First and foremost, I'm truly very sorry your cat had to die this way. My sympathies to you
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Dogs with high prey drives, or many dogs who have never been socialized to cats, will, and do, unfortunately kill cats and other small animals. Some dogs can be trained out of it while others simply can't.
One of ours will if ever given the chance. We have two others that would kill birds. The only way we can control them is by training with the "leave it" and "come" commands. However, if I'm not immediately present, I know there wouldn't be any stopping them. That being said, we've also taken other steps to prevent such occurrences. A fence has been installed and reinforcements made so that not only can our dogs not leave the yard...other small animals can not enter it either, whether over it or under the fence. We have neighbors two doors down that have a cat who's allowed to roam. She's safe from our dogs, but not safe from other dogs (or other wild animals such as raccoons) who are just tethered or allowed off-leash, nor is she safe from vehicles should she wander onto the street. Personally, I think it safest for cat owners to keep their babies indoors or, set up escape-proof enclosures where they can be supervised outdoors.
I'm so sorry for your loss.
Willow
