My dog killed my kitten? I cant even look at her!?

Question

i have no idea how to react to this...i was fostering a stray kitten and kept her separate from my dogs for about a week until my female broke my bedroom door and killed the kitten...this happened last night and i have not let her out of her crate yet because i have no idea what to do with her.. I'm thinking about muzzling her or something...how do i show her she did something very wrong? i know it is my fault and i already feel incredibly INCREDIBLY guilty so no bs answers please!

Answer 1

You can not blame the dog, and at this point, there is really no way you can punish her anymore. At this point, she is just terrified and sad because she knows you are upset at her, just not why.

What breed is the dog? If she is a terrier mix, a hound, or a husky like breed, then you REALLY cant blame her. These dogs were bred to hunt and/or have very strong prey drive.

Muzzling her is not the answer, and can only lead to depression problems. You admited yourself you know its not her fault. Its not your fault, either. You had the kitten in a seperate room, you didn't know the dog would break the door down. The best thing now is to let her out of her kennel, and move on.

Answer 2

She's a dog, an animal.

She has prey drive.

If she hadn't been trained to get along with cats you can't blame her for her behavior.  Muzzling her isn't going to alter what happened.

I can understand your feelings toward her about what occured but you need to accept the fact she's a dog.

Did you consider the dog may have sensed something wrong with this stray cat?  Or maybe she's one of those dogs that does not get along with other animals.

If your dog had temperament issues and was people aggressive as well then I think you would have cause for concern.

Let her out.

Answer 3

I know it has got to be hard but you have to let her out of the crate. It was not the dogs fault she can not help what comes naturally. She can not even remember what she did now. You now no you can not bring a kitten i the house that's all.

Answer 4

the dog diddnt know what he was doing and yea it is your fault but you shouldnt do anything to your dog now hes not going to know what he has done a day after, your dog should not be punished for your lack of responsibility....  

Answer 5

I know you feel awful but some lessons are very difficult. Get you dog out of the crate, put her leash on and go for a long walk.

Answer 6

What breed is she? Necessary information to answer the question.

And you needent punish her for anything. Some breeds are inherantly prey driven....she was likely acting on instinct. You can't fault her for that.

Answer 7

Since you have already admitted it to being your fault, then why are you punishing the dog? Many breeds naturally have a high prey drive, it has nothing to do with aggression, muzzling her would be nonsensical. Let this incident be a warning - never bring cats into your home again.

I am very sorry about what happened.

Answer 8

That is so sad.  I'm very sorry for the loss of your kitten.

Well, the dog doesn't know what it did was wrong.  As others have said here, the dog was doing what was natural to her.  The type of breed does play a big role in this.  What breed is your dog?  

If you plan to bring a small animal into your home again, I would suggest giving the animal and dogs a proper introduction then crate the smaller or larger animal until a understood relationship has developed.  This will take some time on your part.  Spending time with all the animals together and letting the dog know that the animal is not prey, but a part of the household.  

Answer 9

you should fry up the remains and force feed it to the dog.  Then nail your dog to a tree in a crucifix position while calling it a potato.  While it's still hanging there you should bet it with a base-ball bat until it stops crying.  Do it, do it NOW!!!

Answer 10

1. See Rachel's answer

2.In your own words "this happend last night"  -- It's too late to 'punish' -- she doesn't even know why she is still in her crate.

Answer 11

You can't punish her for doing something that came naturally.

She doesn't know that what she did is wrong. And frankly, it wasn't.

Let her out of the crate and don't bring anymore small animals into the house unless you can control your dogs around it.  

Answer 12

She doesn't even remember what she did, so punishing her won't work. Next time, introduce the dogs properly. Break them of the hunting and killing of smaller animal habit. I had to with my old dog. He killed squirrels, birds, and almost my frog and my cat.  

Answer 13

Sorry to hear about your kitten.

This doesn't mean the dog is vicious though. She was acting on prey drive, not aggression.

.

Answer 14

Breed is not at question here, it isn't the dogs fault like alot of people said, almost all dogs have a prey drive so don't think it was her fault, you should let her out and use her kennel as a safe place for her to go and keep her in it when you leave so mistakes like this don't happen again

Answer 15

The dog unfortunately was being a dog by nature.  In as much as I hate to say it.  Also anyone who deals with animals will tell you that the longer you keep the dog caged up the further away from the incident the dog is mentally, meaning dogs don't have a memory like humans to know about anything other than immediate punishment.  Their brains don't comprehend from something that they did days ago or even yesterday or this morning for that matter.  If you didn't yell at her right away she doesn't understand what she did at all.  All she knows is that you don't like her right now but she doesn't know why.  She is very confused right now as so are you, But she didn't mean to be hurtful to you I'm sure. Pet her and love her and don't prolong the punishment, remember the further away from the incident the more she doesn't understand why she is being punished. PS I am sorry about the cat but please don't neglect your doggy! Good Luck and God Bless.

