In the video below, the reporter notes that the National Coalition on Violence Against Animals says “gun violence” against animals “is a growing problem in our country.” Their website makes no such claim. Absent any evidence of an increase in the number of Americans shooting animals they have no intention of eating, I seriously doubt it. But . . .

Don’t be surprised if the antis add canines to their bloody shirt-waving campaigns. They’re so cute! And innocent! Then again, the blog.humanesociety.org reveals that . . .

The U.S. Department of Justice estimates that police officers, often acting as first responders in crisis situations, shoot and kill as many as 10,000 dogs a year — that is one dog every hour of every day.

It’s a staggering and surprising and distressing number. Though some of these deadly encounters cannot be avoided, training for police officers on how to assess a dog’s body language, possible intentions, and the use of passive, non-lethal methods is not a standard in police academy or in service training . . .

Only a handful of states require police officers to receive training on encounters with dogs, most of which were implemented after large civil, and in some instances, criminal charges were filed against officers and their departments in the deaths of dogs. Dog owners are fighting back and winning these large lawsuits.

Under the Fourth Amendment, shooting someone’s dog has been considered by multiple district courts as a “seizure” of property.

Recently, in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, a court awarded a man $1.26 million dollars for the death of his beloved Chesapeake Bay retriever who was shot and killed by the police. Training to handle these encounters in non-violent ways is good business for the police and it’s good public relations.

As always, in a country with a natural, civil and Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms, the best way to prevent “gun violence” — against all creatures great and small — is to educate people not to pull the trigger irresponsibly/illegally. And/or punish them when they do. Do it for the puppies!

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39 COMMENTS

  1. Every single instance of dogs being shot that I have ever been personally aware of has been at the hands of cops (save a few old farmers putting down old yeller).

    I would find it incredibly hard to believe there is a group that shoots more dogs, besides illegal dog fighting rings.

    • I thought the same thing, police interactions and euthanasia of fighting dogs. A distant third may be oriental restaurants.

    • It’s not all cops. Mostly slum and burb cops it seems to me. I’ve had police out to our property 3 times and all 3 times the dogs were running loose. A Pitbull, a Danish Chicken Dog, and an English Mastiff.

      Instance 1. Drunk down the road didn’t like how fast my mom was going up our private road (no posted limits) to visit me and thought she should know his feelings. I told him to leave my property now. He refused. I told him 2 more times and called the cops. They came out and ran into all 3 dogs. I was fuming and forgot to put them away. Cop got out of his cruiser, petted the 2 biggest, took my statement and my mothers, went down to drunkies house and told him to stuff it.

      Instance 2. Same drunk different day. He showed again when parents were visiting. This time with his German Shepard which he told my dad he’d trained to attack. He was now yelling at my dad. I again told him to get off of my property 3 times. He said something that my dad didn’t quite hear and out of his blazer came that GS. Only on it’s way to my dad my Mastiff intervened. She pinned it to the ground by the throat. A 193 lb mama dog is no joke.

      The drunk threatened to shoot her while my dad was breaking it up, to which I replied “If you fire a gun anywhere near my dad while he’s breaking that up it will be the biggest and last mistake you ever make”. I called the cops after he left in his drunk mobile and they came out and after talking to both of us asked if I wanted to file charges. I said “No but explain to him that I consider him a trespasser from this point on and he’s no longer welcome on my property.” The cop actually said that he’s dealt with this guy before, and that if he’s on my property again that I’d best be armed. He has a violent record I found out later so I took that officers words to heart.

      The dogs were all petted, the cop really liked my Mastiff and was wondering if I was a breeder as he’d like one.

      Instance 3. A rifle round was shot through my front window by some new to the country idiots that didn’t know that you should probably check what’s behind your target before you start shooting. Two cops came out for this. The larger of the two, a 6’4″ guy was hugging my Mastiff before he left and asked if I knew anyone that was selling pups. The other was rubbing my Pitbull’s belly while she tried to lick his other hand.

      Now these were rural cops. For some reason they have brains in their skulls not a sign that reads “Room for Rent”. That was 4 different officers too. So I’m fairly sure that it’s a training thing, familiarity with animals thing, or just down right common sense thing. I’ve seen enough videos of cops shooting dogs that are just standing there to last a lifetime. The guys that do that are guys that just want to kill something. I believe they’re the same type that beat their wives, rape women, sleep on duty (I’ve startled two sleepers in my life trying to ask for directions), and in general are trying to get back at the world and God for giving them a small penis and just enough brains to realize their misfortune.

    • Puppy murdering cops are the #1 reason why I passed up a career in police work after leaving the infantry. I think they get off on it, Makes em feel powerful, abusing something smaller, weaker, with no legal recourse. I saw the type that wanted the career when EAS season came around and I wanted none of it.

      Weak and cowardly criminals.

      Out of dozens of interactions with cops, only one ever turned anything fruitful, in which he was a foster for the local shelter.

      The rest were a waste of effort.

  2. There’s a certain dog-obsessed reporter at one of the Atlanta TV stations that I’m betting will be all over this. Anytime somebody so much as farts in the general direction of a dog, this dude grabs his GoPro and one-man-bands it out the door to cover the “story.” I swear, if you want to meet him in person, just post something on facebook about somebody being less than charitable toward a dog. He’ll probably break the sound barrier to get to you.

  3. Every time I read a story about a cop shooting a dog it makes my blood boil. Our dog is just as much a family member as my kids and any cop will rue the day he makes that mistake. Helpful hint to cops, if the dog isn’t physically attached to your or someone else’s body by the teeth, don’t shoot. If you’re running through someone’s yard while chasing a suspect, just keep running. Never show fear to a dog, they are pack animals by instinct.

