# German Shepherd shot by trooper



## Angel55 (Sep 1, 2011)

Never thought something this despicable could happen in my home town.

Questions linger after former trooper shoots Utica man?s dog - Utica, NY - The Observer-Dispatch, Utica, New York

I used to come to this site 5+ years ago and read about this happening elsewhere. 

What are we to do?


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

what are we to do? what was he supposed to do ? answer , control his dog , keep him on leash. from what I read he was in a an area marked for leashed dog (conservation-greenbelt greens) and he had been charged twice before for violations .


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## KZoppa (Aug 14, 2010)

very sad


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## Angel55 (Sep 1, 2011)

Man seeks justice for shooting death of his dog | NBC-WKTV News Channel 2 - Utica News, Weather, Sports - | Local News

He was PLAYING with his dog, the trooper got out of his car with his pistol drawn and shot his dog and the dog could not move. The dog was far away, trooper was in no danger. Then he shot him again and again. Did you even read the whole article? 

The above reference is from TV news.


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## e.rigby (May 28, 2011)

He may have been playing with his dog, but his dog was off leash and in both articles the dog started toward the retired officer. As to how the dog approached, who knows... but if the dog was running (and I've seen friendly dogs run up to people) then the dog could have been perceived as a threat. 

I feel for the owner, and I'm sad the dog died. But seriously, if you go to a public area, you need to have your dog on a leash... at the very least, you need to have your dog on a long line. If the dog is not under the owners control to the point where the dog would break engagement with his owner to check out a new person than the dog probably shouldn't be off leash because it can become a liability. 

The most interesting part of the story comes from the part (in both articles) where the owner claims there was a heated dispute the day before and a threat was made. I think if the retired officer was only at the park because of that woman, than perhaps there is some foul play involved... however, maybe the woman only told the officer that this guy often took his dog off leash and wasn't expecting the dog to get shot, but the owner ticketed? Who knows...


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

Well, dogs are off leash in public areas here all the time.
I don't enjoy them many times, but shooting never occured to me as the course of action. Our AC officers, the people charged with animal code violations and rounding up loose dogs, do not even carry weapons. 

The punishment hardly seems to fit the crime.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Any time you see a news report, you have to take it with a grain of salt -- Doing SAR, I have seen so many places where the press did not get it right.

That said, I feel for the guy (actually the dog, not him), but he has already had problems with letting his dog offlead and running up to people which is terribly terribly rude. Some people don't learn.


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## BlackPuppy (Mar 29, 2007)

That's scary! 

Balto will run up to people to say hello.


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## Caledon (Nov 10, 2008)

This story looks complex.

The ex-tropper got out of his car with a gun in his hand. If he was afraid of the dog, he should have stayed in the car till the dog/owner left. I always do this. If I don't like a situation immediately around me I will wait before when taking my dog in/out of the vehicle.

Why did the owner let the dog off leash upon returning his car.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

who knows what the full story is . The owner has had violations and fines before for "dog off lead". What if there had been complaints about a dog charging people . 
It really is a mess of a story, the reaction was over the top -- . The owner is not an innocent by stander , he is responsible also . 

what does ex-trooper mean? Is this someone who has come back from service and might have post traumatic stress syndrome? 

Carmen


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## DharmasMom (Jul 4, 2010)

I'm sorry but this story stinks to high heaven. First, there is an altercation the day before and threats are made. Second, there is apparently a connection between the woman that made the threats and the shooter. Third, if the first shot disabled the dog and the "threat" was ended why did he walk up to the dog and but more bullets in the dog??

Yes, the dog should have been on leash. BUT- 30-40 feet is a pretty good distance away. Far enough away someone shouldn't have felt threatened enough or at least given an owner time to recall their dog or as someone said, choose to stay in your car. Unless of course you are looking for a confrontation.

The owner certainly should have had his dog leashed but he didn't deserve to have his dog shot. Especially since the dog didn't do anything wrong. Nobody gets to kill a dog because you "are afraid" if the dog was actually attacking, then I could see his point. Just running. Nope, sorry. Not buying it. It doesn't even say that the dog was barking, snarling, growling, showing teeth or any other signs of aggressiveness. 

