I've seen at least ten pictures of bullfrogs with fish in their mouths and even a video or two on other pond forums. My friend saw one grab and eat a duckling at a golf course. They are blamed for helping native Western Pond Turtles and native frogs to extinction here in the West including BC Canada so I have no problems believing that bullfrogs eat anything. I have had cats my entire life and have had aquariums my entire life and ponds in various forms since 1985 and have seen plenty of cats watch fish but not catch any. Every time their paw gets wet they draw it back and shake it off. I do know that cats would not climb or jump into a pond and get wet enough to disturb plants unless it was an accident and they fell in. I have seen my own cat fall in. once. No plants were harmed though. If plants are disturbed or pots tipped over morning after morning it is raccoons. I have had dogs in my pond that did a lot of damage, more than once. Loose neighborhood dogs. They were leaping and splashing and knocked over lily pots and their claws put holes in a lot of foliage. They weren't after fish or food they were playing in the water. One kept coming back, I'd chase him out and he would circle behind me and jump back in....This has happed three times in twelve years of ponds at this house. The raccoons come pretty much every night. We sit on our couch and watch animals at our front yard wildlife ponds all the time. Cats, raccoons, opossums, squirrels, birds, dragonflies, treefrogs and many insects too from bees to water fleas. It is raccoons who tear up everything and now we have to cover the ponds every night with covers made of copper and chicken wire. Now they are destroying the rock edges and we have to do extensive work when the tadpoles all morph. The cats never hurt anything. They chased the treefrogs but we never saw one eat one or found any corpses or body parts. They seem more confused by them than anything. Mostly they just drink from the ponds. Having a dog should be deterrent enough for cats in your yard, won't work on raccoons though. An electric fence was the only thing that worked for me on the fish pond which is too big too cover and has plants too tall. I tried two ultrasonic noise makers which did bother the cats but not the raccoons. Motion water cannons will deter cats but not all raccoons.

