1
0

House cat with "history of violence" attacks baby, traps family in bedroom


 invite response                
2014 Mar 10, 10:13pm   19,380 views  54 comments

by null   ➕follow (0)   💰tip   ignore  

(Reuters) - A rampaging, 22-pound Oregon house cat with a "history of violence" attacked a baby and trapped a family and their dog in a bedroom at their Portland home before being captured by police, authorities said on Monday.

The Sunday evening incident began when the cat, a black-and-white Himalayan, scratched a 7-month-old baby in the face, according to Portland Police Bureau spokesman Sergeant Pete Simpson.

The baby's father kicked the cat in the backside, which sent it into a rage, and the parents and baby, along with their dog, retreated into a bedroom as the father called police, Simpson said.

Meanwhile, the cat blocked the bedroom doorway and could be heard on the 911 call screeching loudly, Simpson said.

"He said that the cat has a history of violence," Simpson said, referring to the father speaking to the 911 operator.

http://news.msn.com/us/house-cat-in-oregon-attacks-baby-traps-family-in-bedroom

Comments 1 - 40 of 54       Last »     Search these comments

1   waiting_for_the_fall   2014 Mar 10, 10:51pm  

Why would any sane parent keep a 22 pound cat with a history of violence with a baby in the house?

You should never kick a cat. Maybe the man is the one with a history of violence.

2   Tenpoundbass   2014 Mar 11, 12:03am  

Man all they needed was a can with a few coins, and a spray bottle of water. They would have smote that cat, like they were wielding 80 caliber cannon.

3   zzyzzx   2014 Mar 11, 12:38am  

These people are very stupid and the cat needs to go to someone who actually knows how to take care of a cat.

4   New Renter   2014 Mar 11, 1:43am  

zzyzzx says

These people are very stupid and the cat needs to go to someone who actually knows how to take care of a cat.

Agreed.

We adopted an older crabby cat with a "history of violence" and within a few months she was a lap cat who made it her job to protect our baby from the night.

If there is any doubt just watch a few episodes of "My Cat from Hell"

http://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/my-cat-from-hell

5   NDrLoR   2014 Mar 11, 2:15am  

Portland, Oregon--that says it all.

6   lakermania   2014 Mar 11, 3:47am  

The CAT trapped both the father and his dog in a room? Their man and canine cards should be stamped invalid, sheesh. We used to have huge grey Himalayan that stood up to dogs and survived at least one coyote attack but even it wasn't a match for the tip of a person's boot.

7   zzyzzx   2014 Mar 11, 4:59am  

lakermania says

The CAT trapped both the father and his dog in a room? Their man and canine cards should be stamped invalid, sheesh.

Yeah, that and they actually bothered the police in order to get out of the room. What a waste of police resources.

8   Ceffer   2014 Mar 11, 6:25am  

There must be some good cat divorce attorneys around.

Fluffy will wind up owning the house, and scratching-post visitation privileges with the kids.

9   New Renter   2014 Mar 11, 8:31am  

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

Big challenge will be getting his nibs into offices of bank presidents in Manhattan. I'll have to rig up a sling that will fit under a loose-fitting sports coat.

What could I tell *them* to get me and KomeiniKat here into their offices? Hmmm.

UPS delivery!

10   New Renter   2014 Mar 11, 8:34am  

waiting_for_the_fall says

Why would any sane parent keep a 22 pound cat with a history of violence with a baby in the house?

Because in almost all such cases the problems are with the humans, not the cat. There are the very rare exceptions in which the cat has a condition but almost all of the time its the people, not he cat.

11   lakermania   2014 Mar 11, 10:03am  

New Renter says

waiting_for_the_fall says

Why would any sane parent keep a 22 pound cat with a history of violence with a baby in the house?

Because in almost all such cases the problems are with the humans, not the cat. There are the very rare exceptions in which the cat has a condition but almost all of the time its the people, not he cat.

I never had a cat like that but my brother did, and his wife and kids treated that cat like royalty. IMO, they had a lot more patience with it than I think most people would. I would have kicked that thing to the ceiling after the first couple of times it came out of nowhere and attacked me. They used to actually think it's behavior was endearing. The vet recommended it be put down, but they ignored his recommendation until the cat cut my nephews leg up so bad he needed to go to the hospital. After that, they had it euthanized.

What kind of "problems" do people create in order to make a cat like that? I know for a fact my brother's family were not abusive in the least to it.

12   Ceffer   2014 Mar 11, 10:26am  

lakermania says

What kind of "problems" do people create in order to make a cat like that? I know for a fact my brother's family were not abusive in the least to it.

Don't cross swords with the "cat people" or you will wind up with your eyes scratched out.

