# Cops shoot 5lb dog for getting loose



## Swagger (May 6, 2009)

http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story...CUBVDkUzA.cspx

excerpt:
"A Blue Ash family is outraged after returning home to find their dog had been shot and killed by a police officer.

The dog was a Chihuahua-mix named “Jack” that Scott and Sharon Bullock had given to their 12-year-old son for his birthday a few years ago.

When the Bullocks returned home from a family member's funeral on Friday, they found blood and three bullets on their front porch – along with a note to call the Blue Ash Police Department about their dog.

The Bullocks were shocked to learn that Jack had gotten out of the backyard and two officers who tried to catch him, ended up shooting and killing him right on the family's front porch."

full police report:
http://www.blueash.com/filestorage/7...ckJune2009.pdf

report highlights:
* the claim that a taser and two 9mm rounds into a chihuahua "did nothing"
* the PD is forcing the dog owner to pay for the officer's medical bills, including an ambulance ride... because chihuahua bites require an ambulance.
* the PPD whining that the dog's owner didn't show "remorse" for the dog having bit the cop (they refer to themselves as "the victim", ignoring the family member that they murdered.)
* the admission that they didn't capture the dog safely with a snare pole, because they had trouble using it, and they didn't call the SPCA until they killed the dog
* That they are charging the owner with having a 'dangerous and vicious dog'...


Apparently it's department policy to set aside the snare pole, let the dog bite you 26 times, set aside the taser, shoot the dog, and then call animal control.

















pic of criminal:


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## JerzeyGSD (Jun 26, 2008)

Are. You.







. Kidding. Me. What is going on with these cops lately and why in the **** are they even being called to deal with loose dogs?! Is that not why we have created the SPCA or animal control?! All these stories lately are making me so angry because the logic the cops use is just, well, stupid!


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## aubie (Dec 22, 2008)

Their cousins must work for the Birmingham PD!

Serioulsy, this is horrible and wrong!!


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## Swagger (May 6, 2009)

Here are the correct links
http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Fam...qCUBVDkUzA.cspx

http://www.blueash.com/filestorage/79/PoliceReport-BullockJune2009.pdf


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## dd (Jun 10, 2003)

Another good reason to keep your dog indoors when you aren't home.


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## atravis (Sep 24, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: aubieTheir cousins must work for the Birmingham PD!


Amen to that


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## Annikas Mom (Jun 10, 2004)

This is very sad indeed and could have been prevented by keeping the dog safely contained when not being supervised. With that said, I have a 5lb Chihuahua that has bitten me on many occasions(he is a complete a**) and each time while he is latched on to me I have grabbed him by the scruff and tossed him in a crate, the cop could have easily done the same, minus the crate, heck he was already bitten by the dog. I have to say I have never been intentionally bitten by any of my GSDs, **** Chihuahua isn't wired correctly. I see no viable reason for deadly force against a 5lb dog...


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

"Vicious" dog running at large and lack of "dangerous dog pen"? Are they serious? The dog was "running at large," but there were bullet casings and blood on the porch? How does that happen. 

So catch pole failed, taser (supposedly) failed, and they shot it three times before it let go? A little dog? It even says "small dog" in the police report. 

Just heartbreaking:

""He ‘barks’ for him" added Scott Bullock. "He'd ‘bark’ and Jack would always come to him, so he's outside going ‘Bark bark bark,’ hoping he's gonna come back. It's heartbreaking."

The Bullocks told their five-year-old and three-year-old sons that Jack ran away."


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

If the officer had been charged by an 80lbs German Shepherd and bitten 26 times, would he have been justified in shooting the dog then?


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## BlackPuppy (Mar 29, 2007)

I work in Blue Ash - right across the street from the police station.


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## Annikas Mom (Jun 10, 2004)

> Originally Posted By: HistorianIf the officer had been charged by an 80lbs German Shepherd and bitten 26 times, would he have been justified in shooting the dog then?


