What should we do...re: neighbors...

[Their Other Mother]

 

[FlockEweFarm]

Folks, I told my parents time and time again, "Shred your papers and all of your free credit card applications that come in the mail, mix them with the dirty kitty litter and grease, and then bag them for the trash", they never listened to me because I was just a Deputy Sheriff with a B.A. in Criminal Justice! It took my mom catching some scrote in the act of going through their trash one morning, and walking away with a wad of papers, before they finally believed me. It was too late, and they had already had both of their financial identities stolen and over 78k in charges run up in their names. They finally started listening to me, and they even mix in the doggie stuff from the yard for extra aroma.
Once it leaves your yard, and is on the curb, it is no longer considered private property. I have actually used that law to help uncover evidence of a meth lab,(lots and lots of Sudafed and cold medicine packages),and though the packages were not themselves admissable, they were a foot in the door.
She could have recovered her cat and her policeman neighbor would have known that she was using the principal of curtilage. Sorry I wasnt more help, darn migraine was kicking me pretty hard that night.

 

[sred98]

Sorry, I never got back to update this. The neighbor is hiding from me-LOL! I can't wait to see her again, because I am going to tell her that our English Bulldog mourned to death over the cat. That's right! That same week our 11 yo Eng. Bulldog, Rosie, dropped dead in the middle of the kitchen.

She had gotten really depressed after Mimi "disappeared" and wasn't eating as much, or doing her normal activities. Then, my 7yo comes running in and saying, "Rosie's dead!" Of course, if anyone here has been around older English Bulldogs, then you understand we've been through that a time or two. But, when he said she didn't even wiggle when he said "Cookie", then I ran in there to find her in the middle of the kitchen.

So, we had a burial and memorial for her and Mimi on our land, under the tree Rosie used to like to sit under. I know the dog was old, and a rescue, but I do think that she kind of gave up after Mimi died.

Thanks for the support. This is the first day back to the board since then. It is nice to have people that understand this. Our cat and other dog are at a loss. Especially the Boston Terrier. She is a year old, and we've only had her a month. Now she is super clingy to everyone, even the Siamese, who HATES her! LOL! But, I think he is warming up. I am going to have to move the Bulldog's bed to the garage, though, because neither of them will touch it. Rosie and Mimi were the only ones that slept there.

As for the neighbor, she better keep hiding, because I am to the ticked off stage now!

And I am going to tell her about Rosie. Hope she feels like crap for lying about it. We are going to put up a plaque or statue there to honor them. They were best friends and did everything together.

Shelly

 

[cjeanean]

Personally, I think you had the right attitude towards the situation, and I understand that your problem was with the lying.

If my child had gone into someone else's yard and gotten attacked, I could not have held the animal owner responsible. If the owner had done everything possible to contain the dogs and warn other people, well, it's my fault for raising a stupid kid. Regardless of the fact that this dog may be a danger to humans, I agree with the posters here who have said that a dog is a dog and can/will go after a cat if given a chance.

Our brittany spaniel, Gentle, is about 15 years old, almost completely blind and deaf. He sees shadows, and anything small and dark that moves quick he thinks is a cat. He has never bitten anyone, whether they're supposed to be in our yard or not (he's not a watch dog!!!) but for some reason cats are so high on his list of priorities that he'll bark for hours at a trash bag blowing in the wind. Squirrels, no problem. Rabbits, he doesn't care. Cats???? It's a good thing he's on a chain!

The point is she should not have lied, and you're right, if your cat was in their yard then what happened is not their fault. Not all dogs like cats. Not all dogs like people. Dogs that don't like cats may like people. In this case the dog doesn't like cats or people, but the focus is on the cat part, which is something that the animal can't be blamed for. An animal that doesn't like people can be the result of a lot of things, but a dog that doesn't like cats is just its nature. I would want the body myself, but I think I would want to know for sure that it was my cat. The body, if not rotting or torn to shreds, would be nice to have, but for them to simply say "I'm sorry, my dog ate your cat," would be more than enough. At least you would know for sure!!! I would suggest trying to get AT LEAST that from them, if not the woman then her husband. Tell him you just want to know if you should keep looking, to please tell you if it was your cat or not. If that doesn't work I don't know what to tell you, it's your word against theirs. I think the hubby pretty much confirmed it for you anyway, but a simple yes or no would be nice. Good luck, and I'm sooooo sorry about your dog and cat!!!

P.S. My dogs defend our yard against anything that is invading. We did not train them to do this, they just do. We have beware of dog signs up and no trespassing, because I don't want someone to get hurt because I have underestimated my dogs (both Pit Bulls). People that are invited to our home are fine, but if you're a strange adult (or kid, now that the neighbor kids decided to mess with our male dog) you better watch out. They won't tear you apart, they won't kill you, but you'll remember not to come back!!! Cats, squirrels, rabbits, my 2 pits will get them in a heartbeat.