    • Being a friend to all canines, I have a tear in my eye every time I hear of another unarmed black dog gunned down by the police (sorry, I couldn’t help that).
      At the same time, no cop should have to wait until the teeth are embedded in his leg to open fire. The ones that really piss me off are the times when the dog is clearly not a threat: chained up, not aggressive, a shi Tzu, whatever.

    • If your dog is equal to your children you have some deep seated issues. I understand we tend to exaggerate to make a point, but I would ask that you reevaluate your statement, please.

      • My dog is not equal to my kids. But if you shoot my dog, I have all sorts of legal reasons to fear that shooting was the first step to you coming to kill me and my kids and wife.

        Now, I don’t make threats and I don’t like ultimatums. But I would suggest in general that I am not the only person who feels that way. I would also suggest avoiding as much as possible shooting at a living creature on another person’s property as the end result may very well be a legally justified DGU from the dog/property owner.

      • He did not say that his dogs were “equal” to his children, he said they were family members, as are mine, and a loss of one of them, even from natural causes, is a heartrending experience for me, as it is for many many people. Are you suggesting that someone has some sort of psychological issue or disease because they lover their dog(s)? If so, may I suggest you look in the mirror.

      • To some, who have no children, their pets take that place. I have no children and very little family, none within 1000 miles. The love I have for my dogs is something I can only equate with a parents love. It’s not a problem. My dogs are more well adjusted and intelligent than many children being raised by human parents today. The reason dogs have such sort lives is because they have life figured out pretty quickly. Love unconditionally, be loyal to family and manipulate another species to take care of their every need.

  4. NEVER HEARD OF BRADY GIVING A FLYING F ABOUT THE EVIL POS MF’S KILLING UNBORN KIDS WITH SCISSORS.

    MFs won’t even support a NO-PAIN ABORTION.

    F em all. The Brady sh_ts are NOT EVEN HUMAN.

    • So let’s just allow for violence against all innocent living things? My wife received 50 plus stitches from a dog attack and she didn’t cry hardly a tear. She probably handled it better than I did. Maybe we shouldn’t hire such soft police officers. I agree, if a dog is shot from more than 1 foot away, it’s because of unfounded fear. How should I Believe the cop will react to any unjustified human target he feels threatened by. I was in a situation where the I was in contact with police. A urban cop wanna be soldier comes into my house and my dog is cowering in the corner of her bed, with a nervous growl, no teeth. This assifer, pulls his gun and asks his command for permission to shoot my dog. Luckily the commander was a real cop with a level head. He gave that guy a look of “WTF is your problem”. Shooting someone’s beloved family member without just cause will do more to create a gap rather than a bond between cop and citizen. Smart officers know this. I wish more of those cops would speak out when they see that kind of crap. Btw, I am not a felon. If they had shot my dog I would be.

  5. Joggers in my upper middle class neighborhood carry small clubs. Since no one here has ever been mugged, I can only assume it’s to deal with loose dogs that think it’s fun to chase joggers.

    Horseback riders often have the same problem. Joe A-hole turns loose his Rottweiler / pit bull mix and it heads straight for a horse and rider. This doesn’t always work the way the dog expects. Some horses hate dogs and will trample them if given the opportunity. Mine doesn’t care one way or the other. I’ve learned that turning him to face a yapping dog and advancing at a walk will persuade the dog that he has urgent business elsewhere.

    • Apparently this Dog Lives Matter exists to occupy the time of those Brady Bunch chumps who just couldn’t get into Black Lives Matter.

  10. This is getting ridiculous… This news story implies there is an epidemic of people that shoot dogs… Got to love Bloomberg

    • Filthy, dirty ape…
      Y’know, what bothered me most about that was how quickly it was forgotten that a negligent mom let her little brat climb into that zoo enclosure in the first place

  12. A number of years back our surly Post Office delivery guy approached our yard with mail. We were doing yard work in the front yard. Ginger, our Golden Retriever was all the way across the yard, just in front of the house, chewing a stick (her contribution to the yard work!). The postman walked up the driveway, a good 40 feet away from the dog who was not even looking his way, and said to us, “Keep your dog back, I would hate to have to mace it.”

    In this case, the dog was nowhere near him, not paying attention to him, not threatening, etc. She had never once approached this, or any other postman.

    Needless to say, I called the Post Master and complained. That guy got a good reprimand for his unnecessary threats. He was just too full of himself.

    • I have people come to my door or in my front door regularly. Some love dogs and have never been bitten, some have been bitten more than once–usually by an ankle biter. (Those yappers are the worst!) It’s like cats sitting on the lap of the one person in the room that doesn’t like cats–dogs know who doesn’t like them, so they bite them. (I have never been bitten by a dog other than as part of play, and those don’t count.)

  15. Dogs are being shot?

    I had not heard of this problem. Clearly the dogs need to arm themselves.

    It’s either that or they’re going to get dosed with liberal propaganda and the next thing you know they’ll all be protesting with chants of “Disarm police! Rub my belly!”

  17. OK, I’ll set me up as a whipping boy (person/entity/creature?)….

    An anti-gun takes up a good cause, and we cannot have a word of encouragement, or qualified support?

    Like most here, every time I read of a cop shooting a dog, I find my opinion of cops reinforced: the only difference between cops and the criminal element is the combination of a shiny badge, and a full-up uniform. Like lawyers, I have no respect for them, unless I need them, then I expect them to fight like hell for my safety/case.

    Because……I am their employer.

  18. Where I live, the huge majority of dogs killed by cops are killed by ~5% of cops who seem to think it’s a sport. They never get held accountable by the good cops we’re always hearing about though.

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