Unfortunately, yes he would have been justified. I say unfortunately because again it could be avoided by properly containing the dog in the first place... A German Shepherd will do a lot more damage with one bite that a Chihuahua can do in 26 bites, so the danger is much greater to the officer and to cilvians. In saying that I do not mean that if a civilian is charged by a Chihuahua or any other 5lb dog that they should not protect their dog or children from it but the danger is just not the same and again it is, in the end, the owner's fault for not protecting their dog and their community, large or small, from running at large...


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: HistorianIf the officer had been charged by an 80lbs German Shepherd and bitten 26 times, would he have been justified in shooting the dog then?


Where does the "26 times" come from? The police report says the dog bit the officer's left hand and then latched onto the right hand. 

The chihuahua mix was not charging when the officer was bitten. They chased the chihuahua mix around the yard, unable to use a catch pole. 

If they were chasing a German Shepherd around a yard (running AWAY from them), unable to use a catch pole, would they have called ASPCA? or proceeded as they did?

The dog was shot....on the porch....when it was "cornered" by officers. The officer reached for the dog, and the dog bit him. The other officer tasered the dog (a chihuahua mix), and that didn't "work." In the police report, it says, "Officer X told Officer Y to 'stand back' and fired two rounds in the abdomen, and the third was a fatal shot...the dog released."

How hard can it be to shake off a chihuahua, have another officer grab, etc.? I've been bitten by one before that tore up my hand in between my thumb and index finger.


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## aubie (Dec 22, 2008)

I think so Hisotrian, but a GSD bite is much different than a chi bite meaning that it could cause death since a GSD could reach the cops throat...and you can remove a chi/5lb dog much easier than an 80lb GSD. 

There were other ways to deal with a 5lb dog. Of course, AC should have been called first, not the PD.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

> Quote:Where does the "26 times" come from?


From the original post.


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## Syaoransbear (Sep 25, 2008)

HEY GUYS LETS PICK UP THIS STRANGE FRIGHTENED DOG WITH OUR BARE HANDS AND INSTEAD OF GETTING GLOVES AFTER BEING BIT 26 TIMES WE'LL JUST SHOOT IT !!

There's no easy way to deliver a non-lethal blow to 5 pound dog with a gun. At least if they kicked it it would have a chance at living. I have a hard time believing this dog was that difficult to get. I mean, how hard is it to just throw a blanket over it and scoop it up. If they "attempted to tase the dog while another officer was holding him" at one point they DID catch the dog and there was nothing more to do than simply throw it in the car.


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: Historian
> 
> 
> > Quote:Where does the "26 times" come from?
> ...



That wasn't factual. That was the OP's embellishment.









The officer was only bitten twice. The second time, the dog "latched" on.


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## BlackPuppy (Mar 29, 2007)

You'd latch on if you were being tazed.


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## LARHAGE (Jul 24, 2006)

This is absolutely ridiculous and it makes me so mad, I have a Chihuahua, and have been bitten numerous times by him, they are a feisty little breed, who hasn't been bitten by a Chi in their life , as a kid my Grandma had one, and as a child it didn't faze me, and my Chi is not 5ibs, these big macho a-holes couldn't deal with this HUMANELY!!!!!!!! The dog was on it's porch cornered, no wonder it attacked, I HATE the a-hole who did this, what gives them the right!!!!!!! IF there is justice the %^&#ker will get rabies and have to endure an excrutiating series of shots, it would serve him well, some cops have this attitude that just burns my ass, just because you put on a fur coat doesn't make you King Kong!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Syaoransbear (Sep 25, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: SouthernThistleThat wasn't factual. That was the OP's embellishment.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


But the news article says, 

_"Blue Ash police say one of the officers was bitten on both hands. One hand was bitten 17 times and the other was bitten nine times."_


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## Swagger (May 6, 2009)

^^yeah that


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## angelaw (Dec 14, 2001)

