Guest zombrie Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 (edited) I'm so sorry this happened RIP Tia... I can see how a kitten could have attracted the dogs. I'm glad you are not blaming them. Just remember, muzzling isn't mean like a lot of people think, they are used to (Truman can get used to muzzles) it is a safety tool for everyone. Everyone else has already said what I think, I just wanted to let you know that I am sorry for your loss Edited August 31, 2012 by zombrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest greybookends Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 Please don't assume that it was Payne, you can't be sure - it could have been one of the other dogs. This. I am sorry this happened and yes it may have been Payne but you did not witness it so you do not know. It wouldn't be the first time a grey or any dog, has lived harmoniously with another animal and something like this happens. Please do not give him this label unless you know for a FACT he did it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LBass Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 I'm so sorry. What a heartbreaking situation for you. I do muzzle my pair when I'm not home and I also confine Miles, the cat, to one area of the house when I'm away--Miles can't get out and dogs can't get into the cat area. He's got food, water, litter box, and plenty of windows for sunning and a bed and chairs for snoozing. I feel safer separating dogs from cats when I can't supervise. I stack 2 baby gates to confine the cat. He could climb out but won't. My beloved Yoda would have climbed right over that set up but a third gate would have solved that problem. Perhaps a plan like that would help give you piece of mind in the future? Quote Lucy with Greyhound Nate and OSH Tinker. With loving memories of MoMo (FTH Chyna Moon), Spirit, Miles the slinky kitty (OSH), Piper "The Perfect" (Oneco Chaplin), Winston, Yoda, Hector, and Claire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trihounds Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 Sorry to hear of your loss and it's a good reminder for those of us with similar situations. We just 'adopted' a 3 month old feral kitten (well, we caught her and took her to the HS to have a chance at being a pet, they said they'd euthanize within 3 days so we brought her back home and it appears we're giving her a chance at being a pet, ). She's doing great....been here 3 weeks and is a typical kitten who thinks she can take on 4 greyhounds!! Our 2 resident cats haven't warmed up to their new housemate yet so Cricket (kitten) is separated from everyone when we aren't home. So far, the dogs don't pay Cricket much attention at all and have accepted her into their pack. They will allow her to eat with them and will even wait their turn at treat time for her to get treated before them. Sounds rosy and it is, but your post and some of the responses are a good reminder that matters can quickly turn from rosy to cloudy very quickly and we need to be extra careful with our situation. Thanks for sharing your story and again, I'm sorry for your loss. Quote Doe's Bruciebaby Doe's Bumper Derek Follow my Ironman journeys and life with dogs, cats and busy kids: A long road Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greyt_dog_lover Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 One thing to realize, a muzzle will "help" a cat survive against an attack, but it will not guarantee safety. Greyhounds can still kill prey with a muzzle on. Not trying to be a downer here, but realistic. To be safe, the only true safe way is separation when unsupervised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 2dogs4cats Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 I am so sorry! I am sure it's devestating. As others have said, I think sometimes they see a kitten very differently from an adult cat and also adult cats probably know how to read a dog and are better at escaping if they need to. I don't think I would automatically think they aren't cat safe, maybe just not kitten safe. Again, so sorry! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fostr_Mom Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 One thing to realize, a muzzle will "help" a cat survive against an attack, but it will not guarantee safety. Greyhounds can still kill prey with a muzzle on. Not trying to be a downer here, but realistic. To be safe, the only true safe way is separation when unsupervised. I am so glad you posted this. I was thinking it! My muzzled greys caught a rabbit in the yard one night and because the muzzles are taped (so they can't eat the rabbit poo) they were trying to pound it to death. Quote <p>Mom to Kyle (Diehard Kyle) & Angel Gracie (KB's Sankey) Foster Mom for AFG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted August 31, 2012 Author Share Posted August 31, 2012 Please don't assume that it was Payne, you can't be sure - it could have been one of the other dogs. I'm guessing it was Payne because the cat was laying on his bed and after the fact, he was acting more hyper-aroused by the other cats (barking, radar ears, things he hasn't done in awhile). If I had to guess, Payne started it and the other two joined in. Of course, if it was him, I'm not labeling him a "cat killer." He just got carried away and did what his instincts told him to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KennelMom Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 I'm so sorry. Muzzles are no guarantee of safety (as our recent tragedy proves). And, muzzles can be pulled off...esp in a lot of commotion. It sounds like it probably was Payne, but there never any guarantees without other evidence (blood, injuries, etc) or a witness. We've never had cats living with our dogs, so no advice there other than maybe close the cats in a room when you aren't there. Or crate the dogs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jenniferk Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 I'm so, so sorry this happened. My heart breaks for the poor little kitten and for you, who were just trying to give the kitten a home. Like others have said, please don't feel guilty! I would have assumed he was totally cat-safe too if he'd been completely uninterested in your cats before. When we adopted Django, our rescue group told me I could never have a kitten again because of the reasons others here noted. I was really sad but your story makes me realize that's the way it has to be; I wouldn't try it now because it would be impossible to isolate a kitten like I can the cats in my house, who are extremely scared of the dog and pretty much keep themselves isolated. I've been wondering whether I will always need to keep the cats and Django separate (even while I'm home and supervising, they are separate) because even after 3.5 months we haven't made much progress with them meeting him and him getting used to them. But now I realize I'd rather keep them separate than risk something happening to my cats, which would destroy me. So maybe that's the silver lining in this: that people like me can learn from this. RIP, little kitty, and I'm sending lots of positive thoughts