" I am so sorry about your cat. What makes you think someone would stop for a cat when they won't even stop after hitting a woman who lost her legs? People don't have a sense of duty any more. It's sick. "

" Sorry for your loss. It is clearly wrong to hit an animal and then speed off. Having said that, cats need to be kept indoors or on a leash. "

" This is terrible and unfortunately typical in Napa and quite frankly all communities. It is sad and I am very sorry for your loss. One thing I thought should be cleared up however is that the vehicle code does not state you have to stop when you hit a cat. A dog you do need to stop for. It is not a "fair" law in many eyes but cats are different. I truly am sorry about your cat. "

" Sorry for your loss....however; people with roaming cats should be fined, you take the risk by letting your cat roam the streets, a car following the speed limit could have killed your cat, even a kid on a bike could run over and kill a cat. Pets are your responsibility. If a car following the speed limit ran over your cat and for some reason damage was done to the car..it would be your fault and you would be responsible for the damages. My friend had her cars' ground system damaged by hitting a cat and the owner had to pay to repair it. "

" Give the lady a break. She lost her beloved pet, and no, it wasn't her fault! Cats aren't required to be leashed or contained the way dogs are required. The law sees cats as in a sense, less domesticated than dogs. I'm really sorry you lost your cat, Ms. Nichols. Don't pay attention to anyone telling you it was your fault. "

" People shouldn't have to stop if they hit a cat. People wouldn't have to stop for a squirrel or a Possum. Most cats that are running around the streets are wild cats with no owner so what's the difference? I always see cats just bolt out in front of cars. If they want to be scethballs then they won't have a very long life. It's their fault as well as the owner for letting them roam freely. "

" If someone runs over my cat and then tries to get me to pay for damage to their "ground system" (ugh), they'll have bigger problems then trying to recoup the cost of replacing the plastic lowrider garbage attached to their 97 Mazda. It's amazing that someone can kill an animal and then be worried about a dent on their "pimped ride". Here we have more proof that animals are better than people. "

" Debbie, so sorry that you and your family had to go through this! Sounds like some uncaring person. Sorry for your loss. "

" I was driving on the freeway northbound on 29 one day when two girls that were about 10 were running across the freeway. I could have easily hit them if they would have tripped and fell. I would have felt extremely bad if I would have hit one of them. The thought did cross my mind afterward though that I would have wanted the damage to my truck paid for by their parents. "

" Napa County pets at large law. 6.04.200 Animals at large prohibited. It is unlawful for any person who owns, harbors or keeps, or who has possession, charge, care, custody or control of any other animal to wilfully or negligently allow an animal to run at large. (Prior code § 7027) "

" I accidentally killed a cat in Napa with my car about a year ago - I was going the speed limit to begin with and I slammed on my brakes as soon as I saw the cat but it was inevitable - the cat stopped in the middle of the road and there was no shoulder on the right for me to go to as well as a line of oncoming cars blocking me from swerving left. My husband knocked on doors trying to find the owner (the kitty had no collar to guide him) and he called the shelter and Animal Control and gently moved the kitty out of the middle of the road (I was too shaken up to handle it). I'm a huge cat lover and very upset about that to this day. Debbie, if you get another cat for your family please do the right thing and make your new kitty an indoor cat! Beloved pets do not belong outside unattended with cars, speeding or not! "

" Im very sorry for the loss of your pet, but I have to agree with many of the others, cats shouldnt be allowed to roam the streets freely. They are as much a danger on the road as the speeders. They frequently dart out in front of people causing drivers to swerve or slam on the brakes and get rear-ended.
Pet owners should responsibly keep their pets in their homes. No pet, dog or cat, should be roaming around the streets without their owner. "

" It's sad when you lose a pet to being hit by a car. Especially when you do your best to keep the animal contained. Cats should NEVER roam freely. This is exactly what will happen and it really is no one but the owner's fault. I am sorry for your loss. "

" Opiniagirl, thanks for the reference to the law forbidding free-roaming cats (and other animals). Most people don't know this law exists. Try not to run them over. Most importantly, keep them in the house or leash them. "

" So sorry to hear about your cat. I have two of my own and would feel terrible if one of mine got hit..that is why i NEVER let them outside, it is a good bet that they would get hit by a car or attacked by a dog.
I have good friends that have had three cats, and every one of them has been killed by a car..they cried over all of them, and their fourth cat is still roaming free.....I just don't understand it. "

" I am sorry to hear about the loss of your animal. However, I am just letting you know that if you write down license plates of speeders it wont do any good. In order to cite someone for speeding a officer needs to be close with a radar or pacing the car from behind. The best thing to do would be have your area residents sign a petition for a speed reduction area. Speed bumps, signs, and bottlenecks can be added to slow traffic. "

" Debbie,
sorry For your loss, its sad that there are so many callous people out there. Although the law states that if you hit a dog you must stop and attempt to contact the owner, it is just common courtesy to do the same with a cat. Also to "SELIM" you seem to be attacking a certain race right off the bat, watch it. "

" Must have been it's 9th life,so get another one and start from 1. "

" SLOW DOWN,people ! Where the heck do ya think you're goin,so fast ? RELAX--TAKE IT EASY ! You're just an ant on an ant hill ! "

" It's usually better to just hit the cat (or any kind of small animal) than to slam on your brakes and risk losing control of your car. If you lose control of your car, you might hurt yourself or another person. I'd rather hit a cat than a tree any day.
And by the way Debbie, how can you say it was a "speeder" if you weren't even there? Your reasoning is clearly flawed: "I don't like speeders. I like cats. My cat is dead. Therefore, a speeder killed my cat?" "