And Carmen, "ex-trooper" means the guy has retired from the police department.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

I agree 200% -- there was absolutely no reason to go and stand over the dog to finish him off -- let the authorities investigate the full story and hope for justice 

Carmen


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## clearcreekranch (Mar 18, 2010)

carmspack said:


> I agree 200% -- there was absolutely no reason to go and stand over the dog to finish him off -- let the authorities investigate the full story and hope for justice
> 
> Carmen


Agreed.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Everybody was at fault except the dog. At least according to the article, everyone is at fault. 

The owner: Not everyone LOVES GSDs. In fact some people are afraid of them. This is not rocket science. Letting your dog run up to people is stupid and rude, unless it is someone you know. The previous night someone, was angry enough with him about his dog that she threatened him. Twice before he was ticketed. That PROBABLY means that he has been complained about dozens of times. But rules are for everyone else, and now that his dog is DEAD people should feel sorry for him. I think his part in his dog's death is somewhere between 30% and 70%. I am furious with him.

The shooter: he certainly was locked and loaded and shot the dog without considering any other alternative. Standing over the dog and shooting him more times -- that is despicable. I really wonder how these people think the rest of us manage to stay alive without shooting every dog that runs. If he actually IS the woman's connection, and we will probably never KNOW that if he is, then he actually had a lot of time to think about the repercussions to the act. I find that hard to believe, that anyone would think this through and do it anyway. However, maybe the woman called the guy and said there was a huge viscious GSD that was menacing her at the park, it has no leash and she thinks it will attack someone. Even then, you would think he would call the dog warden or animal control or even the police. Getting in his car and going there to take care of the problem is just bazaar. 

It is our job to protect our dogs. This guy failed to protect his dog. If you are walking your dog on lead down the street and a car drives up and someone shoots your dog. THAT would be 100% on the shooter. I think this guy has a portion of blame for letting his dog rush up to people he doesn't know, and for not keeping him under control, and doing this chronically. I mean, the first time your dog rushes up to a stranger, it is unlikely that the person will pull out a gun and shoot him. And going back the very next day and doing the same thing. Idiot. There are people in the world who will act without reason, without judgement, without restraint. knowing that to be the case, we should not use our dogs to tick people off. 

Now I have made use of a few fenced fields (fairgrounds), parking lots (public -- off hours), playgrounds, and parks where it is not necessarily an off-lead deal. But if someone comes, I immediately take hold of the dog, and generally leave. The only complaint I ever had was a sherriff deputy who felt I should not be in the parking lot with the dog, and I called and talked to someone higher up and was told that I could indeed train my dog there. It is not hard to protect your dog, and still let them run about a little bit, but you have to use common sense. If it is an on-leash area, and there are other people there, leash the dog.


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## msvette2u (Mar 20, 2006)

> It is our job to protect our dogs. This guy failed to protect his dog. If you are walking your dog on lead down the street and a car drives up and someone shoots your dog. THAT would be 100% on the shooter. I think this guy has a portion of blame for letting his dog rush up to people he doesn't know, and for not keeping him under control, and doing this chronically. I mean, the first time your dog rushes up to a stranger, it is unlikely that the person will pull out a gun and shoot him. And going back the very next day and doing the same thing. Idiot. There are people in the world who will act without reason, without judgement, without restraint. knowing that to be the case, we should not use our dogs to tick people off.


What gets me is someone gave this 67 yr. old guy a puppy, it's just going to happen again. It happened with the last dog he had, and he was cited twice. The leopard isn't going to change his spots, and this guy isn't going to miraculously start being responsible and keep his dog on a leash


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I would not turn someone away because they are 67 -- age is not a question I feel comfortable asking. 

And who knows what the guy told people about how his previous dogs met their demise. People are pretty smart sometimes about not letting on about how irresponsible they are. Thankfully, many are not that smart about it. Those people we can weed out.

And that is true. This guy this is totally the fault of the woman and her accomplice -- if that is even the case that she and he were in cahoots. When people do not see their part in a situation, they will not change anything, and the next dog will not be any safer.


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## DaveWallerCB (Jul 26, 2011)

I just wanted to share my story on this thread.

