Dog vs. cat vs. cops

[JDgreen227]

Today's local news has a story that relates to an incident where a woman was on her front porch, with her cat on a leash and in the bushes out front. A neighbor's pit bull came running with the neighbor close behind, and the dog chased the cat onto the porch and grabbed it in his jaws. The cat owner and the dog owner tried to separate the animals. but failed.

The homeowner ran into the house and came out with her legally owned pistol and killed the pit bull with one shot, then asked her neighbor (the dog owner) to call the police. When the police arrived, they confisticated the pistol, handcuffed the cat owner, and told her she was charged with "discharging a weapon in a public place, or in a manner that endangers life or property"....

The dog owner claimed her boyfriend had been walking the dog when either the leash or the collar broke, and according to the police, that was an ACCIDENT, and not NEGLIGENCE.

The dog owner also claimed the cat was already dead when the owner came out and shot the pit bull, so it wasn't anything but retaliation.


I say BULL ROAR, the dog caused the death of someone's pet, accident or not. I say the cat owner had every right to shoot the dog, and the police are 100% wrong to charge her with anything. Had the cat owner brained the dog with a baseball bat or pipe, that would have been her right too. She fired ONE SHOT and hit her target. I think she deserves a medal, not prosecution.

For what it is worth, several times recently the POLICE in the same area (Lansing, Michigan) have shot and killed stray dogs that were chasing or menacing pets or children in the same city. Any comments?

 

[RoyJackson]

Sounds like Lansing is a city like Philadelphia, PA...where they hate the idea of civilian ownership and use of firearms and will do anything to harass a citizen exercising their rights...and they use the police to send their message.
Although I'll wager the DA will drop any charges, this lady should sue the pit bull owner and the cops.

Don't get me wrong, I love dogs...our beloved Jule was a pit bull-rottie...and a truly sweet pooch. Pit bulls are sweet dogs (but territorial) as long as they're treated right.

 

[JDgreen227]

Sounds like Lansing is a city like Philadelphia, PA...where they hate the idea of civilian ownership and use of firearms and will do anything to harass a citizen exercising their rights...and they use the police to send their message.
Although I'll wager the DA will drop any charges, this lady should sue the pit bull owner and the cops.

Don't get me wrong, I love dogs...our beloved Jule was a pit bull-rottie...and a truly sweet pooch. Pit bulls are sweet dogs (but territorial) as long as they're treated right.

We have four cats, when they are out I am always watching for them not only to protect them from danger, but to keep them ON OUR PROPERTY. If something happens and they get off our property, I AM RESPONSIBLE not only for what they do, but for what happens to them. One of our neighbors is a K9 cop with two dogs, maybe four years ago one of his dogs got loose and chased one of our cats up a tree. I got the cat down, and went to talk with the cop, told him this was an accident but if it happens again we are going to have a real problem, and I am sure he understood what I meant. Next time I would not have the slightest hestitation using force and the first time his dog chased our cat the only reason I didn't use force then was because I KNEW the dog and his owner.

Concur with you pit bulls are normally good dogs, it usually the OWNERS that are responsible for any problems they cause.

 

[clemsonfor]

i can see the owner of the dog sueing the lady if they were not in agreeance that the dog was a problem. i can also see if they were in a city limit with gun discharge laws, cat was dead no good was done unless she can prove she was threatned by trying to get her cats body etc. If she were in a county area without restrictions i see no problem, her property, damage was done by an animal with no protection under the law (ie, game species) to her property (cat) and she felt unsafe with this tresspass situation. You can shoot any unprotected species you want on your property dogs/cats fall under this is they enter uynwanted. In the city, i think they have a fair argument, but i think she can get out of it if she says she felt unsafe with this animal's unwanted presence among her.

 

[merrickvilleguy]

funny, around here i don't wait for the dog to be a problem before I put it down. Too many strays and hardly any are friendly enough to approach.

