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Dogs savage a cat on 31st Street
03/09/2012 3:11 PM by John M
A neighbor reports two sheppard mix dogs killing a cat on a porch at about 4AM this morning on the 400 block of North 31st Street.
They killed my neighbors cat, on her front porch […] The animal patrol says that they rode through the neighborhood around 10AM and saw nothing. The police say that there is nothing that they can do about this. The veterinarian says that if these animals viciously killed an animal on a porch without being provoked, they are capable of killing a child.
Thankfully it wasn’t a rat. I know there would be a lot of broken hearts if it had been. 😛
The police probably are not the right parties to be calling on this unless you want them to arrest the dogs.
As a dog lover, loose and/or stray dogs in the neighborhood is a worry to me given the large number of them that I’ve seen. I’d guess I’ve seen close to 20 this year alone, most are too skittish to catch. We were able to grab a sheppard mix last week, seemed skittish but nice enough. I will say the jump from cat attacker (which is a perfectly normal reaction for many dogs, unless you take the time to train them otherwise or they happen to grow up with cats) to human killer is a bit much.
I have seen a pack of dogs up on 26th and 33rd streets with two shepherds and two smaller mixed dogs in it . Called animal control on both occasions and the police on one because they headed up 25th st towards the police station in the middle of the road.
Sorry for your friends loss 🙁
Are these dogs for hire?
Too many loose dogs in this hood. Owners are drunks and idiots and should be put down instead of the dogs. Ignorance and lack of responsibility. I see it too much. Not to mention there is trash everywhere by here because of the wheeler and clay st market. This encourages dogs to be aggressive.
This explains why my dogs were so wound up and outside barking in the wee hours on Friday morning. I wll keep an eye out for these dogs.
Trash encourages dogs to be aggressive?
I too am a animal lover but people also need to wake up and keep their dogs fenced in or on leashes. Some breeds are bread to be vicious and all you have to do is look in the news about dogs attacking or seriously biting people for no real reason. What makes you think these dogs, which may be feral, can’t attack a human?
Yeah I’m having a hard time making the connection from the Blue Wheeler to aggressive dogs….
I am totally unsurprised by this. Just last week I talked to someone at Animal Control that said there were three dog attacks where dogs were killed here in Richmond, one actually in Church Hill.
Between the stray dogs and cats, the dogs tied out or fenced all day and night (which incidentally tends to make dogs aggressive, not trash), the wolf hybrids, fighting dogs and dogs in this neighborhood with a track record of previous attacks (bursting through fences and out of homes to chase and attack passersby walking with dogs etc), I would wager a human fatality is right around the corner.
Improperly socialized or aggressive dogs, especially when in a pack together are quite capable of attacking people. And if that person is elderly, a child or in any way enfeebled, well, not that hard a jump to make from cat to kid really.
Honestly, I am sure most of the people that own these dogs have already been bitten themselves by their own pets, which would be stupidity at its most laughable if they didn’t inflict their mongrels on the rest of us.
Obviously dogs should not be roaming off-leash, in packs or otherwise, and should be properly cared for, but I’m surprised no one has mentioned that outdoor cats are also put in danger by their owners. Free roaming cats are more susceptible to all sorts of dangers like cars and disease. Free roaming cats who carry disease also pass this disease on to law-abiding dog owners when the cats defecate in public spaces. Losing a pet is a terrible tragedy, but it was certainly avoidable by simply maintaining responsible control over both breeds of animals.
So the cat was asking for it? Blame the victim logic applies to animals now too…
Well, I certainly don’t leave my computer on my front porch as an outdoor laptop since I know something is bound to happen to it there.
On that note I hate when people own cats and let them roam and bemoan their fates. Suck it up, your cat wouldn’t get attacked by dogs or hit by a car or mutilated by raccoons of it was inside like it should be as a domestic pet.
So, no it isn’t the cat’ fault is was torn to shreds, its muscles flayed and organs punctured by some nasty dog that should probably be euthanized, but this was preventable every single way you look at it.
Our cats are strictly indoor and since moving to the Hill they get the squirt to the face if they even approach our front or back doors because I fear that they’ll either get run over or attacked by a dog. One of our cats did manage to get out the back door this summer and was cornered by our neighbor’s friendly but large dog. Obviously the trauma’s stuck with him because he hasn’t gone near the door since.
People, we live in an urban environment. For the love of whatever deity you deem holy, if you live in a small place with a small or nonexistent yard DO NOT OWN A LARGE DOG. They need space to run around. And chances are they won’t bite the guy who might break into your house.
I am a neighbor of the recently deceased cat. He was a feral cat who was semi-tamed by his loving owner. She fed him for quite some time, paid for very expensive surgery when he had need, and then set up a crate-home for him on her front porch. He was never an inside cat, but he was a beloved pet.
I own four cats that I rescued from my block, and they are strictly indoor. I keep up with their shots and shell out copious amounts of money for them, especially since one has FIV. I don’t let my cats out, because I’m afraid of them getting hit by cars, and my vet told me about roaming packs of dogs that kill cats.
I do, however, believe that whether to keep your cat indoors or out is a personal choice. It seems like this person didn’t even have the choice, since the cat was semi-feral. One of my now indoor cats is semi-feral and it took two years of him living on my porch to finally get him to come inside. I sometimes wonder if I’m doing the right thing for my cats regardless. I know they would have better quality of life if they could go outside, and sometimes I’m not sure whether the increased life span from staying inside is worth it.
Richmond has a SERIOUS feral cat and dog problem, no matter how you look at it. I think this blame the victim crap has absolutely no merit. This was a poor defenseless animal. Seriously people. Have some compassion. How about getting off your butts and taking one, just one, feral cat or dog to the SPCA to get a free or low cost spay or neuter. If would be nice if people did something about the problem instead of complaining about it. I watch a lot of people choose to complain on this blog, instead of getting active in their communities to do something about problems. This is why I haven’t been vocal on this blog much lately. All the complaining with no action wears me out. But when you start talking big about poor defenseless animals I guess you hit a sore spot with me, and I had to speak up.
If anyone wants to borrow my “have a heart” trap it’s available for loan. Just let me know–you can contact me thru the website link above. Over the years, my neighbors and I have used it to catch many, many feral cats (along with occasional raccoon and possum.) I can show you how to use it. Richmond Animal Control will come pick up the animal if you don’t want to take it to the SPCA.
I don’t think anyone is blaming the victim, but the initial post tries to blame the dogs, which is wrong too. Blame the people who were irresponsible and allowed a cat to become feral and two dogs to become strays and created the whole situation. But otherwise both species are just doing what they can in an environment that is not natural to them.
FYI last night I saw two dogs that appeared to be feral, a dark brown brindle pit bull and a sand colored sheppard mix. The sheppard looked like he might be a recent runaway tagging along wit the pit, but the pit acted like a wild animal looking for food.
I’m pretty sure these two dogs hang out on the back porch of 1110 n 31st (one of the houses on the totally vacant side of the block between Q and R). I’ve seen them a few times there and near the Robinson. One of them started to come after me as i walking my dogs this morning. I’m calling animal control tomorrow.
Good, you should totally do it, 646-5573.