I Don't Get It

[lovemachine]

The dog breed doesn't matter. The town next to me, there was a Collie that mauled a kid for no reason. Yes, a Lassie dog, that was trained.

 

[lovemachine]

I wouldn't step on somebody else's property uninvited. I would hope your dog wouldn't respond to commands from an intruder, I wouldn't expect a Rottie to that. Would you be this understanding if your dog was shot and killed under these circumstances?

Read my post. I would be friggin furious. But like I said, they did shoot in self defense. There were no signs indicating an invisible fence. All they saw was a loose dog charging them.

 

[sparky241]

I don't get that no one had a problem when Liberty Sanders or Walter Zoomie shot dogs in defense of themselves, but when a cop does it no matter the reason, its wrong. Buncha ****ing hypocrites.

i think thats quite different. they were on their own property not trespassing on others property.

 

[remymartin]

This comes down to home field advantage. If someone steps onto your property without your consent, let 'em get what they get. If an LEO steps onto your property, let them get what they get as well. I am in no way bashing LEO, but citizens have rights as well.

If an LEO has PC to be all up in your business, and the pup becomes a threat then by all means make it happen.

I have a dog, yes it is a family member, but if 5 had PC to come onto my property........ Moral of the story No PC No Problem.

 

[Jeremiah]

Actually it shouldn't matter if there are signs, a good lawyer will rip you to shreds if you have a "beware of dog sign" :

So you had a sign urging people to watch out for your vicious dog? had it ever attacked someone? shown signs of Aggression? If your dog was so dangerous to warrant a sign, why did you not put the dog down?

 

[clelaj]

Certainly a sad outcome no matter what. As I watched the clip, didn't this occur in the front yard, which granted is your property, but is the public side of your house. Isn't it expected for the public to walk up to your front door uninvited? An unleashed dog in the front yard charging you could easily be interpreted as a dangerous threat.

 

[Lucas156]

Why not just use pepper spray? What a jerk!

I was walking my dog in the road through a subdivision near my house one day. A rottweiler was in the front yard of a house on the other side of the road and started getting agressive, barking and galloping toward me. I kept walking the same direction and the rott came out into the road into the middle of the road still barking. I was armed. Was he threatening me? yes but I was in his territory and he felt he was defending it. I tried to put distance between me and the dog and kept walking. the dog stopped at the property line. I was prepared to shoot if attacked but Im a softy for dogs especially rotties. Sorry if I threadjacked carry on.

 

[MedicMike]

I understand everyone's point. However if the animal is harmed and not killed does it not becomes animal abuse? I work with someone who was charged by a dog and she kicked it to stop it for biting her. She inturn was charged with animal abuse and was told that had she killed the dog no charges would have been filled.

 

[glock2010]

now days it seems like the American people have fewer and fewer rights, and nothing aginst the leo but this type of thing is happening way to often all over the country and they need to revise their approach concerning things like this, i mean why couldnt he of pepper sprayed or tazored the dog first and then if he had to take it a step further i could understand.. its a shady thing

 

[snowman46919]

This thread just reiterates the fact that most people are going to judge based on breed. Had this been a rotty or similar "killer breed" there would be no question and the cop would be praised for putting down a menace. The officer was on a suspicious person call which means the dog very likely could have been on alert or trying to defend the family. Now introduce a strange person who is yelling and acting more than likely in an aggressive manner. Any dog worth his salt, or any other predatory and territorial pack animal for that matter, will commit these same actions.

 

[kevman65]

Point #1 No dog is going to respond to a strangers commands and dogs do NOT recognize police as authority figures.

Point #2 Officer was trespassing, no warrant and no reasonable evidence to support being on the property.

Point #3 Doesn't matter what breed, exhaust non-lethal defense on PETS before resorting to lethal force when you are trespassing on the property the PET belongs.

Point #4 Police aren't exempt from criticism, they are human and make mistakes. The badge, uniform, and gun does not give any officer to do as they please.

I have had several Golden's in my lifetime, I am on #2 rescue right now. Golden's can be aggressive too when cornered, scared, or attacked first. Golden's can also be very aggressive towards anyone in a uniform who has entered their property and their owner is not present.
None of mine have ever harmed anyone, but they sure have scared the crap out of several service type people in uniform who had business on my property.

I am sorry this family lost their pet, I'm also sorry that too many people think a firearm is a first choice against a family pet on the family's property.