On a Sunday morning 7 am before church about four years ago I opened my front door and let my GSD (Bandit) out for a quick potty break before leaving for church. Standing in the front door I was called back in by my wife to help my daughter get ready to leave, MY MISTAKE AND 100% MY FAULT I went in and left Bandit out. About five minutes later we all heard a gunshot and raced outside, Bandit was running towards us bleeding like crazy. We grabbed him and rushed to the hospital, at the hospital we found out he was shot with a .22 through his chest puncturing both lungs. An hour later He died in my arms.

We left the hospital with me in a rage ready to kill one of my neighbors once I figured out who did it. I followed the blood trails under a fence to my neighbor behind's 5 acres., then told my wife I was going to drag him out his house and beat his face in the driveway of his house. She called the police who showed about 15 minutes later with me still banging his door to no answer. Once the deputies arrived He came out and the only explaination he gave was, "saw some dog on my property and went inside got my gun and shot it."

Well, like I mentioned before I take 100% responsiblity for going inside and leaving Bandit, but all my neighbor got was a stearn "you can't just do that" from the deputies. WHAT?? This dumb*** just did kill my dog. I was refer to Animal Police Houston, and after not calling for days was told "you don't have a case, dog was on his property." Spoke to a friend who is a judge and one who is a attorney both said nothing could be done.

I guess my point in telling the story is the shooter doesn't really need a reason to shot. At least in Texas anyway.

*LESSON LEARNED AS A OWNER, NEVER ALLOW MY DOG OUT UNSUPERVISED EVEN FOR A SECOND. *
Still miss ole Bandit like crazy. 



DharmasMom said:


> I'm sorry but this story stinks to high heaven. First, there is an altercation the day before and threats are made. Second, there is apparently a connection between the woman that made the threats and the shooter. Third, if the first shot disabled the dog and the "threat" was ended why did he walk up to the dog and but more bullets in the dog??
> 
> Yes, the dog should have been on leash. BUT- 30-40 feet is a pretty good distance away. Far enough away someone shouldn't have felt threatened enough or at least given an owner time to recall their dog or as someone said, choose to stay in your car. Unless of course you are looking for a confrontation.
> 
> ...


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## msvette2u (Mar 20, 2006)

We've adopted to older folks twice who've brought the dog back within 24hrs., not realizing "how much work" a puppy is.
We also adopted an 18mo. Springer to an older couple (over 60) that another rescue turned down, and it's working out great. But I tend to lean away from people over 60 for puppies because of a couple reasons, main one being activity levels being mismatched. 
(sorry, OT)


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## DharmasMom (Jul 4, 2010)

I thought the story said the altercation he had with the woman was over her being on a bicycle, not about his dog. I fully agree he should have had his dog on a leash, no question. But I have a REAL problem with people who "shoot first, ask questions later" and that mentality is WAY to prevalent in this country. If that guy did jump out of his car with his gun already in hand then he already planned to kill that dog and if he really did stand over it and fire several more shots into the already disabled dog then I can certainly see that happening. IF that is how it occurred then I tend to believe there is more to the story than he was just "frightened" and felt he needed to shoot the dog to protect himself. 

Like I said, this story stinks. It stinks like rotten fish on a hot summer day.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

DaveWallerCB said:


> I just wanted to share my story on this thread.
> 
> On a Sunday morning 7 am before church about four years ago I opened my front door and let my GSD (Bandit) out for a quick potty break before leaving for church. Standing in the front door I was called back in by my wife to help my daughter get ready to leave, MY MISTAKE AND 100% MY FAULT I went in and left Bandit out. About five minutes later we all heard a gunshot and raced outside, Bandit was running towards us bleeding like crazy. We grabbed him and rushed to the hospital, at the hospital we found out he was shot with a .22 through his chest puncturing both lungs. An hour later He died in my arms.
> 
> ...


I am sorry your dog got killed. 

People out here move to the country and suddenly they think their dog can just run loose, because they live in the country. Ohio has a state-wide leash law -- highly unenforced. If farmers see a dog going for their horses, cows, goats, sheep, chickens, rabbits, they can shoot your dog dead. 

My brother called the dog warden about an aggressive stray on his property, around the corner from me. He has about five acres. The dog warden told him that he was surprised he did not take care of the problem (meaning, he should have just shot the dog.)