daggett, I have 14 cats and 3 dogs, two of whom are herders. Pippin is an Aussie with moderate herding drive, and Tasha is presumably an Aussie mix with VERY intense herding drive. All of my cats have lived with dogs for as long as the cats have been members of my family. Even so, they are wisely nervous and cautious around dogs they don't know. When we adopted Pippin as a newly neutered young adult, he came from an Aussie rescue where he had been fostered with a cat or two. I was told he was curious about the cat but not at all pushy, so I thought he'd make a great fit for our family. When he arrived, he was, indeed, curious about the household cats and spent some time trying to follow them around until they hissed and backed him off. He took their reprimands well and left them alone. The next day, Pip and the other dogs came out to the barn with me for morning chores. The eldest cat, Billy, had gone out earlier to start his daily farm sentry duties. As soon as Pippin caught sight of Billy, he took off after him with bloodlust in his eyes. This was no playful romp. This was a hungry wolf after a rabbit. I screamed at Pip and ran after him, but he could not be called off. He was after a kill, and there was nothing I could do to stop him. He didn't know me yet and hadn't accepted me as his pack leader. He also didn't know Bill and hadn't identified him as part of his new family pack. Gratefully, Billy escaped into the hayshed before Pip caught up with him, and I eventually caught up with Pip and dragged him back to the house, screaming at him along the way. If I hadn't had Pip flown up to me in MN from TX, I would have returned him to the rescue that day. Because that wasn't an immediately available option, I decided on a different tactic. I purchased a muzzle and put it (and a leash) on Pip when he came outside with me. He continued to be fine with the cats indoors, but it took about a month before I trusted him outdoors without the muzzle. With Pip, the key was to give him time to identify and integrate into his new family pack and to understand and accept the pack order. Over the course of a month, he realized that all of the cats were part of his new pack, and he never chased one of them again, inside or out. In fact, Pip is submissive to all the cats (he's a submissive personality, anyway). It wasn't until I got Pip into basic obedience classes, however, that he fully accepted me as his alpha pack leader. Tasha was and is a different matter altogether. We adopted her as a tiny puppy, so she was raised in a household full of cats. Even so, she has always been much more problematic for the cats than has Pippin. Tasha is MUCH more intensely driven than is Pip, and she's also a very pushy alpha personality. Everything in her universe BELONGS to Tasha, is DOMINATED by Tasha, and REVOLVES around Tasha ... everything except me, that is. She knows and accepts that I am her alpha leader, but everything and everyone else breathes her air at her pleasure and mercy. With Tasha, it is obvious that herding drive is an extension of prey drive. The intensity of her herding behavior is really quite remarkable. I have no doubt, though, that she would have turned into a killer if I hadn't set very strict behavioral boundaries on her and if I didn't continue to enforce them on a daily basis. I am still constantly having to tell her to leave the cats alone. She simply wants to dictate every move every animal (or toy) makes in her world. Unfortunately because of her cruciate problems, I can not allow her to exercise as much or as vigorously as her mind requires, so keeping her behavior within controllable limits is a constant challenge. As I noted in my earlier response, herders are amazing dogs, but they are NOT easy! Now back to your dog. You made a MAJOR mistake by ever allowing your dog to chase your cats. Not only has the dog been rewarded for his bad behavior by achieving the desired effect of "herding" the cats, but the cats have now learned that you can not or will not protect them from the dog. They have lost trust in you and in the safety of their own home. They are trapped with the enemy - an enemy that they are very much aware can and may want to kill them. Of course they're hiding. Every instinct they have tells them they must hide for their self-preservation. They have no experience living with passive dogs, so all they have to respond to are their own instincts. As I mentioned earlier, you must keep your dog either leashed or locked securely away from the cats at all times until and unless your cats adjust to his presence and give you the opportunity to train him properly. Do NOT in ANY way try to force your cats out of hiding or into the presence of the dog. They must be allowed to make peace with his presence in their own time and way ... if it's going to happen at all. Most likely, they will start coming out under cover of darkness, late at night after everyone has gone to bed, the dog is securely crated, and all is quiet. Once they start reaffirming their safety under those conditions, they will probably slowly start to appear during daylight hours. If you do NOT allow the dog to approach them or intimidate them in any way, your cats will eventually get braver. It may take months or years, but if you assure their safety and work to regain their trust away from the dog, they will probably eventually come out of hiding again. You can help your cats by spending lots of time alone with them in whichever room they are hiding, trying to coax them out of hiding just to enjoy some petting, playing, and treats. Like I said, they have lost trust in you, and you're going to have to work to regain it. Let them know that they still matter and that they can safely spend time with you without risking interaction with the dog. Unfortunately, you won't be able to teach your dog to accept the cats as part of his new family pack until and unless the cats come out of hiding and start reintegrating themselves into the household. It's a waiting game now. Make it impossible for the dog to get anywhere near the cats on his own, and give the cats the supportive loving they need to feel safe again. Hopefully in time the cats will give you a second chance to be their protector in the presence of the dog. Good luck, Laurie

It's great that he has bonded so quickly with your older dog and that is probably helping him settle in much faster. When using the water bottle, the key is to spray it before the cat is actually chasing the dog......it's all in the timing and sometimes you have to wait until the last minute. If you end up running after the cat with the water bottle, it has then become a game. Another option is to distract the cat(s) with a toy and then give the bully cat a treat if he starts playing. It's sad the 16 yr old cat is getting bullied. If you haven't already, try using at least 2 of the Feliway (Ceva) plug-ins. It made such a difference in my two cats adjusting to each other and helped keep my diva female in check. Also, try rearranging the cat towers (hope you have one), adding new interesting toys and perches for the bully cat and play with him more to use up his energy. Sounds like some of his antics may be due to boredom. I know it's not easy with a bully cat. I fostered a 2 yr old that just wouldn't leave my 2 older cats alone. He would totally ignore any distraction from me when his goal was to charge my docile cats and one could tell he had claimed my home as his castle ;). Fortunately, he was adoped a month later.

Omar, congrats on getting four inches. Yes, that is almost flood stage. My total remains at one inch. Thanks for the photos. Like here, everything looks all cleaned up! Patty, I knew Bob was going to love your "raining cats and dogs" comment about oodles of poodles n' puddles and he did. He said, "Good! VERY good!" I know what 'they' say about puns, but I happen to like that kind of humor. Cooper, I hope the 30 day forecast is wrong and you get more than one day of not only possible rain, but some real rain!