Ok, am I the only one who sees this differently? So just because it's a small breed dog it shouldn't be held up to the same scrutiny? That's the problem. Small dogs, like chi's, bite quite often. Oh but their so cute, so it doesn't get reported. This dog bit a jogger, she called the PD. I don't know about there, but if a/c is closed, our county sheriff dept takes over those calls. Emergencies then a/c will come in. Most cops don't have the training to deal with animals. Dog was loose, bit a jogger, bit a police man. Sorry he had to pay with his life, but again, his owners were completely irresponsible. Who was looking out for him while they were away OUT OF STATE attending a funeral? Taser was used after the dog kept biting and wouldn't let go initially.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

> Quote:Ok, am I the only one who sees this differently? So just because it's a small breed dog it shouldn't be held up to the same scrutiny? That's the problem. Small dogs, like chi's, bite quite often. Oh but their so cute, so it doesn't get reported.


That's the point I was trying to make. I guess I'm not as good at translating thought into word today as I was yesterday ...



> Quote:This dog bit a jogger, she called the PD. I don't know about there, but if a/c is closed, our county sheriff dept takes over those calls. Emergencies then a/c will come in. Most cops don't have the training to deal with animals. Dog was loose, bit a jogger, bit a police man. Sorry he had to pay with his life, but again, his owners were completely irresponsible. Who was looking out for him while they were away OUT OF STATE attending a funeral? Taser was used after the dog kept biting and wouldn't let go initially.


Well said.

Could this have been handled better? Certainly. But not everyone knows dogs or how to deal with them or handle them.


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## windwalker718 (Oct 9, 2008)

Well, having read the entire report... seems that

1) the family left the dog outdoors for an extended length of time unsupervised

2) the dog has a history of "nipping neighbors". That it dug out and bit a jogger unprovoked. 

3) tried to catch the dog (as required where there's a bite) the dog (now +2 years old and not the cute little puppy in the picture) the dog chomped on the officer numerous times.

4) both officers paniced when the dog wouldn't let go 

5) The dog hadn't been vaccinated for rabies thus the officer and the jogger bitten most likely are going to have to go thru the anti-rabies treatment!

Did the officers over-react in shooting the dog... absolutely... BUT the owners of the dog are wrong on so many points that they're at least equally guilty. Unfortunately the dog suffers from human negligence as usual.

Shame on all of them!!


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## aubie (Dec 22, 2008)

I don't think it's because it's "cute" I think it was overboard due to the dog's size. This isn't just a simple case of little dog bites not ever getting reported while big dog bites get all the press.

This is about officers going way overboard in their actions. There's no need to shoot to kill a 5lb dog. I don't care if it's going ballistic on you, your ankles or whatever. You can handle that dog, physically, without guns. 

I would hope that two grown men could overpower a 5lb dog without lethal force, and if they can't they probably shouldn't be cops or heck, own a goldfish!


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## Annikas Mom (Jun 10, 2004)

I get what you are saying 100% Angela! My thoughts are how does one get themselves bit 26 times on the hand by a Chihuahua without being able to subdue him without deadly force? I am having a hard time visualizing it since I have one at home that has bitten me on numerous occasions and never once has he gotten in more than one bite at a time... In the end there really is no one to blame but the dog's owners...


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## aubie (Dec 22, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Annikas MomI get what you are saying 100% Angela! My thoughts are how does one get themselves bit 26 times on the hand by a Chihuahua without being able to subdue him without deadly force?


Umm..they could have used the catch pole instead of putting it down and grabbing for the dog?


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## angelaw (Dec 14, 2001)

Initially they said they tried and couldn't get the pole over his head. Either way, plenty of mistakes, and def. lack of training on BOTH parties.


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## Annikas Mom (Jun 10, 2004)

> Originally Posted By: aubie
> 
> 
> > Originally Posted By: Annikas MomI get what you are saying 100% Angela! My thoughts are how does one get themselves bit 26 times on the hand by a Chihuahua without being able to subdue him without deadly force?
> ...


good answer!!