Answer 16

I would find another home for the dog. Even though the animal probably doesn't remember what it did, the tragedy will still be in your mind and continue to affect the way you treat the dog. I've known of incidents when dogs killed other animals in the same household and the owners started finding that they could no longer look at the dog that did it and eventually, they kept putting it outside where they ignored it. You also need to keep in mind the possibility that the dog could do something like this to one of the other dogs or even to another family member.

Answer 17

Why wasn't the dog crated so she COULDN'T "break" into your room?

Your fault... not hers.  If she has been in that crate since last night, you should be ashamed.  Let the poor thing out.

Answer 18

Wow im so sorry to hear that.

But that doesnt mean its a Meen dog it was just an instinct that  dogs get when cats are around. All dogs of all Breads.

Answer 19

Sorry, but if she already killed the kitten, it's well after the fact so no punishment you adminster now will have any meaning, other than a release of tension for you.  It won't bring the kitten back, and it won't teach your dog that she did something bad.  

All you can do is, know for next time that your dog is not cat-safe... never leave her unattended where she can get access to small animals, and perhaps work with a behaviorist to reduce her prey-drive and reactability to small animals.

But yes what breed is she?  Some dogs naturally have a high prey drive, and that's the way they are.

Answer 20

I'm so sorry you are having to deal with this.  Dogs are predators, and they can kill small animals when we don't expect it.  Has your dog ever been around cats or kittens when young?  If not, she probably sees them in the same light that she sees squirrels or rabbits.  At this point I wouldn't worry about correction; it's too far after the fact and she wouldn't associate it with her action.   You could train her to behave around cats with a muzzle and rewards, but some dogs are never trustworthy around cats.  A mewing kitten might have been just too much of a temptation for a dog with high prey drive.  Do you have a vet in your area who could evaluate this for you?

Answer 21

Honestly, it wasn't your fault and it wasn't the dog's fault. The animal was just acting naturally. I'm sorry, but there's not much you can do unless you feel that you need to get rid of the dog.

If you're not going to get rid of her (which I don't recommend, anyway), you shouldn't be punishing her still. Dogs have short memories -- by now she has no idea why you're keeping her locked up and probably doesn't remember the kitten.

Answer 22

It's in a dog's nature to kill a baby that isn't thier own. I know you are upset now but unless you have had other problems i.e. she is mean towards human children I would forgive her. Is she mean towards anyone else? I feel your pain I am an animal lover too.

Answer 23

u cant do anyhting

its in the dogs nature.. u cant blame the animal

that happened many times with my dogs. they are terriers so it is in their nautre to kill small animals. all u can do is next time keep the kitten safer. or dont have a kitten in ur house

same thing happened with my dogs but u cant blame the animal

Answer 24

Let the poor dog out. It's your fault, not hers'. She was acting on instinct, muzzling is unnecessary, as is keeping that dog prisoner for your foolishness.

Answer 25

Don't you think that your poor dog needs to go to the bathroom? Sorry, but you are being neglectful, and abusing your dog. She didn't kill the kitty because she was mean, she did it because it is her instinct. There is no way to show her that she was wrong, because she wasn't. Please let your dog go out to use the bathroom, or better yet, you try not peeing for 18 hours.

Answer 26

what breed is she?

Either way your dog was reacting off of instinct, most dogs if not all of them have a instinct called prey drive which tells them to pursue and capture prey which your dog saw the kitten as.

Answer 27

Dogs don't need to be kept in a crate. They like to walk around like people do.  Get him a dog bed and a few toys.  You my dear need to learn how to care for your pet.  He was probably jealous that you kept the kitten with you  while he had to go into a stupid awful  crate.  You don't keep dogs in crates.  It would be like your parents of parent keeping you inside a telephone box - get the picture??? Just awful.

Please look on the internet for dog caring and dog training site.  You will learn and your pet and you will benefit really.

Answer 28

leave her for a while and see what happens she maybe didn't realise what she has done don't physically punish her as it isn't fair on her just ignore her for a while and maybe  she will get the message i am so sorry about your kitten  

Answer 29

OMG THATS SO SAD Im So Sorry

Well I Would Bring The Dog To A Shelter It Could Be Vicous Now It Has The Taste OF Blood And Might Crave It And Attack Humans For It Or Any Other Pets You May Have

Answer 30

either way, you need to take the dog out of the crate, how would like being in there that long take the dog outside let it get some fresh air,water and food.

Answer 31

I'm so sorry about this and I know how upset you must be. No it's not ok that your dog killed the kitten but you also have to remember that animals are just animals and they don't always know better. I don't really know how to tell you to let her know what she did was wrong since the incident has already passed and dogs do not associate late punishment with the actual behavior they did wrong. I'm sure you will be upset with your dog for awhile but try and remember that your dog probably did not maliciously kill the kitten (unless you can tell them from how the kitten was when you found it). Often time dogs can easily hurt kittens since they are so tiny and fragile and dogs are so big and strong. You dog could have just been trying to play. If you ever do get a cat again let this be a lesson for you to keep your dog kenneled when you're not around since he obviously can get in your rooms. Once a kitten gets older they can usually fend for themselves prety well or at least just up on counters to get away.