Cats: good

People: bad

13   waiting_for_the_fall   2014 Mar 11, 10:40am  

lakermania says

What kind of "problems" do people create in order to make a cat like that? I know for a fact my brother's family were not abusive in the least to it.

Cats are all-knowing. When they stare at you unblinkingly for hours at a time, they are looking into your soul.
If you have even the slightest evil intentions toward them, they know...

14   Heraclitusstudent   2014 Mar 11, 11:54am  

lakermania says

The CAT trapped both the father and his dog in a room? Their man and canine cards should be stamped invalid, sheesh. We used to have huge grey Himalayan that stood up to dogs and survived at least one coyote attack but even it wasn't a match for the tip of a person's boot.

That's a common misconception. Just because cats are usually zen and timid creatures doesn't mean they're not dangerous when they get mad or cornered.

Cats can move with extreme speed and jump 10 feet in the air. They will shred your eyes and chew on your nose before your boot reaches them.

Kicking a cat is a stupid thing to do.

15   marcus   2014 Mar 11, 12:24pm  

zzyzzx says

These people are very stupid and the cat needs to go to someone who actually knows how to take care of a cat.

I know cats, and this story sounds like bs. You kick a cat, its going to get pissed, but it's also going to run off and hide or something. It's not going to corner the family and threaten them, that's simply not the behavior of a house cat.

Maybe the cat was crying, and that scarred them, because they are pussies, that don't know cats.

And yeah, the guy shouldn't have kicked the cat. He should have killed it if it attacked his baby. But there's a way to do that that's not too cruel. You "put it to sleep" with an injection.

(and no, I don't hate cats. I like cats just fine and have had a couple - both very sweet).

16   NoYes   2014 Mar 11, 12:37pm  

This is a result of a mouse shortage. Cats can't find any good mouses they can afford to chase due to investors overpaying for them causing a mouse shortage resulting in mental instability in the cats.

17   curious2   2014 Mar 11, 12:41pm  

marcus says

I like cats just fine and have had a couple - both very sweet

I thought cats were savory? AF?

18   New Renter   2014 Mar 11, 1:44pm  

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

Then again, come the Cannibal Anarchy epoch, a cat like this with enough heft and will could help out around the house by taking care of things in a lookout tower equipped with a Gatling gun.

At the minimum they can carry your ammo.

19   mell   2014 Mar 11, 1:50pm  

Bullish for the mousing market! Prices can only go up and it has never been a better time to buy.

20   anonymous   2014 Mar 11, 1:52pm  

Ceffer says

lakermania says

What kind of "problems" do people create in order to make a cat like that? I know for a fact my brother's family were not abusive in the least to it.

Don't cross swords with the "cat people" or you will wind up with your eyes scratched out.

Cats: good

People: bad

Never understood why people keep such disgusting animals in their house. They step in their own feces and then drag the bacteria all over the house. In peoples beds, on their kitchen counter tops.

And for no return. At least a dog can be a good friend that you can hang out with, go for a walk, get a good laugh out of. Cats just plain suck.

Like marcus said, this guy is a pussy, I would have ripped its shitty little head from its body and tossed its stump in the trash

21   New Renter   2014 Mar 11, 2:02pm  

That is a 22 lb cat equipped with fangs, claws and a natural instinct of how to kill prey. If it wanted the baby dead the baby would be at the least badly mauled.

My guess is the baby provoked the cat one too many times and the cat swatted the kid which in cat language is a perfectly acceptable way of saying "back the @#$%^ off"

or

the cat scratched the kid trying to get away. Baby cried, parents freaked out, Dad kicked the cat in a rage, cat responded in kind and family further overreacted.

marcus says

He should have killed it if it attacked his baby. But there's a way to do that that's not too cruel. You "put it to sleep" with an injection.

Marcus, you don't kill a cat just for scratching a baby unless the cat has intentionally gouged out an eye OR you are a complete and utter ASSHOLE!

No, Marcus you keep the cat and baby separated until you can slowly reintroduce them under very controlled circumstances. Even young kids can be taught to not pull at the cat and the cat can be taught to just leave when the baby becomes too much.

Ceffer says

Don't cross swords with the "cat people" or you will wind up with your eyes scratched out.

Or worse...

NEVER mess with cat people. Even gun nuts accept this simple fact.

22   New Renter   2014 Mar 11, 2:05pm  

errc says

Never understood why people keep such disgusting animals in their house. They step in their own feces and then drag the bacteria all over the house. In peoples beds, on their kitchen counter tops.

And for no return. At least a dog can be a good friend that you can hang out with, go for a walk, get a good laugh out of. Cats just plain suck.

You seem to be confusing your mammals.