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## aubie (Dec 22, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Angela_WInitially they said they tried and couldn't get the pole over his head. Either way, plenty of mistakes, and def. lack of training on BOTH parties.


It was my understanding that they couldn't get the dog with the pole as it was running around. Once they got it cornered, they dropped the pole and decided to grab it with their bare hands...you know, what anyone would do with such a vicious dog...









Many errors lead to this dog's death by the cops and the owners.


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## Swagger (May 6, 2009)

hard to believe a tazer had no effect on a 5lb chi


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## LARHAGE (Jul 24, 2006)

I agree the owners are to blame, but this doesn't minimize the fact the two brainless cops couldn't subdue a 5lb dog, there are 101 different things they could have done, without shooting and killing it, what would any of us have done, we don't have a gun to carry around and brandish at will whenever things just piss us off. These two idiots shouldn't either!!!!


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

I don't understand why they didn't call animal control when they were unable to catch the dog?

Also if this is a 5 lb dog couldn't they just have thrown a towel over it or something when they had it cornered, instead of trying to grab a cornered dog (always a bad idea.)

The quote someone posted said the officer was bitten 17 times in one hand etc-- I'm wondering if they actually meant 26 bites (or whatever the total was) or if they really meant 26 tooth marks? One bite could result in 7-10+ marks and it seems crazy the dog would actually be able to bite them 26 separate times.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

The owners should pay the ambulance and hospital bills.

The owners should pay and hefty fine for letting their dog run at large.

The owners have no one but themselves to blame for their dog's demise. 

The dog took a few bullets, could have been car wheels just as easily. 

Frankly, the owners did not care enough about their dog to contain it or train it. 

Just because it is small does not give people the right to leave it loose. 

I would rather cops have training in how to manage an elderly woman in a traffic citation than teaching them how to use a catch pole on a chiauau. 

Sorry, I think shooting a small dog like that is not something those officers set out to do when they woke up that morning. After being bitten 26 times, the officers could not just leave the dog to its own devices. The could not let it get away or the officer would probably have to take rabies vaccines. It really was a menace. If it was after hours for animal control or whatever, the cops got called in, oh well. 

Yeah, the owners should be apologizing. They were 100% wrong and got their dog killed because of it. They need to quit bellyaching.


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## Kayos and Havoc (Oct 17, 2002)

> Originally Posted By: Historian
> 
> 
> > Quote:Ok, am I the only one who sees this differently? So just because it's a small breed dog it shouldn't be held up to the same scrutiny? That's the problem. Small dogs, like chi's, bite quite often. Oh but their so cute, so it doesn't get reported.
> ...



Nope you guys are not the only one's that see it this way. A dog can be "vicious" and "dangerous" whether he weights 5 pounds or 80 pounds and no matter the breed. 

The entire story is sad indeed and I feel for the family but I don't necessarily fault the police.


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## Annikas Mom (Jun 10, 2004)

> Originally Posted By: selzerThe owners should pay the ambulance and hospital bills.
> 
> The owners should pay and hefty fine for letting their dog run at large.
> 
> ...


You can't be serious! It is wrong for police officers to taser a woman who is combative and resisting arrest but it is ok for them to taser and put 3 bullets in a 5lb dog after it has been cornered on it's own front porch?


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

9 News has an update to the story here.
http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Pol...Bz0bRSbG3w.cspx

Reading the police report, these people certainly aren't stellar dog owners. They left the dog outside in the yard while they left to go out-of-state to a funeral. The dog had no rabies vaccinations (which probably means it didn't have any other vaccinations, either) and no license tag.

IMHO this is another case where owner stupidity gets a pet killed. Just like the case where the woman let her dog run loose to poop all over the neighbors' yards until a neighbor shot it.


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## Annikas Mom (Jun 10, 2004)

...and in the end the child and his dog suffer/die for his parents negligence, very sad and frustrating!!


