat, dog anything on your property with NOTHING you can do about it in regards to the law.

That includes YOURSELF as currently no law not even the Dangerous Dogs act applies on private property. The RPSCA need to pull their finger out and laws need to be changed NOW!!!

in our town, we have been told that cats are wild animals and that is the reason why their owners do not have to license them or keep them confined to their own property. the cats have done quite a bit of damage to our gardens, killed all the baby rabbits in our back yard, chase the birds and squirrels and we have no recourse, except to ask our neighbors to keep their cats home and that’s like talking to a wall. we have always had dogs and when our last one passed away at 17 years old after being monitored constantly in her own fenced in back yard, so she wouldn’t hurt a cat, we figured what the hell???? we got another dog, if the cats get in our fenced in back yard and don’t come out in one piece or even alive, whatever. take responsibility for your cats

In reply to the comments by Tracey who says it is not in a dogs nature to kill unless trained, sorry but that is not so. All dogs are descended from wolves who hunt and kill to survive. I have just spoken to a young man who has been ordered by Keighley magistrates to get rid of his Patterdale dog because it killed a cat. This dog is used even by the council apparently to kill rats etc, they do this automatically by their very nature. With nearly 60 years of dog ownership I think I can say I know a little about dogs. Funny isn,t it a driver can run a cat over leave it suffering and drive off and nothing can be done yet when these dogs do something that is natural courts order them to be got rid off. The law wants to make up its mind

I would like to add that the point here is that he is thinking if the cats were to get in his yard the dog may attack the cats.

Maybe the cats are better in the pens where wild animals can’t attack them. Maybe the owner isn’t making them suffer but trying to keep them safe.

Hay is also a good insulator and it is encouraged for cat bedding to keep them warm in winter conditions. They are fed, they have beds, and apparently the owner doesn’t want them attacked by other cats/animals or hit by a car or disfigured or getting diseases or being stolen. Maybe this owner is only looking out for her pets. Maybe she can’t have them indoors or is allergic or lives with someone who won’t allow them inside, and maybe she thinks giving them to a shelter is crueller and the cages there are smaller and they may be put to sleep. At least they are still alive and they don’t sound like they are abused. Hamsters are kept in hamster cages, and dogs are penned regularly and leashed. Cats in pens made for dogs that are much larger than them doesn’t sound like cruelty given that they are fed and cared for, especially if they get attention, vet care, and have access to interests such as ramps for climbing and posts to scratch so there nails stay healthy.

My only complaint is that there is snow in the food dish which makes me wonder if there is roofing or some sort of shelter in the pen or if it is wide-open. Ice will inetivably get into any water source in winter, so the owner should offer water at least twice a day. Otherwise, she doesn’t sound like she is doing anything wrong.

PLEASE contact the RSPCA about those poor cats, you can do it anonymously and you must surely be an animal lover yourself to have a dog.
The RSPCA will say a cat loving concerned passer by alerted them and they are obliged to check the situation out.
The conditions those cats live in don’t sound right to me,those people have a duty of care to their cats to be treated as fitting to their species.
Living in a dog kennel with straw bedding in a small pen and their food covered in snow and their water frozen is failing in that duty of care.What about their litter trays, are they cleaned ? The RSPCA will either educate those people or remove the cats if their conditions are very bad.
I don’t know how you’d stand if your dog did kill a cat but please find it in your heart to do something about those cats as soon as you can as they don’t deserve that life they are being forced to live.

I am very concerned and confused.

Firstly you say the cats are penned then kenneled then one strayed into your garden. Er which was it?

How are these cats kept? How can one wander into your garden if they are penned?

When the dishes were frozen did you take any action? i.e. consult an animal welfare organisation?

By the way its not in your dogs nature to kill small animals unless you teach him. Is that the case? If he is as you say a retriever then it is in his nature to do just that; retrieve but not kill.

My concern would be not that my dog would kill the cats but how best I could help these cats that appear to be living like dogs which as Micheal said against our animal welfare laws.

Your questions and statements concern me on many levels.

I wanted to add something. I think that your neighbours may and probably are in breach of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in keeping two cats outside during it seems throughout winter with snow on the ground etc. This will possibly cause suffering and it can be avoided.

I also hate the idea of cats living their lives in pens 8 x 6 feet in dimension. This may be legally acceptable but morally it is hideous to me.