What if an animal is killed on the road?

Irish Stones

Hi to all, I've just returned from a three-week holiday in your nice country.
I had amazing experiences and met good people, but one of the last things I did left a bad feeling in my mind.
On the last day of our holiday, while I and my wife were leaving the B&B house where we slept, we saw a cat run over by a car right in front of the gate. It was clearly happened a few moments before we were out of the door and I regretted I wasn't out earlier. While my wife went back inside to ask the lady for a plastic bag, I ran to the poor thing to drag it away from the road and save it from further butchering.
I ask the lady of the house if she knew the cat and its owners, but the cat was new to her, so probably it was a homeless cat...
So we put it into the plastic bag and gave it all to the lady so that she could call somebody to have the sack removed and properly disposed of, but she told us that there's no kind of figure or service in Ireland and that she probably would have put the sack in the waste bin...
We were appalled...
Over here in Italy if an animal is killed on the road we call the local police (town police) and they call a service that in a short time comes to collect the poor animal and take it to the local pet crematorium where they run mass cremations.
Is what the woman said to me true? Isn't there any service of this kind in the Emerald Isle?

The same thing happened four days before, we found a cat killed by a car outside a house in co. Cork. I was driving and almost running over the poor cat. So I stopped the car, moved the cat to a side and called the closer house. A crying woman came out and told me it was happened a few minutes before but she didn't have the courage to take her cat inside and was waiting for somebody else to do it. The poor cat had three kittens that now are without their mother... In that case the woman was going to ask his husband to bury her in their garden when he was home from work.

Thanks!

Kinzig

In my area the local council will remove any road kill and dispose of it. I imagine its the same countrywide, I think in this case the lady in question was unaware of that..

JustAThought

O - that's a terribly sad story ; you are very unlucky to have experienced such things - and twice - on your holiday here. In all my time living here I've only ever seen that twice but it's terrible to experience .

Here in Dublin if a cat/dog dies in the road in theory the council have a department that will come and remove it. it's eeem's to happen a lot more to cats - I suppose that's because they're often just let run "free " and so are frequently killed

Irish Stones

Kinzig wrote: »

In my area the local council will remove any road kill and dispose of it. I imagine its the same countrywide, I think in this case the lady in question was unaware of that..

That's what I thought, but what could I do? I couldn't insist on her...

JustAThought

Irish Stones wrote: »

That's what I thought, but what could I do? I couldn't insist on her...

Well she was upset so you were very good to her - no point in upsetting her more than she already was : (

What was she doing letting her cat run about on the road with 3 little kittens back in the house ? Or maybe the cat had had enough and was running away!!!

Irish Stones

JustAThought wrote: »

O - that's a terribly sad story ; you are very unlucky to have experienced such things - and twice - on your holiday here. In all my time living here I've only ever seen that twice but it's terrible to experience .

Here in Dublin if a cat/dog dies in the road in theory the council have a department that will come and remove it. it's eeem's to happen a lot more to cats - I suppose that's because they're often just let run "free " and so are frequently killed

JustAThought, as a matter of fact I spend my holiday in Ireland every year (oh, your country is so beautiful!!!) and I experienced this tragedy other times. In one case the cat owner was quite glad the cat had been killed, he asked me if it was me to run over her because he wanted to thank the culprit, his cat had the habit to dig the flowers out. On the other hand, in another occasion I was chased out of the property for having rung the bell on such a stupid matter like asking if the poor cat belonged to that house.

Yes, cats are more exposed to car accident because they're free to go anywhere, they're small and quick and they are in front of a car in no time.

But I'm glad to know there's such a service, so if the next time I go to Ireland I should have the same bad experience (and I hope not!) I will know how to handle the situation.
Thank you!

Irish Stones

JustAThought wrote: »

Well she was upset so you were very good to her - no point in upsetting her more than she already was : (

What was she doing letting her cat run about on the road with 3 little kittens back in the house ? Or maybe the cat had had enough and was running away!!!

