Foo - I hit a cat...

....with my car this morning. It ran out in front and there was no time to stop so I tried to swerve and clipped it with my front passenger tire. I think he's ok but I feel like the worst person in the world right now. I found out who owned the cat and called her at work to tell her what happened. She was grateful that I called and told me she would keep an eye on him but I still feel terrible.

Anyone else ever do anything like that?

....with my car this morning. It ran out in front and there was no time to stop so I tried to swerve and clipped it with my front passenger tire. I think he's ok but I feel like the worst person in the world right now. I found out who owned the cat and called her at work to tell her what happened. She was grateful that I called and told me she would keep an eye on him but I still feel terrible.

Anyone else ever do anything like that?

I'm a vegetarian. I've hit and killed two deer. I was also in a truck that hit a fawn and the guy (meat eater) that was driving was so freaked out, I had to check it and remove it from the road. :( There's not much you can do in those situations.

You did the right thing and it sounds like he'll be fine. Cat's are tough little buggers... :)

Yes :( on a dark country back road - it ran out and I got it good - it flipped up over my hood in the lights like something from a horror movie. SO I stopped and backed up to find it and accidently ran over it again. :( No houses around either so I put him on the side of the road. :(

8 lives left.

I hit a dog during rush hour. I slammed on the brakes but didn't get rear-ended (I was just 16 and know better than to do that now). He was taller than the front of my car. He ran out from behind a fence and the fact I reacted at all was a miracle.

I turned onto the next road and got out of my car. The dog ran circles in the street and passed out as other cars went around him. I drove home and went back with my dad a few moments later and the dog was gone. It was like he never existed.

Oh, well, not much I could do.

The very first day I had my license I hit a monster sewer rat at night. That freaked me out pretty good.

I also saw something in the road once (also when I was 16), so I went over. Just when I got to it--it stood up--it was a giant snapping turtle sleeping in the road. I dragged it who knows how far in a panic. It finally went off to the side and I think he lived; I wasn't going to go back and find out.

I dragged a milk jug a few miles, too. I had a very low car those years.

....with my car this morning. It ran out in front and there was no time to stop so I tried to swerve and clipped it with my front passenger tire. I think he's ok but I feel like the worst person in the world right now. I found out who owned the cat and called her at work to tell her what happened. She was grateful that I called and told me she would keep an eye on him but I still feel terrible.

Anyone else ever do anything like that?

It sounds to me that you did all you could Carrie...don't feel bad. :)

I did have a similar incident with a dog. I was driving my 3/4 ton Chevy pickup on a side street, and apparently the dog heard me coming and ran out along a low wall where I couldn't see it. All I caught was a very surprised-sounding yelp as the dog overshot and ran directly under my tires. Both front and rear rode up and over it, and when I stopped it had run off yelping. I told the kids at the house what had happened, they caught the dog and all we could see was a small chunk of hair missing on its head. I left my info, though I didn't see paying any vet bills as it truly wasn't my fault.

Sorry!

Awful feeling, but it sadly does happen.

I've told my tale of kidney stone and IV drug here before, but not the fact that I ran over a rabbit the night before. It literally ran right under our car; no way I could do anything....I was mortified nonetheless, and convinced its rabid spirit attacked my kidney that night....sorry, lil feller.:(

I hit a squirrel once that shot out of the brush right as I was driving past its location. Sounds like it was like pgoat's rabbit... I felt real bad even though it happened so fast I had no chance of avoiding the poor thing.

BTW - the OP's situation is one reason that I think cats should be indoor only pets. Dogs can be contained in a yard by a fence, cats can't, at least not by the typical fence.

I hit a squirrel once that shot out of the brush right as I was driving past its location. Sounds like it was like pgoat's rabbit... I felt real bad even though it happened so fast I had no chance of avoiding the poor thing.

BTW - the OP's situation is one reason that I think cats should be indoor only pets. Dogs can be contained in a yard by a fence, cats can't, at least not by the typical fence.

They can when you run 40,000 volts through the fence... :innocent:

They can when you run 40,000 volts through the fence... :innocent:

Luckily, those volts can't travel.

See the kitty?

I guess not. :(

8 lives left.

n lives left. {0<n<9**

I hit a raccoon when I was driving to work last week. The worst part about it is I've had to ride past it every day on my way to work this week.

thanks for sharing your stories. This was the first animal I've ever hit. It's one of these people out here that doesn't spay or neuter their animals so they're property is covered with cats and kittens so I guess I'm kind of amazed that I've never hit one before, or anyone else I know for that matter. When I got out of my car to check on the poor thing, a swarm of kittens surrounded me....it was a little too Alfred Hitchcock for me!

I've hit two squirrels and one cat in all my years of driving. In all instances they just bolted out in front of my car - like they had death wishes. The cat sounded like it hit something under the car, and it bolted off afterwards. The squirrels weren't so fortunate.

I once ran over a groundhog while riding my bike. That was another "couldn't avoid it" situation, and was easily the weirdest riding experience I've ever had. (no damage to bike or rider either)

thanks for sharing your stories. This was the first animal I've ever hit. It's one of these people out here that doesn't spay or neuter their animals so they're property is covered with cats and kittens so I guess I'm kind of amazed that I've never hit one before, or anyone else I know for that matter. When I got out of my car to check on the poor thing, a swarm of kittens surrounded me....it was a little too Alfred Hitchcock for me!

