Petition asks to make dogs killing pets an offence

CCTV from a neighbour shows a dog attacking Jess's cat Kitty

A woman wants a change in the law after her cat was killed by a dog that was being taken for a walk.

Jess Rozee's cat Kitty was killed where she lives in Swindon - she said CCTV footage shows her pet being chased, chewed, shaken then left still just alive by two men with the dog.

Ms Rozee has started a petition that so far has 7,000 signatures on it, asking to make it an offence for a person's dog to kill another pet, by prosecuting owners.

Wiltshire Police initially told her that under current laws, nothing could be done, but it has since re-opened the investigation to see if an offence was committed. A Cats Protection spokesperson said it would also like to see a strengthening in the law.

Jess had been for a walk with her mum's dogs but came back to the news that Kitty had been killed

Ms Rozee told the BBC she was on a walk with her mum and her mum's dogs but, when they got back, they were told by a neighbour that Kitty was in a verge, "lifeless".

A neighbour's CCTV showed a large dog, not on a lead, attacking Kitty: "This dog chases him, chews him, had him in his mouth and shakes him. There are two men, they look at Kitty, he is still alive, he lifts his head up and they walk away."

She felt the police handling was "outrageous" and "very hurtful".

"How they can say this isn't a dangerous dog, I don't understand. It's tearing our cat to shreds."

She said the family was struggling to sleep thinking about "the horrendous, vile way that he passed away".

Kitty's death has made Jess determined to see a change in the law

On the petition, it says a new law could not just protect other pets but also "cultivate a responsible pet ownership culture".

"Let us take a stand to protect our family pets and prevent the heartache of losing a beloved animal due to the negligence of others. We think that immediate legislative action is required to prevent further tragedies" it adds.

The campaign has caught the attention of charity Cats Protection.

Madison Rogers, from the organisation, said: "Unfortunately, we do hear that people get told by the police there's been no crime and there's nothing they can do."

But she added that community protection notices can be issued under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.

This has been used in reference to cats being attacked by dogs where there is shown to be detrimental effect on the community too, Ms Rogers said.

She added the charity would like to see better use of the notices but also "a strengthening in the law".

As the petition is being done via the official Parliament website, if it gets 10,000 signatures, the government will respond and at 100,000, it will be considered for debate in Parliament.

Wiltshire Police said at first there was no criminal offence to investigate and it would be hard to get an outcome for the case.

However, the force has now told the BBC: "We appreciate the distress that this incident will undoubtedly have caused for the cat's owner.

"Following a review of the case by our dog liaison officer, this case has been reopened and an investigation will now take place to establish whether any criminal offences have been committed."