The woman that was unaware wasn't the same woman that had the mother cat killed.
The first one never saw that cat before and didn't know what to do.
The second one was in total despair and was going to bury the cat in the backyard. This one shouldn't have let the cat out in the first place, and promised to me the kittens would never be allowed to get outdoor.

mosi

Last summer I found a dead cat on the pavement. There were no real obvious signs of injury but I presumed it had been hit by a car and either thrown onto the pavement or placed there by someone.
Anyway, the OH and I were wondering what we should do. A lot of kids and old dears were walking past and it wasn't very nice for them to be looking at. It didn't feel right just putting the cat in a bin, so we put it in a plastic bag and brought it up to the local vet. I know they dispose of dead animals rather unceremoniously as well, but I felt better doing that just in case the cat was microchipped or reported missing locally.

knipex

Couple of years ago I was driving into Charleville and and spotted a small dog that was lying on the pedestrian crossing at the start of the traffic calming measures. It had obviously been hit by a car but was still moving. I pulled in looked around to see if the owner was around and then picked up the dog and put it in my car. I took it to a vet but by the time I got there the dog was no longer moving and breathing very shallow.

The receptionist called one of the vets but when he arrived the dog was dead. I explained the situation and was told I had to either take the dog with me as they were not equipped to deal with bodies. I took the dog (to be fair they did wrap it in a blanket \ plastic thing and left my number asking that is anyone was looking for the dog to get them to contact me. I was in Cork all day and returned to limerick that evening. I couldn't keep the body indefinitely so buried it in my back garden.

The next day I got a call from the owner who had spent all the previous day and night trying to find the dog before eventually thinking of calling into the vets office. The dog was kept in the house and one of the kids had let it out and it had been killed about 30 meters from the house. She was obviously in shock that her dog was gone but very very annoyed that the vet made me take the dog as it was a patient at that particular clinic and had been since it was a pup. She and her husband actually came to my house and dug up the body and took it home so they could have a burial in their garden and have their children involved. They were also extremely apologetic that I had to deal with the body. (I dint mind)

The incident did get me thinking though, Is this common or would other vesst have the means \ option of disposing of the body. I was able to keep the body in the boot of the car but if I had my kids with me at the time and all the bits that involves (at the time they were a baby and a toddler) I just physically couldn't have taken the body. Or what if it had been a tourist or someone living in an apartment or terraced house without a garden. What would they have done ?

I have also been told that it illegal to bury pets in the garden...

Irish Stones

knipex wrote: »

Couple of years ago I was driving into Charleville and and spotted a small dog that was lying on the pedestrian crossing at the start of the traffic calming measures... [cut]

What a sad story you wrote A what a great thing you did!

Or what if it had been a tourist or someone living in an apartment or terraced house without a garden. What would they have done ?

This is part of my question... what should I do if in the future I find myself dealing with such a situation?

I have also been told that it illegal to bury pets in the garden...

Over here it's a weird matter. Some town councils allow people to bury pets in their gardens or in other field or land they own, as long they follow some simple rules like digging deep enough (about two feet) and spreading a layer of lime over the body. Other towns simply don't allow this, and pet owners have to take the dead animal to the vet who will dispose of according the rules which means they'll send the body to the crematorium. We can ask for individual or mass cremation. In the first case it's possible to receive an urn with the ashes of the pet, but the costs are much higher, 150 euro for a cat and 250 to anything higher for dogs. The mass cremation costs around 60 euro.
I buried three cats in my garden as my town allows burying of pets. Other two cats that I used to feed (they weren't mine, I just fed them) were cremated because I had no more space in my garden.

All dogs are microchipped, so they have to follow a certain procedure with the vets. Over here no cats are microchipped, unless they are of great value or belong to breeders.

loveisdivine

We got up one morning and there was a cat lying in the middle of the road, in the square opposite ours. We couldn't just leave it there to be run over again or poked at by kids so we went over, put him in a plastic bag to carry him then buried him.

It was upsetting because there was a guy sat in his window, with the window open, right infront of where the poor cat was. When I asked if he knew if any owned it, he said "no its just a dirty stray, full of disease". He was obviously glad it was dead. People have such skewed ideas about strays.

BeerWolf

knipex wrote: »

I have also been told that it illegal to bury pets in the garden...

Being in the countryside, that wouldn't be much of an issue for me... massive garden with fields about - buried numerous pets over the past 2 decades, in meaningful spots. Which I'd much rather do than to disrespectfully 'dispose' of them in the bin or a mass cremation.

anniehoo

knipex wrote: »

The incident did get me thinking though, Is this common or would other vets have the means \ option of disposing of the body.

