A warning

[Pawsitive Thinking]

Cute and cuddly though your dogs may seem to you please remember that they are not "furkids", "furbabies" or children in furry suits. They are pack animals with an awesome prey drive which I had to witness yesterday. Brought home to me that I share my home with animals not cuddly toys and that they should be treated as such.

[zoey]

oo i hope it wasn't too upsetting for you, (though it probably was).
I'll never forgot the night Roxy brought in a dead armadillo as a "gift" for us.
:(

Take care, xx.

[happylabs]

I am confused. What exactly happened or is it too horrible to elaborate?

[lvpets2002]

:confused: I am confused here too.. What happened so horrible??
I am confused. What exactly happened or is it too horrible to elaborate?

[BC_MoM]

Wow, that's kind of harsh. Yes, my three are animals. But they are also dogs, Border Collies, my friends, and the loves of my life.

Whatever happened I hope does not make you feel so harshly towards your own companions forever.

[Glacier]

As the owner of a extremely prey driven breed, who have show me that drive almost daily and once when it lead to the death of another one of my pets....they are still my furkids, my babies, my family. Treating them like a pack of wild wolves is not going to make the prey drive issue any easier to handle.

I'm sorry for whatever happened to make you feel this way. I remember all too well the horror, pain and anger I felt when my dogs killed Dominique. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

[Karen]

Not every dog has a high prey drive, frankly. Our Great Dane showed no interest in catching anything (from squirrels, to birds, to tennis balls), and the one time our Saint Bernard actually caught a squirrel (it was foundering in deep powdery snow, and Saints have big webbed feet that are good snowshoes ... she didn't know what to do with it, so threw it up in the air and watched it fall back down and run away!

[Genny]

Yea, not all dogs have a high prey drive. We have 4 small dogs inside the house and neither of them ever try to mess w/ our birds when they are out on the cage. If one flys down the dogs don't even move. They are like babies to me.

What happened to you?? Did your dog kill something??

[Alysser]

My opinion might be unpopular here, and no I don't know what happened to make brody'smum feel this way but prey drive is a HORRIFIC thing to experience. Take it from someone who saw a cat kill a bird and not being able to do anything to stop it...this was years ago and I still remember the feeling vividly. While I have watched footage of wild animals killing prey it's different seeing your everyday house cat(or dog in this case) kill something. They're your babies, and you just don't expect that out of them. I've read some cases on here in which a beloved family dog killed a cat, the owners did understand this however the shock isn't so easy to get over.

However, I see where you guys are coming from to, I still call them my babies and the like, but it's not harsh to say something like that after witnessing such a thing it is a horrible thing to see sometimes.

Brody'smum, I'm sorry you witnessed something terrible, I really am but please don't hold a grudge to your pets. It really is only instinct.

[Karen]

I learned about prey drive when I was 4 years old, my neighbor friend had just gotten a baby rabbit. I was visiting ( just across the field, and she took it out to show me, set it on the ground, and my beloved Sheba killed it instantly, then set it back down. It didn't even look damaged, there was no gore, but our parents had to explain prey drive to us.'

It didn't mean Sheba was a bad dog, they explained, but that she had this instinct, and we should be careful to never let small animals around her.

[Twisterdog]

Dogs are both ... prey driven killers, and our cuddly babies. Humans are the same way ... our sweet cuddly little kiddos beat the crap out of each other on the playground sometimes, too.

Predators are violent, it's how they survive. We are predators, too.

I'm sorry if your dogs showed you their wild side. It is indeed ugly, frightening and disturbing. But it's also natural.

[BC_MoM]

My opinion might be unpopular here, and no I don't know what happened to make brody'smum feel this way but prey drive is a HORRIFIC thing to experience. Take it from someone who saw a cat kill a bird and not being able to do anything to stop it...this was years ago and I still remember the feeling vividly. While I have watched footage of wild animals killing prey it's different seeing your everyday house cat(or dog in this case) kill something. They're your babies, and you just don't expect that out of them. I've read some cases on here in which a beloved family dog killed a cat, the owners did understand this however the shock isn't so easy to get over.

However, I see where you guys are coming from to, I still call them my babies and the like, but it's not harsh to say something like that after witnessing such a thing it is a horrible thing to see sometimes.

Brody'smum, I'm sorry you witnessed something terrible, I really am but please don't hold a grudge to your pets. It really is only instinct.

Fair enough. It is quite traumatizing, but there should be no need for shock. I've seen a cat attack and maim a baby rabbit. Because of the high energy and adrenaline at flyball, I've seen a little Rat Terrier nearly kill a Border Collie.