 

[snowman46919]

Oh and it was mentioned that someone wasn't sure if goldies had caused a fatality.. they have and so has a dachshund so truly breed doesn't matter.

 

[ghitch75]

i bet if he would have fired in the ground the first shot ol' yeller would have hi-tailed back to the house......they have semi-auto's right?..

 

[Coydog]

Good Dog

Another good dog down in the line of duty. People need to protect their dogs from predators as their dogs are protecting them. Dogs take their jobs seriously and they should be respected for that but they should be supervised and monitored lest they go too far.

 

[kevinj110]

Think for a minute and lets say it wasn't a dog that charged him but a mentally handicapped 14 year old. How would everyone feel then. I am only saying this as a how on earth can any police officer justify shooting a dog while it is on its own property and you are the one trespassing. Special place in hell for that one.

 

[CampingJosh]

First off, I've heard from dog trainers that every dog is at least part wolf. Breed doesn't matter all that much; every dog is capable of attacking and, if more than about 20 lbs., killing.

BUT, I have a lot of contradictory thoughts running through my head on this...
1) Did it not occur to the LEO that a dog who is defensive of a property is probably a good sign that a "suspicious person" is NOT on that property.
2) Why would a dog respond to the commands of a stranger? Has he ever gotten this response from a strange dog before?
3) How close did the dog get when the LEO fired? It's not like the dog was carrying a knife, so "first contact" wouldn't be lethal. If the dog was more than 10 feet away, this was unjustified even if the officer were not in the wrong in any other way.
4) I really think there should be charges filed on this guy just like anyone else. I understand that an LEO has special duties that require them to do different things than normal people, but trespassing without a warrant is trespassing. Trespassing and using lethal force on someone who is rightfully there? Unacceptable.
5) If it were me, I very well may have done the same thing. I would feel bad for it, but not as bad as I would feel after being mauled by a dog.
6) Is it normal for an LEO to go wandering off into the dark parts of a neighborhood looking for a "suspicious person" alone? Was there no other officer with him?
7) If I heard shooting in my front yard and came out to find an uninvited person had entered my yard and shot my dog, I'm not sure I would believe that the person in the uniform was really a LEO. He very well may have gotten shot by me. This situation wouldn't have been good for anyone.
8) Should I train my dog to stay away from strangers who are approaching my house away from the front door at night when the stranger is clearly armed? I don't want my dog to get shot, but I also don't want an armed intruder to get to my bedroom window while my dog passively watches.

In the end, I'm not sure exactly how I come down on this. I guess my big issue is that he went with a firearm instead of pepper spray.

The one thing I'm certain about is that this sucks for the family. And the officer. But at least he got to make a decision that led to this; the family just got it thrust upon them.

 

[squirrelhntr]

they should no way have live ammo. as a tax payer i want em to shoot RUBBER BULLETS. let the
U.S.M.C. deal with lethelality

 

[femurphy77]

I don't get that no one had a problem when Liberty Sanders or Walter Zoomie shot dogs in defense of themselves, but when a cop does it no matter the reason, its wrong. Buncha ****ing hypocrites.

Sorry, um who is liberty sanders or walter zoomie? Google came up with a basketball player and naked racing in indianapolis, or some such nonsense.

 

[Kick]

they should no way have live ammo. as a tax payer i want em to shoot RUBBER BULLETS. let the
U.S.M.C. deal with lethelality

Good, remember the next time your or a loved one needs help. Call the U.S.M.C.

 

[Kick]

I do not agree with the cop shooting the dog in anyway. Pepper Spray would have been a much better option. However, the Taser (if his department carries them) most likely would not have worked.

Taser probes on the M26 and X26 are aligned one on top of the other.

When deployed, the top probe shoots straight out. The bottom probe travels at an 8 degree angle downward. This puts the probe 1 foot lower than the top for every 7 feet of distance. The optimum range for this weapon is 12-18 feet. At 14 feet the bottom probe would be two feet lower than the top. If only one probe makes contact with the target, the circuit is not complete and the Taser is not effective.

To use the weapon on a dog, the cop would have had to turn the Taser sideways and aim the laser (top probe) at the dogs front shoulders, and the bottom probe would strike in the rear quarters. Most departments do not train this way and I would take a lucky guess that most cops may be aware of the bottom probe drop but, do not know the rate and would not think to aim this way for a dog. Especially under the circumstances.

Sorry for getting off track but, in the end I completely agree that pepper spray and/or retreating would have been the better option.