That was appalling that the vet sent you home with the body, especially seeing as it was a long term client. But, I think the issue a lot of vets face is random people turning up on their door expecting them to deal with so called "strays/roadkill" or pretending they are. Vets have to pay private companies a fee to dispose of these bodies in the correct manner, so while there are well meaning people out there bringing in legitimate strays, the vet ultimately gets stung for the bill for disposal with no recompense to them.

time lord

A lot of local authorities remove road kills as a courtesy but as its not an obligation their time frames for doing so vary greatly if at all sometimes.

knipex

anniehoo wrote: »

That was appalling that the vet sent you home with the body, especially seeing as it was a long term client. But, I think the issue a lot of vets face is random people turning up on their door expecting them to deal with so called "strays/roadkill" or pretending they are. Vets have to pay private companies a fee to dispose of these bodies in the correct manner, so while there are well meaning people out there bringing in legitimate strays, the vet ultimately gets stung for the bill for disposal with no recompense to them.

To be fair it was a terrier cross one like thousands of others its highly unlikely they would have recognised it as a particular client... One thing that did surprise me though (to be fair it was after the fact) was that they didn't even attempt to scan it to find a chip...

boomerang

knipex wrote: »

The receptionist called one of the vets but when he arrived the dog was dead. I explained the situation and was told I had to either take the dog with me as they were not equipped to deal with bodies. I took the dog (to be fair they did wrap it in a blanket \ plastic thing and left my number asking that is anyone was looking for the dog to get them to contact me.

My own vet doesn't have a chest freezer to store animals' remains, as most vets do. So I'd be inclined to believe the vets were being honest, here.

Incidentally, vets have to pay the private crematorium to have remains cremated, so a vet that will take a stray animal's body without charge is a kind one.

Quality

I had the misfortune of being behind a car that hit a St. Bernard dog on the road. There was quite an impact and the poor dog passed away in the middle of the road in front of us

The owner arrived on the scene and was he was very visibly upset. Attempts to move the dog in one piece were not going great as there was a lot of blood and bits coming out.
It was a horrific scene to be honest.

The dog was shaking and twitching. The owner was crying. I think I was even crying. I seriously don't know how the mess was cleaned up and often wondered how they managed to move that poor doggy.

loveisdivine

Quality wrote: »

I had the misfortune of being behind a car that hit a St. Bernard dog on the road. There was quite an impact and the poor dog passed away in the middle of the road in front of us

The owner arrived on the scene and was he was very visibly upset. Attempts to move the dog in one piece were not going great as there was a lot of blood and bits coming out.
It was a horrific scene to be honest.

The dog was shaking and twitching. The owner was crying. I think I was even crying. I seriously don't know how the mess was cleaned up and often wondered how they managed to move that poor doggy.

I had a similar incident when I was walking to work one day. I was at a crossroads and there were school children all gathered round waiting for their bus. Next thing you know a dog comes bounding down the road, completely over excited and jumps out infront of a car. I don't think I'll ever forget the noise.
Pretty much all out panic ensued. The kids all started crying and screaming. The dog then got up, ran over to where I was and collapsed infront of me. I started crying. Then a lady ran over and picked the dog up, but it died in her arms. He was puking up all kinds of stuff.
It was honestly one of the most traumatic events I've ever witnessed.

To top it off the dog belonged to one of the kids in my class at the nursery I worked at.

To this day I get super panicked if I'm driving/walking along the road and I see a dog without a lead. It just brings back such bad memories and sends me into panic mode.

Irish Stones

I thank God I never had to witness such scenes like you are describing or I would pass out on the road as well.
Though I think I saw something of the kind a couple of weeks ago. I was still on holiday in Ireland and the car in front of me ran over something that looked like a kitten on a N road. This thing was ran over by both wheels, front and rear on the passenger side, and after the second wheel was over it this thing was thrown high and then fell on the road again. We were all driving about 100 km/h so I didn't understand what it was but I'm pretty sure it was a kitten. I hope it was already dead when this car hit it in the first place, or I could have seen something real bad!

Gremlin

Ill keep it short. One day I hit a cat, nothing I could do. The cat ran about 100yards into a garden and died there. I knocked on the door to ask if they knew who owned the cat. Turns out it was their cat. The woman went mental, screaming and shouting at me. "You killed my cat, you b*****" sort of thing. I was very upset by the reaction over something I had no control over. I wasn't expecting thanks, but I certainly wasn't expecting the reaction I got.

boomerang

Jeez Gremlin, it wasn't your fault!

mentalist101

Gremlin wrote: »

Ill keep it short. One day I hit a cat, nothing I could do. The cat ran about 100yards into a garden and died there. I knocked on the door to ask if they knew who owned the cat. Turns out it was their cat. The woman went mental, screaming and shouting at me. "You killed my cat, you b*****" sort of thing. I was very upset by the reaction over something I had no control over. I wasn't expecting thanks, but I certainly wasn't expecting the reaction I got.