Honestly, I can't stand those people. Cat hoarders like that actually hurt the local ground bird population and create other enviornmental problems. Jackholes!

I've hit two birds and a squirrel in 19 years of driving and consider myself lucky. Felt bad about them at the time even though there was no way to avoid either time.

Sometimes it's unavoidable, and anyone can understand that even though it's not pleasant. But I swear there are some people out there who make a sport out of roadkilling stuff. Even if they're not doing it for kicks, they've gotta be too selfish and numb-headed to take evasive action. Makes me wonder about the state of mind in someone who would do that on purpose.

On the subject of cats... Spay and neuter, people!!! I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but allowing your animals to endlessly reproduce cause you're too stupid to do anything about it puts a real strain on people who care and try to do right by those lesser creatures with whom we share the planet.

I seem to keep finding suicidal squirrels that insist on throwing themselves under the wheels of my van.

I swear, it's like they wait for you to approach and then just run right at you.

Beyond that, once, quite a few years ago, I hit a rather large dog at night, and I mean a solid impact that jarred the car and all but I didn't run over him.

As I was slowing down to stop I saw him in the rearview mirror as he continued across the street, bounded over a bus stop bench, and ran into the woods that separated the road from a group of houses.

Judging by the way he as moving I doubt he noticed I'd hit him...

I've hit two birds and a squirrel in 19 years of driving and consider myself lucky. Felt bad about them at the time even though there was no way to avoid either time.

Sometimes it's unavoidable, and anyone can understand that even though it's not pleasant. But I swear there are some people out there who make a sport out of roadkilling stuff. Even if they're not doing it for kicks, they've gotta be too selfish and numb-headed to take evasive action. Makes me wonder about the state of mind in someone who would do that on purpose.

On the subject of cats... Spay and neuter, people!!! I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but allowing your animals to endlessly reproduce cause you're too stupid to do anything about it puts a real strain on people who care and try to do right by those lesser creatures with whom we share the planet.

When I lived in Lake Arrowhead I saw several bad accidents, one a rollover with a family in the car. The cause: Trying to avoid hitting a squirrel.

Call me calloused, but if it's a choice between me wrecking a car or hitting a squirrel...the rodent loses. Arrowhead was chock full of them, mostly due to people feeding them in populated areas. Ironically the food of choice was peanut hearts sold at the local market. Peanut hearts are cheap, a byproduct of manufacturing peanut butter discarded because they're too bitter for human consumption. What's the irony? It was far too rich a diet for squirrels used to eating acorns and pine nuts and it gave them heart disease.

My own personal experience was that whenever I played at trying to hit one instead of evading...I never hit them. Squirrels have almost no peripheral vision, which is why they get so disoriented on a horizontal surface like a road. It was my theory that if you turned toward them instead of away from them, they'd hear you and take evasive action of their own.

Funny, I never did hit a squirrel with a car, but I did have one nearly take me out while riding a bicycle.

I hit a dog while riding my bike once.

The dog seemed to be fine...

I'm just glad i didn't fall and roll down the jagged rocky embankment into the river below...

Never hit anything with any vehicle, including my bikes. I have a habit thats very rare for motorists. I PAY ATTENTION WHEN I DRIVE!

But have encountered a buttload of animals that seem like they want to commit suicideby running infront of the path I am driving in.

Never hit anything with any vehicle, including my bikes. I have a habit thats very rare for motorists. I PAY ATTENTION WHEN I DRIVE!

But have encountered a buttload of animals that seem like they want to commit suicideby running infront of the path I am driving in.

Well Mr. Self-righteous, you just jinxed yourself. :twitchy: I've avoided countless animals in my travels, but there just are some situations where hitting the dumb critter is unavoidable - simple physics.

]....with my car this morning. It ran out in front and there was no time to stop so I tried to swerve and clipped it with my front passenger tire. I think he's ok but I feel like the worst person in the world right now. I found out who owned the cat and called her at work to tell her what happened. She was grateful that I called and told me she would keep an eye on him but I still feel terrible.[/COLOR]

Anyone else ever do anything like that?

I hit a bunch of kittens the other day. It was dark and they were playing in the road. The car in front of me passed right over them and they scttered - all I heard was their little heads thumpin' on the bottom of my car and the small, almost imperceptible, bumps under my wheels.

Never hit anything with any vehicle, including my bikes. I have a habit thats very rare for motorists. I PAY ATTENTION WHEN I DRIVE!

But have encountered a buttload of animals that seem like they want to commit suicideby running infront of the path I am driving in.

I lived in the path of the largest migratory deer herd in the U.S. The roads out of town were 55 or 65. When you turn through a corner and a deer that happens to be roughly the same color as the surrounding area jumps right in front of you, how would you avoid that?

Never hit anything with any vehicle, including my bikes. I have a habit thats very rare for motorists. I PAY ATTENTION WHEN I DRIVE!

But have encountered a buttload of animals that seem like they want to commit suicideby running infront of the path I am driving in.

One phrase comes to mind...

I would rather be lucky than good.

I believe in this case you embody this, and are more lucky than good (although you may well be a good driver). I can't imagine anyone skilled enough to avoid hitting the squirrel that jumped under my tire... But, I could be wrong.

I've hit a dog (he lived), a squirrel, rooster, bird, and a rabbit. I could not help it, they all jumped in front of my car while I was at speed.
I've never hit a cat. I've tried to, but they keep getting out of the way.

I don't like cats. Could be because a cat attacked me when I was a little guy.

I will get even.