I have shot dogs

Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota, is under fire for killing her family's 14-month-old dog and boasting about it. The dog was attacking other farm animals.

I have shot several dogs. Generally they were in terrible shape because they were starving or sick. It is something I hate doing. It is legal in my state.

I live in the country. People sometimes drop off dogs. I am left with several alternatives. I can try to find the dog a home. Generally, the humane societies are full and cannot take anymore and no one comes forward to take ownership of the dog.

I can take the dog somewhere else and drop it off and make it someone else's problem.

I could keep the dog. If I started doing that, I would be overrun will dogs.

I can take the dog to a veterinarian and have it euthanized. Sometimes they are reluctant because the dog does actually belong to me.

In short, there are a number of options, none of them ideal.

 

It should be pointed out the game wardens have been known shoot dogs for chasing deer. The issue is the dogs are exhausting weak animals. It is a penalty for dog owners who fail to pen their animals and allow them to run free.

A conservative commentator said this morning that perhaps Noem allowed the story to be published to put her out of the running for the VP spot. Running for higher office is no picnic these days with the opposition crawling into every aspect of your private life to find dirt. Perhaps Kristi Noem is looking at what’s happening to Trump and wants no part of it.

 

I like your assessment. She seems to be better off where she is.

 

Animals sometimes have to be killed. Call it what you want but the animal is still killed. Even humans are sometimes killed by society. But as a sophisticated society we apply different names to the killing -- euthanized, put to sleep, put down, executed, and put out of their misery. Before we eat an animal, we have to kill it. And we eat a lot of animals. Most dogs are a special kind of animal as they love humans and want to be subservient to us. So, we have a soft spot in our hearts for them. I think Noem did the right thing. But she should not have told the story -- period. Why tell it? If she did tell the story, then she should have left out the gory details. She should have said she put the dog down. Say no more. Myself I don't hold it against her for killing the dog. The dog never heard the shot and felt no pain. And we cannot allow a vicious dog to live in our society. But I say she used very, very poor judgment when she told the world that she shot her dog.

 

Big difference between admitting you reluctantly had to kill a dog, and boasting about doing it.

 

And big difference between shooting your dog for your own training failures, rather than rehoming it, and killing a dog out of actual euthanasia.

 

Oh for phuck sake...She killed the dog because she deemed it “less than worthless” and “untrainable", due to her own training failure. That is far different than killing a dog that is sick and dying.

 

Worlds apart. The "comparison" is sickening and intellectually dishonest.

Her lie about killing the goat also stands out. Her account is physically impossible.

 

IMO, the issue of her killing a dog is mostly upsetting those who have dogs as basically a family member. Often times in place of kids.

There's a difference in dogs as family members vs dogs as part of a farm or similar. At least in terms of what one mentally pictures dogs as being.

I've known farmers who have killed dogs, most often for being near the end of their life.
Some have probably done so because the dog was not trainable and a hinderance to the farm.

 

I had a friend who lived out in the country on 34 acres who had cattle and goats. One day 2 dogs got in his fence and killed two of his goats. He immediately shot one dog and the other ran away. A peace officer was called and he found the dogs belonged to a distant neighbor and the dogs were family pets. The neighbor paid for the goats. I was once attacked by a dog as I walked along a street in front of the dog's house. A swift kick under the jaw as the dog lunged for me sent him running back in his yard. Believe me, some dogs need killing.

 

Agreed, but this wasn't a dog at the end of his life. And if you can't train a dog as a hunting dog (more often the owner's fault than the dog's), you can rehome them. Shooting them in the ****ing skull is needless cruelty

 

This dog didn't attack a person. And if a dog gets on your property and attacks your animals, that's the fault of the owner as well.

 

That only works if there's someone willing to rehome the dog.

According to the OP, no link so it may not be accurate, the dog was harming other animals.
I don't live in ND or where ever she's from, so I don't follow this story.

 

Yes. And she didn't even try. It isn't difficult to find groups that will help you rehome a dog. What she did was borderline psychopathic, sorry.

 

According to the OP, no link so it may not be accurate, the dog was harming other animals.
I don't live in ND or where ever she's from, so I don't follow this story.

Kennels are full of dogs without a home. Some never get one.
IMO, it's more cruel to lock them up in kennels.

 

Noem's dog never heard the shot and never felt any pain.

 

Yes. The dog killed some chickens. That, again, is the fault of the owner.

 

When I was a kid our dogs got loose and the younger one came home with a .22 is his hip. My dad rolled Rusty up in a big towel and pulled the slug out with needle nose pliers. In a couple days he was as good as new.
I've also shot my share of coyotes during the day.
As they say, one dog is meek. Two dogs are adventurous. Three dogs are dangerous.

 

Kennels are full of dogs without a home. Some never get one.
IMO, it's more cruel to lock them up in kennels.

And the owner addressed the issue.

 

That really depends on her aim, and her story of the goat tells us that her aim is ****.

 

There isn't a shortage of options, as any dog owner can tell you.

 

You and I have a different opinion of cruelty.

Living caged up IMO, is more cruel than a quick painless end of life.

 

Was it quick and painless? It wasn't for the goat. Many shelters do a much better job of a quick and painless death than a bullet does. And are you really telling me he wasn't scared when he was killed?

 

If she really knew what she was doing with the goat, he suffered while she went back to get more ammo?! Always carry a knife or look for a big rock nearby, amateur....RIP Kristy, ETTD.

 

She claimed that the first shot made the goat jump, screwing up her aim, which is physically impossible. Unless maybe she was using subsonic .22 rounds, which itself would be unnecessary cruelty.