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I'd rather see police officers get training in conflict management and how to deal with mentally challenged people or kids, than having us spend money to train them how to catch stray toy dogs.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

the children are suffering, or not. 

That is the parents' look out. 

I can guarantee one thing. The parents are not telling their kids that the dog suffered and died because they failed to take care of him properly. 

These kids will grow up and buy small dogs and spoil them and let them bite the neighbors and poop on their lawns. 

The kids are doomed anyway. 

I do not see that as the police's fault.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

The dog is dead. He is NOT suffering now. 

In the end, the officer suffers multiple bite wounds and if they do not examine the dog's brain, may suffer rabies vaccines. 

Dog Owners (not guardians, not parents) NEED to CONTAIN their dogs regardless to their training, their temperament, their size, their weight, their breed, their color, their champion status, their age, and their cuteness.


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## angelas (Aug 23, 2003)

Well, at least I'm not the only one who doesn't fault the police for shooting a vicious dog that was in the act of biting one of them and had a history of other aggressive behavior and a history of running at large.

So, does a bite from a Chihuahua, even though it is smaller than a GSD, hurt any less than any other dog bite? Have less potential to cause infection?


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: selzerI'd rather see police officers get training in conflict management and how to deal with mentally challenged people or kids, than having us spend money to train them how to catch stray toy dogs.


no doubt. i just think animal control is better trained to handle this. do you think they could not have caught this dog? of course they would have. the police called them anyway, after they killed it. bad owners? yes. something that can be done without killing a dog. absolutely. avoidable by both sides.

cop talking to his partner: "hey, we're not having any luck coralling this s.o.b.. lets call animal control to secure him."

partner: "good idea."

if this was not part of their procedure, it should be. the very idea that any dog, no matter the size, can pose a danger to the police, is precisely the reason to let someone who is used to handling dogs deal with it.

im not absolving the owners at all, but that doesnt eliminate the necessity of handling such cases in a better manner.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Our county has one guy, the dog warden. The county is the biggest in Ohio. If there is a marauding dog and the dog warden is in south county, the police have to deal with it. 

I can just see two police officers explaining to neighbors, "we have to wait for AC to come." I can see giving it a sporting try first. 

If my dogs ever got out, it would take our dog warden and the whole sherriff's department to round them up. 

If one of my dogs got loose and a cop tried to catch it, got bit several times and ended up shooting the dog, I would feel awful, but it would not be the officer's fault. It would be my fault.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

> Quote:
> cop talking to his partner: "hey, we're not having any luck coralling this s.o.b.. lets call animal control to secure him."
> 
> partner: "good idea."


It is my understanding from the article that, because the dog had bitten a jogger before police came out there, police HAD to contain the dog in some manner to prevent it from running off, since the dog's rabies status was undetermined. I don't know if they had the option of waiting for ACOs or SPCA personnel to respond?


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: selzer
> 
> I can just see two police officers explaining to neighbors, "we have to wait for AC to come." I can see giving it a sporting try first.


yes, if there are no other pressing matters for the police to deal with, why cant they wait for AC? in a town of 12,513 people, it seems more likely than not that they may have been able to wait.

in many cases the police may be able to round up a dog anyway. i would just like to see, in the rare case where the police feel it is time to shoot a dog to secure it, then give AC a chance, even if it means waiting a while (again, assuming there is not a more pressing police matter).


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## angelaw (Dec 14, 2001)

> Originally Posted By: angela scriverWell, at least I'm not the only one who doesn't fault the police for shooting a vicious dog that was in the act of biting one of them and had a history of other aggressive behavior and a history of running at large.
> 
> So, does a bite from a Chihuahua, even though it is smaller than a GSD, hurt any less than any other dog bite? Have less potential to cause infection?