Dogs are the ones who eat their own poop, drink from toilets and have no problem giving you a kiss just after using their tongue as toilet paper.

errc says

Like marcus said, this guy is a pussy, I would have ripped its shitty little head from its body and tossed its stump in the trash

You seem to be in withdrawal - go toke some and you'll feel better. It may help with that nasty case of testosterone poisoning you seem to be suffering from

23   anonymous   2014 Mar 11, 2:23pm  

Withdrawal? Lol

You seem to be mighty defensive about this issue. Hike up your skirt and take your cat for a walk, maybe it will calm your nerves a bit.

24   New Renter   2014 Mar 11, 2:56pm  

errc says

Withdrawal? Lol

You seem to be mighty defensive about this issue. Hike up your skirt and take your cat for a walk, maybe it will calm your nerves a bit.

If I am defensive its because far too many good cats AND dogs are killed because of attitudes like yours.

25   anonymous   2014 Mar 11, 3:02pm  

I don't like cats, never did. Sorry that bothers you. I don't like the idea of people torturing animals,,,,and I rescued a neo mastiff four years ago. Now from experience, I can see how giant breeds, especially a slobbery one like a neo mastiff, end up needing rescued. They are quite a mess to share a house with. However I love the big guy and adopting him changed my life very much for the better :)

26   Heraclitusstudent   2014 Mar 11, 3:31pm  

errc says

And for no return. At least a dog can be a good friend that you can hang out with, go for a walk, get a good laugh out of. Cats just plain suck.

People who say cats are not interactive and funny have never played with a cat.

Cats are fluffy and soft. They are gracious and agile, contrary to dogs.
And they're not needy like dogs.

errc says

Like marcus said, this guy is a pussy, I would have ripped its shitty little head from its body and tossed its stump in the trash

Right.
Obviously you have never fought a cat. I would bet on the cat.

27   turtledove   2014 Mar 11, 3:44pm  

The very fact that the guy kicked the cat suggests that the cat has reason to have his claws at the ready.

Lakermania, possibly a moot point, but there are lots of things that could be setting that cat off. Smells in a new house, visitors, anything related to change can set sensitive cats off. There are plug ins (similar to Glade plugins) that release a pheromone that soothe upset cats very effectively. And there's always an MAOI inhibitor that's guaranteed to take kitty down a few notches while they find the root of the problem. It would be very odd for a vet to jump right to euthanasia as a solution.

30   waiting_for_the_fall   2014 Mar 11, 10:58pm  

Indiana Jones says

They now plan on having have the cat get therapy.

Someone in Oregon has a business card that says "Cat Therapist". Hilarious.

31   New Renter   2014 Mar 12, 2:32am  

errc says

I don't like cats, never did. Sorry that bothers you.

THAT doesn't bother me in the least. Everyone is different. If dogs are your thing that's great too. The fact you rescued a dog which has changed your life for the better is just icing on the cake.

errc says

I don't like the idea of people torturing animals

Glad to hear it. You do understand that comments like this one:

errc says

I would have ripped its shitty little head from its body and tossed its stump in the trash

Make you sound like one of those assholes out there who actually would do such a thing and worse. There are good reasons responsible pet rescue groups screen adopters.

32   mfs.admin   2014 Mar 12, 2:35am  

Hate to see cats abused and kicked. Having many cats, they have good instincts and can feel when you don't love them. I'm happy he attacked them and hopefully gets adopted by people who love him and not punished or put to sleep...

33   zzyzzx   2014 Mar 12, 2:36am  

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

Then again, come the Cannibal Anarchy epoch, a cat like this with enough heft and will could help out around the house by taking care of things in a lookout tower equipped with a Gatling gun.

34   marcus   2014 Mar 12, 12:36pm  

New Renter says

Marcus, you don't kill a cat just for scratching a baby unless the cat has intentionally gouged out an eye

Any kind of unacceptable and unprovoked aggression against an infant, and the cats gone (one way or another). Of course if the baby caused it that's different, that should have been understood when I said I would kill the cat for that behavior.

Again, I'm somewhat of a cat person.

Of course fact is I wouldn't even allow a cat near a young infant unless the cat was extremely well behaved and tolerant, so it wouldn't happen in the first place. What kind of person allows a semi feral or skittish neurotic cat near an infant in the first place?

35   Tenpoundbass   2014 Mar 12, 3:12pm  

errc says

They step in their own feces and then drag the bacteria all over the house. In peoples beds, on their kitchen counter tops.

And put their paws on their lips while giving them kitty cat lovins'.
They really are disgusting animals. Start off Innocent enough, petting them stroking them, then before you know it you hat their ass hole right in your face. You tell them no, but they insist.
Ever been put out by a cat...

