Many thanks to those who responded. It looks as though there are many things poisonous to cats so we must be suspicious of all garden and wild plants. The red part of the yew berry is not poisonous to anything but the black seed in the middle is highly toxic to many mammals.

My original query was whether a cat would be poisoned by a mouse that had eaten yew berries. No-one seems to know the answer but it would be difficult to control when the pet is hunter and bringing mice all the time. If the pet goes off colour.........suspect poisoning just in case the vet does not!!

To all those who were interested in Bonnie's progress, I am so happy to tell you that she has made a miraculous recovery. Her eye is still a little bit bulgy and she still has her jaw wired. But the wires come out next week. Her fur has grown over her horrendous wounds and she is getting back to almost normal. She runs around and wants lots of attention. I am totally amazed at her recovery. I honestly thought she was going to die.

We have all heard it said that there are no dangerous dogs, only dangerous owners. Well, that may be true but although we love our animals dearly, we must remember that they tend to be controlled by their instincts more than we do.

I had to take my friend´s Yorkshire Terrier to the neurosurgery and orthopaedic hospital near Frensham in Surrey today. It was the most stressful ride I have ever had. Last night, the little dog (Bonny) was attacked by a young Rottweiler while being taken for a walk. All the dogs were on leads but the Rottweiler was accompanied by a very young, small teenager who had no control over the dog whatsoever.

The large dog attacked Bonny and she has been left with the most horrific injuries. She is now on a life support system in the animal hospital. Her eye came out of the socket, her jaw is broken in two places, here windpipe is damaged, and she had the most horrible rips in her skin.

I give you these awful details because I want to impress on you that although you may think you know your dog, there is always the opportunity for you to encounter new situations.....ones where you will not be able to predict the animal´s behaviour.

To my mind, it is essential that every owner of a large, powerful dog takes it for obedience training and make sure that s/he has good control when in unpredictable situations. The Rottweiler could not help itself. It was simply succumbing to its natural instincts and probably saw little Bonny as being prey.

The chilling corollary to this awful tale is that the owners of the Rottweiler had the animal humanely destroyed this evening and the family is distraught. Because the animal was not trained or controlled, everyone has been a loser.

What a horrible day we have had. Not only have we had to contend with coping with a long and stressful drive with poor little Bonny crying and gasping, but also with my friend´s grief.

Please remember that the veneer of domestication is rather thin.If your dog has a tendency to attack others, please do not look upon it as anything other than a trait that must be controlled and trained out of its character. However much you might love and trust your pet, remember that it is not far from a small dog to a small child.

Please don´t keep lilies near cats. They cause many nasty symptoms but particularly renal failure. There have been many deaths. Even the pollen might be poisonous to cats and kittens.

Thanks to people who responded to my query about yew berries this month (November 2009). Cats seem to be affected by very many things..........certainly as many as humans. I suppose we will just have to be careful.