I still think it is harsh to say "Brought home to me that I share my home with animals not cuddly toys and that they should be treated as such." I feel sorry for her pets that she is feeling that way right now.

[The Gnole]

I'm inclined to agree with the original poster, pets are first and foremost animals.
They are not your 'baby' and you are not their mumsie or daddy, you are their owner. By all means shower them with affection, regard them as companions or as something that brings you solace at the end of a shitty day......but dont think anything other than that they are responding to the care provider.
There has been mention that it is all down to instinct, so the animal shouldn't be blamed....in fact there is a post saying human children do the same. So you dont chastise a child for violence? If a partner is unfaithful thats ok...its only instinct to breed? I'm a meat eater, if I cant afford shopping does my instinct condone killing and eating your beloved terrier?
See my point? As humans we have the thought process, as animals they dont.....if instinct takes over they will kill, as all predatory creatures do.
All the original poster said was that they saw a side to their animals that brought home the true 'nature' of the creatures. And as a responsible adult/owner of an animal that has an inherent dangerous streak, her views have changed. There is no mention of punishment, lack of care or a bullet to the head for the animals action, just an honest statement that these are animals and she will now be treating them as such.

[kimlovescats]

Cute and cuddly though your dogs may seem to you please remember that they are not "furkids", "furbabies" or children in furry suits. They are pack animals with an awesome prey drive which I had to witness yesterday. Brought home to me that I share my home with animals not cuddly toys and that they should be treated as such.

Sweetheart, could you tell us what happened so that we can understand completely what you are feeling. I hate to see this thread turn into yet another PT debate when you are obviously upset!:love:

[Pawsitive Thinking]

Those of you that know me also know that I wouldn't have posted this without a very good reason. My two dogs mauled a cat and there was nothing I could do to stop them - believe me, I did all I could and got bitten in the process.

There is no reason to feel sorry for my pets as I love my dogs as much as ever but I also respect them as animals not furry children and they will be treated as such from now on - the 3 hour walk I had with them today was one of the best we have had for a long time.

Someone said that not all dogs have a prey drive, this may be true but as an owner of two terriers I can only say "be vigilant and don't ever take for granted that your "furbaby" won't revert to its natural instinct one day".

Martin Clunes says in a trailer for his programme "never forget that you are sharing your home with a wolf"

[chocolatepuppy]

How awful Denise.:( We've lost a few critters here in our fence. Thankfully any cats got away even climbing the 6 ft wooden fence. If it runs, my dogs will chase it. Not sure if they want to kill or are just doing it for the thrill? At least while trying to save the critters, the dogs actions don't seem vicious. The critters are just smaller, therefore, get hurt or killed. :(

[Taz_Zoee]

Oh Denise, I am so sorry you had to go through that. I have been reading this thread but wouldn't respond until we heard your story.
I understand what you are saying. You don't love your dogs any less but you are just saying to be careful. Never under estimate their abilities and natural instincts.

[caseysmom]

I'm sorry you went through that. I hope your okay. I figured you must have been through something pretty awful.

[Glacier]

I'm sorry you had to see that. I've always been grateful that I didn't see my dogs kill Dominique. Finding her little broken body was horrific enough!

The huskies insticts aren't nearly as well hidden as they are with some other breeds! I never leave the dogs unsupervised with my indoor cats(Dominique escaped the safe confines of the house somehow) and I have told all my neighbors that if their outdoor cats are dumb enough to come over here, what happens to them is not my fault. If my dogs go over there and get the cat, that is my fault, but not if the cat comes on my property. I have several dogs who will never meet Princess. She weighs about 25 pounds and for a couple of the dogs with extremely high prey drives, she would trigger them!

[kimlovescats]

Oh, Denise, that had to be horrific to watch! I am so very sorry!!! (((hugs)))

[Christmas_Hamster]

Sorry for what has happened.

I'm sorry I have no idea what to type, I'm just so frustrated. Of course it will happen if your dog has a high prey drive, you then you have to be vigilant. My dog will foremost be my best friend, then and only then an animal to look down upon. It doesn't mean that I don't ignore his needs, it means that I respect them like a good friend should.

[k9krazee]

Sorry you had to witness that. :( I have three terriers and know this all too well. They hunt and kill rabbits, possums, mice, raccoons and birds and it's never easy to see. It does make you realize that they aren't people in fur coats - they are animals and only doing what comes naturally to them.