 

[Western]

i can see the owner of the dog sueing the lady if they were not in agreeance that the dog was a problem. i can also see if they were in a city limit with gun discharge laws, cat was dead no good was done unless she can prove she was threatned by trying to get her cats body etc. If she were in a county area without restrictions i see no problem, her property, damage was done by an animal with no protection under the law (ie, game species) to her property (cat) and she felt unsafe with this tresspass situation. You can shoot any unprotected species you want on your property dogs/cats fall under this is they enter uynwanted. In the city, i think they have a fair argument, but i think she can get out of it if she says she felt unsafe with this animal's unwanted presence among her.

I agree with most of this. The lady should have went inside and just called the Police. After going inside there was no threat to her. Like it or not, city ordinance is a law. I think had it been an ongoing attack on her or another person she may have "defense to prosecution".

Though I am against dogs on my place and thankfully I can deal with it since I live in a rural area, I do see why the whole thing is upsetting, but I doubt it is a "conspiracy" in Lansing against gun owners, almost every city has a similar ordinance.

 

[dave1949]

I see multiple problems.

#1) Failure to control the dog. It's possible the dog had been 'itching' to get at that cat for a while, an astute dog owner would know this by the behavior clues and probably had previous chances to make corrections in similar circumstances other than holding on to the leash tighter. I bet that is not the first time that dog pulled the owner toward something. Dogs do not pull their owners for any reason and get away with it. It's simple, if the owner can't train the dog, it doesn't belong in a public setting.

#2) Pit bulls and their cousins are not for everyone. The statistics tell the story no matter how many owners say theirs are 'sweet'. If a person owns a pit bull-type breed, or any dog that tends toward aggressiveness or high prey drive, they are responsible for being good enough dog handlers to deal with their dog's temperament.

#3) The cat is property. The remedy for property damage is not to go get a gun in a city setting where it is clear who owns the dog and who is responsible for the damage. I am sure emotion played a role in the cat owner's actions and judgement. Emotions and guns do not mix well, this is why the police will do all they can to limit that lethal combination.

In the past twenty years, I have only seen one 'stray' dog. I took it inside and called the animal control officer, she had seen the dog loose before and called the owner to come and get it. Case closed. Oddly enough, it was a pit bull mix, was a mental mess, not house trained or trained in anyway. It dedicated itself to peeing on everything it could get it's leg over in my garage. Not aggressive but very stubborn. There is some sort of cosmic attraction between clueless dog owners and pit bulls which I am sure accounts for some of the pit bull statistics.

I would hate to think if my dog was running loose, he would be shot on sight as a stray just in case he might cause a problem. My dog would run the countryside if I let him, he hasn't managed an escape in the past 5 years though I understand the problem if a farmer has livestock and such, the risk is high, but killing the dog as the first and only solution will be a mistake most of the time in my experience.
Dave.

 

[CurlyDave]

The cat is definitely property, but if the cat is not dead she has the right to shoot the dog in order to protect her property.

If she felt threatened by the dog she has the right to shoot it for that reason.

 

[killdozerd11]

I had to shoot both my stupid neighbors pit bulls because they were chasing the chickens .

He had been warned before when they had come in my yard at tore up the trash and chased the chickens

He called the sheriff who kept wanting me to go get my gun and bring it out and i told him NO

He didn't like that and told me he would charge me with cruelty to animals

he also told me to bring the gun out to him

I told him GET A WARRANT

Never heard anymore about it from the cops

The stupid neighbor threatened me a few times but was a ***** big mouth no action

Got busted later for drug trafficking and manufacture

 

[YesDeere]

Sounds like she shoulda shot the owner while she was at it. The "well it was dead anyway" remark is a sign of a sure a**hole. Like it didn't mean much anyway why are you worried about it.

I have dogs and a cat. Not a hater of either. But if you or your pets come on my property unwanted it is my decision what to do with you/it.