Did my dogs kill my kitten?

[dzafiris]

I have 2 dogs and a cat. Recently I rescued an 8 week kitten. I would keep the kitten in my room while at work and I would let the kitten roam the rest of the house under my supervision when I came home. The 2 dogs and the cat all seemed to get along the kitten during the 4 weeks that I had her. One night I was in the other room, when I heard a rumbling noise. I rushed into the dining room to find my kitten flailing around with a broken neck and bleeding profusely from its ear. The kittten died instantly. I didn't see what happend nor did I hear any growling or hissing ( I was 20 feet away in the other room ) My other cat was upstairs so I ruled out the possiblity of the cat attacking the kitten. My dogs were downstairs with the kitten but when I examined the kitten she did not have any puncture wounds or bite marks. Could she have fallen and injured herself or did one of the dogs kill her? Its killing me not knowing what happened, please help.

[woofgang]

How awful for you. I am so sorry.

I doubt that your other pets had anything to do with it. Anything that has been in a dog's mouth comes out wet for one thing. Also (and excuse me if this is distressing,) if one of your dogs had done it you would have been more likely to find the dog with it still in his mouth and very dead.

 A friend of mine lost a cavalier puppy in similar sad circumstances. The puppy was doing silly puppy play and fell downstairs (only 3, not a full flight) broke its neck and died. My friend was right there and couldn't stop it happening.

Tinies really do need very close supervision and even then accidents can and do happen.

[FP]

It's a horrible thing to have happened but please don't blame yourself.  I doubt if it was one of the dogs, but you will never know.  Are they big dogs?  A playful swipe could perhaps have broken the kitten's neck, but there are so many things that may have happened.

As Woofgang has rightly said, tinies require constant supervision.  I have always kept kittens in my utility room whilst I can't supervise them, until they reach a reasonable size and am 100% sure of their safety with other animals.

I feel so sorry for you.  Best wishes.

[smudge]

I'm so sorry to hear about your little kitten dzafiris. It must have been an awful shock for you. I do hope you're not still blaming yourself, as you can't be in two places at once.

I was wondering - is there a possibility that your kitten could have clawed it's way up a table cloth, onto the dining table & fell off? I know this is a long shot, but kittens get up to all sorts of playful things when your back's turned. Much the same as toddlers!

Easy to say, but keep your chin up & try not to burden yourself with your thoughts too much.  

[burnhal]

I dont think you will ever know- I agree with the answers above but there is still a possibility that one of the dogs did it. I dont want to appear brutal but have you ever seen a dog kill a rat. It is immensly quick. I had a lurcher once- it went into the garden one time and suprised a rat which had wandered into the garden. It was over in a flash- the dog picked the rat up by the neck and threw it over his shoulder. The dog let go- it was not still in his mouth- there were no bite marks or wet fur- just a broken neck- it was that quick.

[FP]

I have to say I agree with Burnhal.  My dogsdogs have done this with rabbits and rats as well.  If the kitten accidentally surprised or jumped on the dog it could easily happen.  If this is the case, then it doesn't make your dogs cat killers, so please don't worry or feel angry with the dogs.    However, in future it would be better to keep young kittens and dogs apart until the kitten is older and more wary.

[mycatis]

God I'm so sorry this must be awfull

[cat woman]

HI dzafiris, I'm so very sorry to learn of your sad loss, please accept my deepest sympathy.  :-(

[delilahcat]

Just adding my sympathies to the rest, dzfiris. Don't blame yourself, unfortunately accidents do happen.

I am so sad and sorry for you. Best wishes.

[LordyGeordie]

I agree with FP and Burnahl. What type of dogs are they. Dogs like lurchers, jack russells, terriers etc. were originally bred for rabbitting/ ratting and so while not cat killers, the introduction of something small and furry may have just triggered innate reactions.

The lack of bite marks/ wetness etc doesn't mean anything. In fact gun dogs (spaniels, pointers etc) are trained not to damage the prey, just to dispose of it quickly.

Again not your fault just nature really

[eupraxia]

I'm so sorry to hear u lost ur little kitten. if there were no marks then the likely hood would seem that it fell and landed badly. Its a nasty thing to happen but you gave the kitten a loveing home for 4 short weeks. Be proud of that and remember accidents happen. The kitten may have been playing with the dogs and they may have made it jump up on to a place that was a little to high for it.

Its so sad. U have my deepest sympathies.

[lilpixie]

Really very sorry to hear bout your kitten. Im a cat lover and would be devastated if that happened to my cat.
Just a little fact 4 ya hope it helps. Cats always land on their feet when dropped from a height of 2ft or higher, im not sure if this applies to 8 week old kittens or not though.

[LordyGeordie]

i really don't think it would have hurt itself by falling and if it had you would know as its legs were likely to be broken or something. as if it fell from somewhere that was so high for it to seriously hurt itself it would have had time to turn round in the air and land on its feet and therefore they would be the first point of impact.

it does take an awful long way for a kitten to drop before it hurts itself. we once had one that chased a ball between the banister rails at the top of our stairs and fell a straight drop of about 12 feet and carried on playing with the ball. funnily it never did it again though.

i know its awful but as i said before in this case i really do think it was the dogs who are responsible.

[Trillipse]

stood upon?

[Kev_UK]

I've heard of Bull Mastiffs killing a cat while the owner was out.
Apparently the cat used to lie down next to the dogs in harmony.. one day the cat was found crawling on the floor with it's back broken.
I have 2 samoyeds and they get on great with my 2 cats, though ther was a few teething problems at first. I've noticed the dogs will chase the cats if they are together but when the dogs are apart they dont bother as much. They chase them but slow down to the cats pace, perhaps nudging the cat with their noses, then let them go. As my cats are housecats the dogs will chase them back in the house if they wander outside.
Obne day the dog triewd to shake a paw with the cat.. Ouch.. the cat fought back with a few slaps to the dogs nose.. omg, the look on the dogs face LOL.

Was the kitten in good health, as it has been known for animals to kill a sick animal to put it out of it's misery.

[Kev_UK]

Another thing springs to mind.. was the kitten given lots of affection and the dogs left out? they could kill it out of jealousy