Off Duty federal officer shoots dog at dog park

[PeppyGPhiB]

I'm thinking there is more to this story than what is written here. I can't imagine a dog owner just so heartlessly killing another dog so easily.

Also, although Siberian Huskies are generally friendly, even the AKC says that their "predatory instincts run strong," so you have to watch them when they play. Some can actually be very standoffish to strangers. Years ago in the neighborhood where I grew up, two huskies mauled a woman who came to their front door (the back gate was apparently open).

Anyway, I have taken a dog to an off-leash area on leash before. A lot of people think of a leash as a restriction for a dog, but a leash is also meant for the dog's protection. I took one of my dogs to our huge dog park on a leash the first time we went there, because I wasn't sure how he would react and I wanted to be able to get control of him quickly if something went wrong. We had no problems with the other dogs attacking him.

It drives me absolutely nuts - no, actually it angers me - when people don't have control of their dog at a dog park. Just because it's off-leash does not mean owners can check their responsibility at the gate. I have had SO many dogs play far too rough with my dog for her taste, and I WILL and HAVE defended her against some dogs that take "playing" too far. "Oh, he's just playing!" the other owners always say, and I say back, "Well, mine's not! Look at her body language - she's running to me for protection, practically trying to hide between my legs!" People just don't get it. Maybe your dog plays rough, but not all dogs do, and my dog doesn't have to put up with it. Furthermore, some "playing" is not playing at all, but is actually more of an aggressive cat and mouse game. I can tell whether my dog is enjoying playing with another dog, or whether that dog is stalking and preying on her, trying to exert his/her dominance. I have had to kick some dogs off of my dog when they *clearly* were preying on my dog, not playing, and yet their owners were still clueless when I yelled at them to control their dogs.

I'll admit, if my dog was being attacked - I mean, outright attacked, yelping, blood, etc. - and I had a gun, I would be tempted to fire a shot. Maybe not to kill, but to wound it if I thought it would release its grip on my dog.