It wasn't your fault Gremlin, but grief makes people hysterical so they say the most horrible things:(

Fitzg

I hope this isn't diverting the thread too much but the other day I was talking to a woman in my estate. She was telling me about a cat she'd seen get hit by a car and said it lay on the side of the road for two hours before it died. I think her kids had been checking on it
I am actually horrified at the thoughts of any animal having to suffer like this. I like to think I'd have taken the poor cat to a vet, though I know I'd have to cover costs but I don't think I could leave it there to die in such pain. I said this to the woman and she laughed and said her husband wanted to put it out of its misery with a brick...
Just for future reference though - what are the options if I come across an animal that's been hit by a car? Is the easiest and quickest one just to take it to a vet and foot the cost? Do the dspca do anything? I'm guessing they're already up to their eyes...
thanks

boomerang

Fitzg, vets are obligated to provide basic first-aid to any animal presented to them.

I can tell you a worse one. An aunt of mine ran over a cat. She took great pride in telling me that she didn't want it suffer and therefore reversed back over it.

Irish Stones

Fitzg, I always took every animal I found in difficulty to the vet. I never thought about costs, my first thought is the condition and the possibility of saving the life of the poor animal.
Generally speaking, over here the vets don't charge almost anything if the animal they are treating is a stray or a feral one.
I took in cats, hedgehogs, pidgeons and so on and I almost never paid.

Irish Stones

Boomerang, I wish I never read your post...

boomerang

I know, and she was congratulating herself to me on being so thoughtful as to do that.

Irish Stones

It happened again!
I love Ireland and go to your country every year for my holidays, and so I did this year too.
I was in Roscommon town one morning and when I was driving away I saw a kitten in the middle of a road in town, Castle Street. I stopped the car to block the traffic and save that poor creature from further disasters, I thought he was still alive. I got out of the car, touched that poor little thing, he was soft and warm, I was sure I was still able to do something for him, but after a few seconds I had to surrender to the reality, the kitten was dead, probably hit a few moments before I found him.
I moved him on the sidewalk and then I moved the car to a side of the road. I have to admit that the others drivers have been extremely patient and kind, though I don't know what they were thinking of me.
I rang the first house, then the second house and so on for about a dozen of houses, and all I got was rough replies and disgust. I wish to thank a lovely girl who showed interest in the matter, but she wasn't able to be of help because she had recently moved to that area and didn't know anyone. I couldn't find anybody that could help me, everybody kept telling me that nobody worries about cats, they're just cats and that probably they were stray or feral.
I had to leave that poor soul alone on the sidewalk, and with my great disappointment he didn't receive a single glance fron anybody who was walking past him, like he was a cigarette butt.
RIP poor kitten, I wish I could do more for you!

kylith

You seem to have very bad luck in coming across so many run-over cats. Unfortunately it is something that is bound to happen wherever there are feral cats.

Kovu

It was only a few weeks ago I was going into a village about a mile from us and came across a kitten, roughly 6 months old that had been hit and lay in the middle of the road. I ran back to it but it was dead, still warm so it happened only a short while before I found it. Beautiful little grey mackerel striped thing, so I moved it off the road and put it in the long grass.

Then, to my horror, about 300m down the same road, I found another one, the exact same markings, again dead in the middle of the road. I got out and moved it into the hedge. I think someone must have dumped them and they had no road sense, it would be too much of a coincidence otherwise.
Such a pity, I would have taken them in and found them homes:(

RIP little kitties.

Irish Stones

kylith wrote: »

You seem to have very bad luck in coming across so many run-over cats. Unfortunately it is something that is bound to happen wherever there are feral cats.

Yes, it seems that I have a very bad luck, but more than this bad luck I'm appalled by the indifference of the people. So far I hardly met someone concerned or sorry about these situations, apart from when the cat was of a lady who was destroyed by the event.
The fact that "a cat is just a cat, it's not a dog" leaves me speechless...