Stockton woman warns neighbors of aggressive pack of dogs after her cat is attacked, killed

By Josie Heart

Click here for updates on this story

    STOCKTON, California (KCRA) — Carol Goucher was asleep in her Cleveland Street home when she was awakened by the sound of dogs barking outside her window at roughly 2 a.m. Tuesday morning.

When she looked outside, she saw five dogs surrounding her 17-year-old cat Rusty in her driveway.

In a video captured through her home surveillance cameras, the dogs were seen rushing to and attacking the cat.

The disturbing footage too graphic to show in its entirety shows the cat was trying to hide under a car, but the dogs were able to pull it out with their mouths before mauling it and taking the cat’s remains to the sidewalk.

Goucher says she tried to scare the dogs away with loud noises but was too afraid to step outside and intervene out of fear for her own safety.

“I was banging on the window and banging on the door and yelling and trying to get the dogs to leave and they did not,” Goucher said.

Goucher says a homeless man who happened to be walking by was able to scare the dogs off with a stick, but her cat did not survive the attack.

Goucher says she was disturbed greatly by watching the video.

“It was absolutely horrific. I can’t get it out of my mind,” Goucher said.

Neighbors told KCRA 3 that the dogs have been back in the area multiple times since the attack, and that the dogs usually appear in the neighborhood during the late-night hours.

“None of them have collars and I know they don’t belong to anybody,” said Barbara Mata.

Residents say they have come together to review each other’s surveillance footage and incidents, and that the dogs have been spotted in the neighborhood since last month.

“Every night this week they have been overnight in the dark hours, in between midnight and 2 am. getting on people’s properties and looking around on their driveways and porches,” Goucher said.

Goucher says the dogs are still on the loose and worries that other animals and people may be at risk of being harmed.

“There’s schools nearby and children are walking to and from school,” Goucher said.

Mata says she fears a worst-case scenario.

“I saw what they did to a cat. I can imagine what they would do to a person,” Mata said.

Goucher said she reached out to the city’s animal control services but received few answers.

“They took my information and said that it is a police situation because it’s overnight and they don’t have animal control officers overnight,” Goucher said.

KCRA 3 reached out to the city’s animal control services and is awaiting a response.

The Stockton Police Department says animal control typically responds to incidents involving aggressive animals during their hours of operation, which end at 5 p.m. according to the city’s website.

Stockton police said they checked in with animal control and that a call for service to the Cleveland Street area is marked on their logs. Police say they expect that animal control services should come out to the area soon.

Meanwhile, Goucher is awaiting an earn that will contain Rusty’s ashes. She says she decided to share the video of the attack publicly as a warning to her neighbors.

“The main thing is that people are aware that this is happening and to keep your family and your pets safe,” Goucher said.

The Stockton Police Department urges residents to call police if they spot any aggressive animals and feels their life is in danger.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.