Laws of Nature

The following comment was left by “Sweetie Pie” and is definitely food for thought.  Here is part of the comment:

“I just got an email from a close friend. Her cat was lazing around in its own back yard (which this friend owns). The neighbors have a couple of terriers (not mutants, oops, I mean pits), one of which is always raging at the cat. My friend has been extremely accommodating. She actually helped construct a fence that all hoped would keep this other woman's dogs on their own property.

Nope. The terrier SOMEHOW got around the fence and attacked the cat. The cat defended himself. Apparently adequately, because at this moment the terrier (not the cat) is at the vet's getting wounds treated.

Comes the Entitlement frigging shite: The terrier's owner thinks the cat owner -- whose cat was attacked on it's own property by a trespassing dog -- should pay at least half (preferably all) the vet bills.”

I have many thoughts on this issue.

First, on the cat owner:  The cat owner likewise needs to restrict their behavior.  In my opinion, they behaved inappropriately in the following ways:

1)       In a typical suburban or urban setting, cats should be indoor only or walked on a leash.  The world is very dangerous to a house-cat and your cat may be a danger or a hazard to others.  You can’t count on your cat to stay on your land.  These issues include but are not limited to:

a.       People who hate cats.

b.      Cars.

c.       Vicious at large dogs.

d.      Wild animals.

e.      Various environmental hazards, diseases, etc…

f.        Your cat may be a danger to wildlife.

g.       Your cat may deposit urine and feces on other’s property (see (a).

2)      In my honest opinion, your friend should NOT have accommodated the malicious dog owner.  All that does is feed and reinforce their sense of entitlement.  Now, they truly believe that everyone else exists to suit them.  Building that fence was a mistake.   Your friend needs to stop accommodating the dog owner’s bad behavior.  It’s like paying rapists not to rape people.  FAIL.  we put them in jail.  Period!

Second, on the dog owner:  This is where I am in 200% agreement.  The dog owner can suck eggs on this one.  Dog owners who turn their pets loose on others properties are criminals, at large dogs are dangerous and destructive varmints, and both dog owner and dog deserve everything that happens to them in these instances.  Rather than demand payment for vet bills, Fido's owner should be thankful that the cat owner in question did not simply shoot the dog dead.   I am glad the cat tore up the dog and I hope the vet care is REALLY expensive.  GOOD KITTY.

I have another interesting anecdote with the same drift.  About 18 months ago, I had a neighbor ring my doorbell.  It wasn’t someone I knew, lived maybe a block away.  It was a woman in my age group, clearly distraught.  She asks me “did you run over my dog?”.  Apparently, she had let her pug puppy run in the road and it got squashed by a motor vehicle.  Note that my county has a LEASH LAW (unenforced).  I didn’t think I had done so, but figure that a 5000 lb truck vs. a 5 lb dog would hardly be a bump, particularly if it ran under the rear wheels.  I told her that I did not believe so, did the vehicle look like one of mine?  She couldn’t remember(!).  In any case, she was going door to door trying to find the “culprit”.

I didn’t lecture her, but the leash law states that the OWNER is liable for ANYTHING that involves their dog if they let it off leash.  And, I mean ANYTHING:  The other party cannot be sued or charged AND the dog owner is strictly liable for any damages.   Therefore, if you let your dog run in the road and it causes an accident, YOU are 100% liable for the result.  She had no one to blame but herself.   If the incident in question had resulted in damage to the automobile SHE would have been liable for that!  I tell you, the entitlement mentality of these people is truly astonishing. 

What goes around comes around, and irresponsible behavior has real world consequences regardless of your social status.   Do they really think that a truck is going to stop on a dime when they turn their dog loose in the road?  Do they really think that if their dog attacks a human or other animal that it’s going to passively allow that attack to play out?  Let me tell you something, basic physics, cats, etc… REALLY do not give a damn about the entitlement status of dog owners!

This is why I LOVE it when these people get their proverbial asses handed to them.  They might have a lock on the legal system (for now) but they CANNOT repeal the laws of physics or nature!

CONTROL YOUR DOG.