World Animal Road Accident Awareness Day

[wolf63]

Today is World animal road accident awareness day.

Dogs that have been knocked down have some protection in law:

"Drivers who injure dogs with their car, motorbike or other vehicle. If there is no person with the dog at the time, the driver should report the incident to the police within 24 hours."

Cats are not covered by law (yet) and many are injured or killed by drivers who drive off and leave them. Anything that helps is a good thing.

https://www.catsmatter.org/home

I am posting this in Chatterbank to enable us to have a nice, friendly, chatty thread about cats and their suicidal tendencies on our roads.

[jno]

even on private roads

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/oct/11/larry-the-cat-fox-no-10-downing-street-chief-mouser-pm

[wolf63]

Poor Fox, it didn't look very healthy. Larry for PM!

[pastafreak]

I've lost 2 cats to the roads. The first was the huge big black cat that we brought with us from NY. The second was the one that followed him(we had his sister for 15 years). I'd not wish it on anyone.

[samiur]

World Animal Road Accident Awareness Day – October 10, 2022. World Animal Road Accident Awareness Day is on October 10.

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[barry1010]

If your dog causes a road accident then you could be liable.
If your cat does the same, you are not.
I don't see how the law can be equalised in one area but not the other.
I suspect that drivers were originally required to inform police of accidents involving dogs was to allow the police to charge the owner with some sort of offence. Dogs are supposed to be kept under control in public places.

[davebro]

well if owners took better care of their pets...

I once hit a dog that wandered in front of my car. I stopped & together with a nearby shop owner we took it indoors. They said "It belongs to the old woman across the road - we've told her about letting it roam. Shame really, her husband died just last week."

I felt so upset - she never paid for the damage to my car!

[wolf63]

Barry

I think that many people see cats are vermin and they don't see them as members of a family. Hitting and injuring or killing a cat is not reported to any agency and the humans in the cat's family are left not knowing what happened.

Cat slaves usually accept the possibility of their cat being killed on the roads but still allow them to go out. What they want is for the driver to report the incident so that the cat can be returned to his family or given medical treatment.

I don't know how any law can be made - that is beyond my pay grade.

[davebro]

A friend was off out for the day on a fishing trip and found their cat dead in the road. He knew his wife would be upset & he wouldn't be allowed to enjoy his day out, so he hid the body under a hedge & "found" it on his way home that evening.

[barry1010]

wolf, I think people who think of cats in that way are the ones complaining about neighbours' cats using their gardens as toilets.

I don't know if it still the case but dog owners were legally required to put an address on the dogs' collars but of course that never applied to cats. At least it made it easier to track down the dog's owner.

[davebro]

//wolf, I think people who think of cats in that way are the ones complaining about neighbours' cats using their gardens as toilets.//

Talk about the ultimate non-sequitur. Yes your pet IS lovely but I don't want it crapping in my garden thx.

[barry1010]

Errr, I don't have a cat, dave

[davebro]

never said you did

[youngmafbog]

I dont see how you can make drivers be 'responsible' for free roaming cats, same for guardians (you dont own a cat).

And what can you do with a cat apart from put it out of its misery with a tyre iron if it isnt dead already? Same goes for any other small animal.

Mind you even big ones dont fare well, my SIL hit a stag last year, saw it on the car dash cam, it seemed to bounce off the back of a van coming in the opposite direction and straight into her. Totalled the motor.

[youngmafbog]

I'll second that Dave.

[wolf63]

Cats are annoying and devious. I am cat-less and have been for almost two years. My cats were all indoor-only cats mainly due to my living in the city centre. If I had a garden then I would attempt to contain them within this area or in a catio.

Dogs and cats are totally different animals. If the average cat was the size of a medium-sized do they could be very dangerous animals.
I read a quote once - 'your dog will only bite its owner in extreme circumstances, a cat will bite you because it feels like biting you.'

I know that most people like or put up with dogs, very few are truly afraid of them or are against their existence in their life.

Cats are like marmite. They are much more complicated and don't really care what humans think of them.

But - if it was your cat that was hit by a car wouldn't you prefer to know that it is dead or if it was left to die in agony because nobody reported it so that medical advice could be sought?

[wolf63]

youngmafbog

I don't think that it should be about responsibility or blame, just common decency. If you know that you have hit an animal then stop and check if it is safe to do so. If they managed to set up a recognised number to phone to give details of the accident then people should be encouraged to use it.

[youngmafbog]

I dont disagree, as I said above just put it out of its misery.

[Canary42]

Dog owners can be liable for damages if the dog causes a motoring accident.

This should be extended to cats if the reporting law is changed.

Ditto re microchipping law (compulsory for dogs in public.)

[wolf63]

Canary
The law sees cats as wild animals. I can't think of a solution to that issue.

I am not sure if it could be criminal offence to knowingly hit a cat and just leave it to die. More on the lines of having a recognised contact where accidents can be reported.

Its not an attempt to blame motorists, just to make them aware of the situations.

[Canary42]

If I come across a stray dog (in my garden for example) I can report it to the local Dog Warden who will take it away. I would love this to be extended to cats.