...It's a bad scene man...

36   Carolyn C   2014 Mar 12, 5:38pm  

My cat gives me plenty of return. Live baby birds, temporarily alive mice, dead rats, love and affection.

37   zzyzzx   2014 Mar 12, 11:38pm  

marcus says

Any kind of unacceptable and unprovoked aggression against an infant, and the cats gone (one way or another). Of course if the baby caused it that's different, that should have been understood when I said I would kill the cat for that behavior.

They could get rid of the kid.

38   turtledove   2014 Mar 13, 1:34am  

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

Every week a convicted banker is thrown into a cell to struggle for his or her life in a steel cage match with the deal-dealing feline.

The banker doesn't stand a chance. Cats aren't known for their kindness toward vermin.

39   zzyzzx   2014 Mar 19, 3:53am  

Someone told the cat that if it liked its vet, it couldn't keep its vet.

40   zzyzzx   2014 Mar 19, 11:25am  

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/cat-whisperer-heading-oregon-attack-182125454.html

Cat whisperer heading to Oregon after attack

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The large cat that attacked a baby and trapped an Oregon family in a bedroom touched off an Internet uproar that worries Jackson Galaxy, star of Animal Planet's "My Cat from Hell."

Cats don't become ferocious felines that turn on their families for no reason, says the cat behavior expert, who is heading to Portland soon to work with the 4-year-old part-Himalayan pet named Lux. Galaxy will film the visit for his show's fifth season, which kicks off April 26.

"Every parental site on the Internet blames the cat for this confrontation. Every pet site blames the family," he said, adding that something is wrong if the cat is acting out. "We need to step away from the hysteria. There is a story behind all this. Don't assume anything."

Lux became a worldwide phenomenon after owner Lee Palmer called 911 and said the cat had cornered him, his girlfriend, their baby and the family dog inside a room.

Palmer says his 7-month-old pulled Lux's tail, and he kicked the animal after it scratched the child. Then, the cat "just went off over the edge," Palmer told an emergency dispatcher after the family barricaded themselves. "He's charging us," Palmer said, as the cat was heard screeching in the background. Officers arrived and caught Lux with a dog snare.

Palmer said the cat had a history of violence, but the family kept Lux until Monday, when they turned him over to a Portland-area shelter. But the family assured Animal Planet they were going to keep the cat and agreed to therapy with Galaxy.

Palmer didn't return a call from The Associated Press seeking comment Tuesday.

There are many reasons a cat can turn aggressive, and there is no universal way to deal with it, Galaxy said. But the star feline behaviorist provided five ways to tame out-of-control cats:

— Never leave a young child unsupervised with a cat.

— Take it to a vet at least once a year. If a cat is acting suspiciously, the owner needs to pay attention. "Know what suspicious looks like," Galaxy said. "If they're not feeling well, cats will socially withdraw themselves, or they will lose weight, or they will gain weight, or they'll be howling in the middle of the night when they never did before.

"I've known cats who acted out similarly to Lux because of an abscessed tooth, a brain tumor, hyperthyroidism or diabetes."

— Make sure cats can literally climb out of a situation. Having a space up high, like a cat condo, to get away from children and other pets is crucial, Galaxy said. "Make sure the cat can make the choice to get away from the kid," he said.

— Timeouts are good things. "We associate timeouts with punishment, but in the world of cats, timeout is not a punishment." They can go to a designated place where they can settle down, come back to a peaceful moment or ground themselves, he said.

— Stop fights between felines with "timeout drills." With simple pieces of cardboard, left strategically around the house, you can stop a fight between two cats. Put the cardboard between them, blocking their vision and providing a moment of disorientation when you can lead them to their timeout spot. It's especially important to have the drills with aggressive cats.

Galaxy said he was going to Portland to act as Lux's advocate and find out what's wrong.

"I have no idea what made Lux aggressive," he said. It could be a chemical imbalance, a history of stressful environments or because he was kicked.

"If you want a blanket statement on how to deal with aggression, how about, 'Don't set the cat up for failure,'" he said.

The behaviorist, who has worked with tens of thousands of cats, said the thing that bothered him most about Lux was his continued aggression the day Palmer called 911, including the animal's ongoing assault on the door even though the threat was gone.

But the word "attack" doesn't sit well with Galaxy because 75 percent of the time, it's tied to a grouchy mood or a warning, he said.

"If I have a headache, I won't be the nicest guy in the world. I may snap at you," he said. "This may have been Lux's way of snapping. Hypothetically speaking, someone pulling his tail may have been the last straw."

Comments 1 - 40 of 54       Last »     Search these comments

Please register to comment:

api   best comments   contact   latest images   memes   one year ago   random   suggestions