Once Again, Death Comes to 3225 C st OR Cats, Pit Bulls and Neighbor E

C st near 32 nd, Sacramento CA

Description

Friday about 5:30 pm I picked up my 16 year old black cat, Tango, gave him a nice pet, put him down, gave him a scratch, and a few treats which he responded with his powerful purr. I then went to watch the News. A few minutes later the neighbor came to the front door and said "A black cat". It couldn't be Tango, he's in the other room. I followed the neighbor to find a black cat, obviously attacked and gasping for air, certainly near death. Tango had a recent serious scar on his back with a huge scab. I was unable to find the scar and went to find Tango. He did not answer his usual signal calls, dinner dish clang and window squeak. A check of the alley revealed nothing. I better have another look at the cat. A further inspection revealed a scar by his ear which meant this was indeed Tango. A this point Tango had already died. Up to about 7-8 years ago Tango would often go over the chain link fence as part of his morning constitutional. This tailed off dramatically with the arrival of the pit bull(s). He seemed to sense the danger. The dogs appear to be let out once or twice a day for about an hour. When released the pent up energy charge was explosive. Also, if I and my cats were in view the dogs would begin to bark and had to be silenced. There have been many times when I was by the fence watering, etc when the dog would come to the fence and eye me. If I ignored the dog, often after about 15-20 seconds it would explode in a barking frenzy. I always worried a little about Tango, but over time I became complacent, partly because there was not a lot I could do about it. Perhaps if I had drug a stick along the fence from time to time it would alerted the cats to the ferocity that awaited them next door. So time, fortune, and/or luck ended for Tango. My liberal instincts tell me that each is entitled to their desires even if that includes pit bulls. However the box score is 4 cats, 3 of them mine, and a dog in 7 years that I know of. Over the previous 25 years I had numerous cats without incident. At this point I am obliged to do everything legal to prevent any future occurrences. The car and the coyote (note the coyote eats what it kills) are understandable, BLOODSPORT is NOT. Tango was the last of my 3 cat brood going back over 16 years. Jazzy died of old age a little over 2 years ago, Macy of old age on Christmas Eve, and Tango Slaughtered. Not to mention a kitten I brought home, the dogs got to a week before Christmas. It goes without saying this is a devastating loss and the emptiness is nearly unbearable. Any suggestions ??? Thank You... Mark Holgerson