Now, I notice what everyone in the neighborhood's dog looks like because I am a dog person and I am weird that way. But, I do not know what all my neighbors look like, and I do not know what cars they drive. I would hope that a neighbor would recognize my dog and call me to come and get him -- ideal. And certainly not to shoot the dog. But, maybe there are people in the world that do not pay attention to other people's dogs, who owns what dog. They just see a dog on the property, and it does not belong there. 
So, it is possible that your neighbor did not realize it was your dog, and also does not realize the bond people have with dogs, if they are not dog people.


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## DaveWallerCB (Jul 26, 2011)

Through what I later found out about this guy from neighbors on the left and right of me is that He has a history of threats and violence against peoples animals. Which I brought up later to the Animal Police Dept to no avail. They said there is no proof of malicious activity.

The folks are the right of me have a geese, ducks, donkeys, dogs, cats, chickens, and much more with no fencing. their animals slowly started disappearing. About 15 cats in a month, along with some of the birds, and one of her pups was shot with a .22(funny) but survived.
Folks on the left said he stopped by their place twice threating their labs for making to much noise at night.

My family moved for mainly this reason because I was likely gonna skull drag his seventy year old a** down the street. Before this I'd never met him.





[ 
So, it is possible that your neighbor did not realize it was your dog, and also does not realize the bond people have with dogs, if they are not dog people.[/QUOTE]


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## e.rigby (May 28, 2011)

selzer said:


> It is our job to protect our dogs. This guy failed to protect his dog. If you are walking your dog on lead down the street and a car drives up and someone shoots your dog. THAT would be 100% on the shooter. I think this guy has a portion of blame for letting his dog rush up to people he doesn't know, and for not keeping him under control, and doing this chronically. I mean, the first time your dog rushes up to a stranger, it is unlikely that the person will pull out a gun and shoot him. And going back the very next day and doing the same thing. Idiot. There are people in the world who will act without reason, without judgement, without restraint. knowing that to be the case, we should not use our dogs to tick people off.
> 
> Now I have made use of a few fenced fields (fairgrounds), parking lots (public -- off hours), playgrounds, and parks where it is not necessarily an off-lead deal. But if someone comes, I immediately take hold of the dog, and generally leave. The only complaint I ever had was a sherriff deputy who felt I should not be in the parking lot with the dog, and I called and talked to someone higher up and was told that I could indeed train my dog there. It is not hard to protect your dog, and still let them run about a little bit, but you have to use common sense. If it is an on-leash area, and there are other people there, leash the dog.


This. I have a hard time not finding the owner at fault because it seems his behavior put his dog at risk.

I work my dogs off leash in public areas, however, I am extremely careful and if at any point I feel uncomfortable or I see another person or animal coming near I immediately leash them. Even if they will respond to my verbal commands, I don't want to risk it. 

I think it's very rude when owners let their dogs just run up to people. Not everyone is going to be receptive to a dog, even it it is friendly... and I've seen people panic just at the site of Virgil (simply because he's a GSD)... so were he to actually start running up to a person like that (even if he did so with no ill intent) I'm sure the person would perceive him as a massive threat and fear for their life.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

selzer you said it so well.
I couldn't believe that the rescue folks gave this man another dog . Nothing to do with his age. 

I have to share that two weeks ago after 25 years living on this property , and with a dog being left secure in a 12 x 12 pen , we had an escape adventure. I came back to an empty kennel, door still secure . The female that was in there is a "goat-dog" even as a pup found her on top of the washing machine, as an adult running along a fence 4 x 4 horizontal board 5 feet high. This was a kennel she could not jump out of . Fluke weather. After weeks of no rain, drought, we had a sudden downpour . I guess the soil couldn't absorb so much water all at once so soil underneath was washed away. I saw that a sink hole right in the front corner right under the lower bar had developed and the large cement patio stones had collapsed into it allowing this female to crawl under and go for an adventure. Oh I looked all night, drove around after 1 a.m. putting my high beams on to peer into fields for any motion. I had to resign myself that if she went into the black angus operation across the street from us, or harrassed the pheasantry up the road, or went to the sheep right over the fence in my back yard , or down the street, she would be shot , as farmers have a right to do to protect their livestock, or she would be shot , because a sable GSD , especially with her wiry little hard body , could be mistaken for a coyote.

well -- it worked out okay for all concerned -- in fact I had an absolutely amazing improtu temperament test that someone could not think up -- and that told me tons about this female.

