Cat Collision?

I have mentioned in a number of Posts that Ray has a strong dislike for cats*. I have known quite a few cats very well and, as affectionate as they can be, they can turn into furry felines full of fiery fury ….. in a fraction of a second.

Whether Ray senses potential aggression, or whether he is simply intuitively reacting to the cat based on his prey drive, we don’t know. All we do know is that we should never let our canine get within reach of any feline.

We were out the other evening taking Ray on his routine walk and decided to take him on one of his routes that we had not used for quite a few days. It is virtually all on residential streets and so there are none of the usual distractions from the aroma of pizza places, gelato parlors, or from a whole assortment of restaurants and cafes that we would pass on other routes.

One particular road has no sidewalks at all so the properties’ front grass finishes at the edge of the asphalt and anybody out walking has to do so on the road.  Ray would usually alternate between walking with us on the road, and exploring the nearby grass, with his nose directing his wanderings!

We were walking down this particular road, and it was getting quite dark, when I noticed a cat coming down our side of the road and directly towards us. It was probably 50-60ft away at the time and so of no concern and anyway, Ray was pre-occupied with the grass and a hydro pole. The cat had dark tones and so blended quite well into the late dusk lighting!

As the gap between us closed, I could see it more clearly. It had head its head down and would appear to be on some important mission but, whether it realized it or not, that important mission was taking him on a collision course with Ray! Had it not seen Ray? Was Ray the important mission? Ray was totally engrossed in checking out scents in the grass.

The gap would have reduced to around 30ft when Carol asked if I had seen the oncoming cat, and she noted that Ray was now aware of it and had tensed up.  I was beginning to wonder what we would do if it walked straight into us. It seemed such an unlikely event, but then it was currently looking like a strong possibility and, while these thoughts were spinning around in my head, Carol was starting to feed treats to Ray!

I happened to look to my left and about half way up a nearby driveway was another cat! This one had most certainly seen Ray and was watching very intently. While the gap continued to close, I was coming to terms with the facts that we had one cat closely watching us from a driveway, and another one who was on a head-on collision course with us! This was going to be interesting.

At a distance of about 20ft, the oncoming cat suddenly changed direction and headed diagonally across a garden to meet the driveway cat. Ray immediately pulled his leash tight as he tried to run towards them. I don’t suppose that his forward planning ability was any better than the cats, but to tangle with two of them? Come on Ray ….. think about it!

We continued on our walk being really thankful that we never had the anticipated conflict. Cats! Hmmmph!

*See Post “Cats” – August 3, 2015

24 thoughts on “Cat Collision?”

  3. I still carry the scar of when my dog came across a cat. I was coming up my driveway and was loosening up on the leash. All of a sudden a cat came out from under the bushes. Well, my dog tried to attack it, and yanked on my leash which got caught in my pinky. My pinky got caught up in the leash and to this day (5 months later) I still feel the pain in my finger. It was a very serious strain.
    Lesson learned: I don’t let up on the leash until I am completely in the house.

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  4. My current cats would fear the dog but I’ve had past cats that didn’t. I had one intrepid kitty and I always worried that some day she would meet a non-cat-loving dog who would do her in. It never happened. Now my cats all stay inside so I don’t have to worry.

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  5. Oh, geezzz … when cats & dogs collide on the way … Never a good thing.
    My brother’s black Lab is a very good dog and always been a gentle creature that treats other creatures with respect and love. We have cats too. They get along very well and even sleep together in one giant basket. And that is a good advantage for all of them especially now it is getting cold everyday.

    It is rare thing to see cats & dogs can get along together. But the fact that they are enemies, it is pretty hard sometimes to take the dog out to have a walk in the neighbourhood in summer. Cats are all out there! 😛

    So, I prefer having a long walk with our dog up in the hills towards the woods. 🙂

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            • Foxes are (I believe) lone hunters. Wolves and coyotes work very effectively in packs so even large dogs are not safe. A friend of mine had a 130lb German Shepherd and on one trail walk, a lone coyote appeared on the trail quite a distance in front of them. Shadow (the Shepherd) wanted to chase it, but if it had been allowed, he would have almost certainly been killed. The lone coyote would have led Shadow some distance away to eventually be surrounded by the pack and attacked! I shake my head when I hear about pets that are allowed off-leash because there is always a degree of risk from so many sources.

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              • I never encounter wolves or even one wolf in the woods. That is good. Even if we are near the preserve forest. Foxes are always in the field to be seen from afar (that is if you are lucky enough to be so close to it).

                But as you’ve said, coyote and wolves comes in pack. So far, those wolves are quite far in the Alps area, so we are safe from them. The one animal that always comes too near, was or is, the bear. One bear got shot the last year when it went down to search for food. Poor thing. The people has no choice for fearing their safety.

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