No, as a kid, I've been bitten my neighbors chihuahua, best friends parents had 10 Pomeranians. Know how hard it is to walk when it hurts so bad because they're all biting??!!! One neighbor had a dachshund, it got out of their house, hubby opened up the front door to go get the mail, dog came running in the house, tried to attack our gsd in OUR home, bit my husband, he tossed it in the yard like a bowling ball. I've gotten worse bites from small dogs than I have bigger ones. I've been bitten by 1 gsd that had to be destroyed as no rabies vaccination (i was 8?). Still wasn't as bad as the little dogs.


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## Syaoransbear (Sep 25, 2008)

Where in the article does it say the dog bit a jogger? All it says is the family stating the dog had never bit anyone before. Is it in the police report? I can't view that because it explodes firefox (windows 7 RC hates me).


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

> Quote:Where in the article does it say the dog bit a jogger? All it says is the family stating the dog had never bit anyone before. Is it in the police report? I can't view that because it explodes firefox (windows 7 RC hates me).


Sorry to hear you're having trouble viewing the police report in Firefox. That's where it talks about the jogger / walker that was bitten. She is the one who originally reported the bite and the loose dog to police.

After her report, one officer went out to the location where he saw the dog, which he described as "approximately the size of a Jack Russell Terrier". He went to the home where the dog was in the yard or on the porch but nobody was home. Neighbors told him which of the homes the dog actually belonged to. Since they didn't know whether the dog had rabies shots, he attempted to catch it, and two other officers who'd responded to the location tried to help him.

Apparently, according to the report, they had to try and catch the dog since its rabies status was undetermined. It was also then that they found out from neighbors that the dog's owners had been gone since the weekend. (The dog had no rabies shot or license, as it turned out in the end - I hope the two people bitten don't have to go through the rabies treatment!)


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

They should have been able to examine the brain (at the owner's expense) to determine whether it had rabies or not.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

I believe that is what they are doing, according to the police report.


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## GSDinOly (Apr 19, 2009)

O....M....G. I can't even type out my thoughts to what I just read.


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: Chicagocanine
> 
> The quote someone posted said the officer was bitten 17 times in one hand etc-- I'm wondering if they actually meant 26 bites (or whatever the total was) or if they really meant 26 tooth marks?


The police report says bitten "twice:" dog bit the officer once on the left hand then "latched onto" the right hand.

While I am not on the side of the owners (because their dog was loose - I thought I read in the police report that they owned other dogs inside the house? - their dog did bite a woman jogging), I think the police officers could have done a better job of neutralizing the situation (e.g. calling ASPCA to come out with a catch pole instead of calling after they shot the dog).


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## gbocrafty (Apr 2, 2009)

Two years ago a NC Highway Patrol officer was recorded beating and kicking his K9 dog while the dog was hanging from his porch.

http://news14.com/content/top_stories/595384/highway-patrol-halts-k9-procedures/Default.aspx

The was a lot of press -the officer was fired, but latter rehired.

AND the patrol defended this action saying it was an acceptable form of training. a BIG BS.

So if a K9 officer doesn't respect his dog why would anyone expect him to repect someone else's dog.


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## angelaw (Dec 14, 2001)

I train with a couple of k9 officers, luckily they're NOT like that!!


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## dd (Jun 10, 2003)

Seems to be a trend:
http://www.timesdispatch.com/rtd/news/state_regional/article/DOGGAT11_20090611-071201/273228/


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## Swagger (May 6, 2009)

First of all, to understand what happened to Killer, you gotta understand who Killer the dog WAS...


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## DFrost (Oct 29, 2006)

> Originally Posted By: gbodaneTwo years ago a NC Highway Patrol officer was recorded beating and kicking his K9 dog while the dog was hanging from his porch.
> 
> http://news14.com/content/top_stories/595384/highway-patrol-halts-k9-procedures/Default.aspx
> 
> ...


Actually, the patrol fired him, a judge put him back to work. What does that have to do with the dog that was killed. It wasn't that Trooper that did it. Surely you're not saying because one K9 Officer mistreated his dog that all cops do the same.

DFrost


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