Carmen
Carmspack Working German Shepherd Dogs


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

carmspack said:


> selzer you said it so well.
> I couldn't believe that the rescue folks gave this man another dog . Nothing to do with his age.
> 
> I have to share that two weeks ago after 25 years living on this property , and with a dog being left secure in a 12 x 12 pen , we had an escape adventure. I came back to an empty kennel, door still secure . The female that was in there is a "goat-dog" even as a pup found her on top of the washing machine, as an adult running along a fence 4 x 4 horizontal board 5 feet high. This was a kennel she could not jump out of . Fluke weather. After weeks of no rain, drought, we had a sudden downpour . I guess the soil couldn't absorb so much water all at once so soil underneath was washed away. I saw that a sink hole right in the front corner right under the lower bar had developed and the large cement patio stones had collapsed into it allowing this female to crawl under and go for an adventure. Oh I looked all night, drove around after 1 a.m. putting my high beams on to peer into fields for any motion. I had to resign myself that if she went into the black angus operation across the street from us, or harrassed the pheasantry up the road, or went to the sheep right over the fence in my back yard , or down the street, she would be shot , as farmers have a right to do to protect their livestock, or she would be shot , because a sable GSD , especially with her wiry little hard body , could be mistaken for a coyote.
> ...


I am glad you got her back. There are crazies in the world, and we cannot stop living because they exist, but for the most part, neighbors do notice if you generally keep your dog on your property and under wraps, or if you just let them roam about at will. I always try to keep on the right side of neighbors, will give on all the small stuff. And they appreciate that I put up privacy fencing to keep the dogs from saying hello every time they move a muscle in their yard, not letting them run loose, etc. When I hear about people fighting about little things with neighbors, I always think, bad move. I think that MOST of the time when people shoot a neighbor dog it is after a history of problems with the dog. I actually had the sherriff's department tell me to shoot my neighbor's dog. I did not, but someone who is not crazy about dogs, might have, due to the frequency and scope of the issues.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I think maybe Chris Rock could do a little educational video for us. 

Do you sometimes worry that someone is going to shoot your dog? Well, here are some tips, and if you follow them, it is highly unlikely that anyone will shoot your dog. 

#1, LEASH YOUR DOG. If your dog is not out there running around, normally people are not going to shoot it. 

#2, DO NOT ALLOW YOUR DOG TO BE A NUISANCE. etc, etc.


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## msvette2u (Mar 20, 2006)

> I couldn't believe that the rescue folks gave this man another dog . Nothing to do with his age.


You're right - I tend to think of older folks as less willing to change, and that's why I originally mentioned age. Kind of like an..."always done it this way, don't see the need to do it differently!" because it's likely he's going to have similar problems in the future with this new dog. And as always, the dog will be the one that pays for owner stupidity.


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## LARHAGE (Jul 24, 2006)

I came home from work a couple of months ago to find a man standing outside my front gates waiting for me with a nice looking German Shepherd on a leash, I barely had time to get out of my truck before he started yelling about my two German Shepherds killing 3 goats and all of his rabbits, he said he could only catch my one dog and the other ran off, he than attempts to hand me the leash and tell me how much I owe for damages, I told him the slight problem was it wasn't my dog, this was a big blanket back male. He accused me of lying and said he saw my Shepherds everyday driving by my house, I explained my black/tan female was in her kennel, and my black/red male was in Germany! He about called me a liar so I brought him into my barn where my female was in her comfy box stall, secured with a grated door, no way she ever got out of there, than I gave him permission to look for my black/red male, but informed him he would need an airline ticket to do that, so I showed him a picture of him instead, showing he CLEARLY was not the dog on the end of his leash.

He apoligized and said he was just so frustrated because he secured his livestock in his yard and these 2 dogs just continually wreaked havoc, I felt really bad for him, I too have livestock and would be royally pissed if my horses were being chased and I'm super angry at the a-hole who owned them for giving the breed a bad name, and subjecting innocent dogs like mine to a chance of being harmed for something they didn't do, what if this guy decided to come to my house and shoot my dogs instead of talking to me first. I hate irresponsible people who place their animals in the position of being harmed.