your way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PhillyPups Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 (edited) Unless you were there and witnessed the event, you cannot blame Payne, only guess at what might have happened. It would be easy to set up a "cat room" that you can confine the cats in when you aren't home, and muzzle the greyhounds when you leave.hey If in fact one of the hounds picked up the kitten to play, they cannot be blamed for doing what they do with their oher toys. Sometimes crap just happens, and that is life. This has nothing to do with what has been labeled before as "their previous life". All of mine are "cat zappers" as I have allergies, nothing to do with their "previous life" but a LOT to do with the breed I choose to live with. Edited August 31, 2012 by PhillyPups Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieProf Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 I may have missed something about this earlier, but is there a reason you can't crate the dogs? That, unlike muzzles, is foolproof, although not easy with three, I grant. RIP little kitty. After four years I still crate Beth when I leave, and today I feel good about that decision, though it's only partly about my cats; even though Beth has never done anything, it is a relief to never worry about their safety. Quote With Cocoa (DC Chocolatedrop), missing B for Beth (2006-2015)And kitties C.J., Klara, Bernadette, John-Boy, & Sinbad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted August 31, 2012 Author Share Posted August 31, 2012 (edited) I may have missed something about this earlier, but is there a reason you can't crate the dogs? None of my dogs have ever been crated... one of them has terrible separation anxiety and would gnaw his way through the bars if I tried to crate him. We have two established "cat rooms" and that has always worked out pretty well. Sometimes crap just happens, and that is life. Yep... I can't say with certainty what happened, but I believe and hope it was an accident. More diligence needed on my part. RIP, little kitty, and I'm sending lots of positive thoughts your way. I lost a very dear cat last year to lymphoma. I'm hoping she's taking care of little Tia at the bridge. Edited August 31, 2012 by a_daerr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greytpups Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 (edited) just throwing this out there...is it possible the kitten died from something and this has nothing to do with the dogs? Is it possible it was not Payne I wonder when you return Payne and he's labelled not cat safe, which may or may not be true,if he'll miss out on a good home because they have cats.I'm really sorry this happened.I would also be devastated under the circumstances eta: just read a few more posts and noticed you aren't labelling him as a cat killer. Edited August 31, 2012 by greytpups Quote Jan with precious pups Emmy (Stormin J Flag) and Simon (Nitro Si) and Abbey Field. Missing my angels: Bailey Buffetbobleclair 11/11/98-17/12/09; Ben Task Rapid Wave 5/5/02-2/11/15; Brooke Glo's Destroyer 7/09/06-21/06/16 and Katie Crazykatiebug 12/11/06 -21/08/21. My blog about grief The reality is that you will grieve forever. You will not get over the loss of a loved one; you will learn to live with it. You will rebuild yourself around the loss you have suffered. You will be whole again but you will never be the same. Nor should you be the same, nor would you want to. ― Elisabeth Kübler-Ross Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Wasserbuffel Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 One thing to remember is that dogs in a pack will behave very differently than a single dog, or just two together. I trust Jayne loose with my cats, but if she were part of a pack that went for once of her brothers I wouldn't be at all surprised if she went for them too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DMBFiredancer Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 I am so very sorry for your loss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatterseaBrindl Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 One thing to remember is that dogs in a pack will behave very differently than a single dog, or just two together. . We've lived with three large dogs for several years....a 'mix' of GSD/two Dobes/Pointer and now just the Greyhounds. Three dogs is a pack and they can react to things much differently than just two dogs living together. They can 'feed' off each other and things can escalate very, very quickly. Quote Nancy...Mom to Sid (Peteles Tiger), Kibo (112 Carlota Galgos) and Joshi. Missing Casey, Gomer, Mona, Penelope, BillieJean, Bandit, Nixon (Starz Sammie), Ruby (Watch Me Dash) Nigel (Nigel), and especially little Mario, waiting at the Bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laur Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 We don't allow our kitten bother our 12 yr old greyhound's bed. It is the grey's zone The older cat has never gone on it. Our 13 yr old golden loves kitty.. the ol fella would lactate if he could. He has no problem sharing his bowl. The grey is very tolerant, but it isn't fair to him if kitty is left to run past his nose or jump on his bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Alysmom Posted September 1, 2012 Share Posted September 1, 2012 I am so sorry for your loss!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreytNut Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Man, what an awful thing to come home to. I'm sorry. FWIW, even muzzled dogs can kill a cat. It only takes one good whack with a paw to break a cat's spine. The only truly safe solution is to keep dogs and cats absolutely separated when you are not immediately around to supervise. And cats and greyhounds can live safely together for years and then suddenly have an unfortunate incident. Even my "bomb-proof" hounds have always been separated from the cats when I leave the house. Now that Riley's here and more cat workable than really cat safe, I put the cats in their room even just to go to the bathroom. Unfortunately kittens are a different story from adult cats. They're tiny, they squeak and make quick darting movements, they have no sense of self-preservation and tend to do dumb stuff like jumping on a hound's head while it is sleeping. Until they're fully grown, they are much more attractive to any hound with an ounce of prey drive. I have an energetic Oriental Shorthair who, at 11 years old, still behaves more like a kitten and I have to really watch Riley around her. It's constant vigilance with Evita. Squeak is much more cautious and seems to have Riley's number. She gives him a wide berth and doesn't make sudden moves around him. A lot depends on the individual cat and the individual hound, but I never completely relax my guard. I am so sorry this happened to you and Tia. You've lived one of my worst nightmares. Quote Kristen with Penguin (L the Penguin) Flying Penske x L Alysana Costarring The Fabulous Felines: Squeak, Merlin, Bailey & Mystic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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