I posted a response in behavior as well, but basically....the dog is killing the kittens because she can! She is a dog, dogs do stuff like that. She needs to be kept completely seperated from the remaining kittens at all times. Kittens look, sound and move like prey.
My own lovely, sweet, gentle dogs have killed one of my cats--because they had the opportunity to--Dominique was where she shouldn't have been, I didn't know she was there, the dogs killed her. She was not a pack member or a loved pet to them. She was prey. They couldn't tell she was any different from a bird, squirrel or a mouse. Was it their fault? Nope, it was mine. I failed Dominique. The dogs were not vendicitive, aggressive or mean to her or me. They were simply dogs acting on their natural instincts. (which does not mean I wasn't angry and heartbroken because of their actions, but they were not at fault).
This is not aggression. The dog is no more likely to bite now than she was before she killed a kitten. Prey drive and aggression are completely seperate things.
Your sister's home sounds terribly overcrowded. I don't think this behavior is territorial. However, I think she should expect territorial behavior from the dogs and they will likely focus it on each other. That little dog is in danger, IMO.






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