Horrified woman saw her dead cat in mouth of dog

A woman came out of her home late one night to find a husky-type dog with her dead cat in its mouth.

An American Akita dog had got out of its owner’s house in Ballinfoyle Park some time earlier and crossed the road into Tirellan Heights where the cat met its end.

Jake Duffy (21), of 82 Ballinfoyle Park, Headford Road, pleaded guilty at Galway District Court to permitting his dog to be in a public place while not being led by a sufficiently strong chain or leash – not exceeding one metre in length – by a person over the age of 16 who was capable of controlling the dog, contrary to Regulation 5 of the Control of Dogs Regulations 1998.

Insp White explained the Akita breed comes under restricted breed regulations and strict rules apply to its handling and control in public.

He said Gardaí responded to a call of a dog roaming around Tirellan Heights at 2am on November 28 last year.

The dog was barking continuously and Gardaí observed it was not muzzled when they arrived in the area.

They met with a woman who told them she had come out of her house in Tirellan for find her pet cat in the dog’s mouth.  The cat was dead.

Gardai followed the dog to Duffy’s home in Ballinfoyle and spoke to him there.

He admitted the dog was his and said it had got loose from his house the evening before.

Defence solicitor, Alma Whelan said her client wanted to apologise to the lady in Tirellan about her cat. She said the dog now had a collar and name tag and wore a muzzle.

Ms Whelan said it was a husky and a family pet. Children from the neighbourhood often played with it, she added.

Judge Fahy asked why, if the dog was a pet, was it on the restricted breed list.

Insp. White explained a person could have the dog so long as it was on a leash or muzzled when out and about.

Hearing the maximum fine for the offence was €500, Judge Fahy fined Duffy €300, observing that while it was very upsetting for the cat’s owner, it was fortunate it was not a person that had been attacked.