Nanaimo animal control officers euthanized Max, a two-year old pit bull, on Tuesday.
Max was in the care of Aaron and Jody Payne when it escaped and ran through a neighbour's open sliding glass door, to attack and kill Niki, a 17-year-old house cat sleeping next to the window.
The Paynes said they rescued Max through an employee from a Nanaimo veterinarian hospital.
The dog is believed to be from Victoria. Details are sketchy, despite an investigation launched into the facts of the case, including the past history of the dog, which is now said to be checkered.
Niki's owner has mixed feelings about news of the death of a dog that killed a cat that had been in the family since their first son was born.
"I'm certainly glad it's not going to hurt anyone else," said Don Izon. "But I'm also a little bit sad because if the dog had a proper place to live, with a fenced yard, this wouldn't have happened."
The Paynes were remorseful, after realizing Max had killed a neighbour's pet after someone left a door open. The dog lived with five cats in their home.
The decision to euthanize the dog was based on concerns about public safety.
"Dog kills cat, dog gets put down," said Sue Hughes, operator of the Nanaimo city pound.
"It's the kind of thing, if we were to adopt it out to the community, it's a liability we're not willing to take."
The Paynes could not be reached for comment, but said earlier this week they found out from investigators the dog had a "past history," only after the fact. They asked animal control officers for details but were denied access to information collected in the investigation.
"Now we find out that he has a past history (and) we're going: 'What is that?' We should have been informed," Jody said.
Niki's owner was angry when he saw his cat killed in front of him, but he's now ready to put it behind him.
"I don't have any hard feelings toward them, it's just an unfortunate accident," Izon said
(The Vancouver Sun - July 21, 2011)
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