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## DharmasMom (Jul 4, 2010)

LARHAGE said:


> I came home from work a couple of months ago to find a man standing outside my front gates waiting for me with a nice looking German Shepherd on a leash, I barely had time to get out of my truck before he started yelling about my two German Shepherds killing 3 goats and all of his rabbits, he said he could only catch my one dog and the other ran off, he than attempts to hand me the leash and tell me how much I owe for damages, I told him the slight problem was it wasn't my dog, this was a big blanket back male. He accused me of lying and said he saw my Shepherds everyday driving by my house, I explained my black/tan female was in her kennel, and my black/red male was in Germany! He about called me a liar so I brought him into my barn where my female was in her comfy box stall, secured with a grated door, no way she ever got out of there, than I gave him permission to look for my black/red male, but informed him he would need an airline ticket to do that, so I showed him a picture of him instead, showing he CLEARLY was not the dog on the end of his leash.
> 
> He apoligized and said he was just so frustrated because he secured his livestock in his yard and these 2 dogs just continually wreaked havoc, I felt really bad for him, I too have livestock and would be royally pissed if my horses were being chased and I'm super angry at the a-hole who owned them for giving the breed a bad name, and subjecting innocent dogs like mine to a chance of being harmed for something they didn't do, what if this guy decided to come to my house and shoot my dogs instead of talking to me first. I hate irresponsible people who place their animals in the position of being harmed.



WOW!! I am impressed he didn't just shoot the dog but he was attempting to return the dog and collect damages. Good for him!! And I hope he found the jerk owners and they paid him!! And I hope they were more diligent about their dogs in the future. Hey, I can HOPE, can't I??


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## GSDElsa (Jul 22, 2009)

Yeah, def more to this story!

It's upstate NY--I've NEVER...I repeat NEVER heard of anyone from that area being ticketed for an off-leash dog (not to say it can't happen but I have been all over this area and I've never heard anyone say they have been given a ticket for that). Yet this guy has managed it TWICE, plus an altercation the night before the incident?

Then the guy who shoots the dog out of cold blood helps carry the dog to the car and calls the vet?

Bu, then again it's Utica--land of NYC mobster transplants.


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## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

DaveWallerCB said:


> I just wanted to share my story on this thread.


That is all the neighbor would get in most states. Why? because it IS legal to shoot a dog that is on your property if it is harassing livestock. What constitutes that varies from state to state. In some states, the dog has to be in the act of killing livestock. In others, all that you need is to have had animals attacked by this (or another) dog in the past.

Sorry you had to learn that the hard way


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## DaveWallerCB (Jul 26, 2011)

He doesn't have any livestock, just him locked in his little house. And I understand a 80lb GSD can scare the tar out of people, but with this guys history I found out I really believe he did it just because he could and maybe liked it. He's attitude after the fact wasn't fear, but more like it's my ******* right to kill em.





Dainerra said:


> That is all the neighbor would get in most states. Why? because it IS legal to shoot a dog that is on your property if it is harassing livestock. What constitutes that varies from state to state. In some states, the dog has to be in the act of killing livestock. In others, all that you need is to have had animals attacked by this (or another) dog in the past.
> 
> Sorry you had to learn that the hard way


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## ZeusersPuppy (Jun 29, 2011)

BlackPuppy said:


> That's scary!
> 
> Balto will run up to people to say hello.


 
so does my boy......been very lucky no one has been packing all this time or at least never pulled it out.


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## wyominggrandma (Jan 2, 2011)

Where I live in Wyoming a dog only has to be in a pasture with livestock and they can be shot without any legal action for the shooter. If a dog does kill livestock, then they are fined THREE times the cost of the animal.


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## hobbsie711 (Jul 25, 2011)

We're not getting the whole story here. Usually there are three sides to each story. In this case there is the owner's side (which we have), the shooter's side (which we haven't heard) and the truth. I am curious to know if this is a dog park only or if it's a normal park and if the ex-trooper had a dog with him, if he frequented the park and if he had ties to this woman that threatened the owner. I doubt seriously he exited the car with his gun in his hand. If he did then I would say his intent was to kill the dog. There is a lot we don't know here I'd like to know what the shooter's story is and also if there are any independent witnesses. Certainly if the dog was leashed this wouldn't have happened. Some people are afraid of dogs. I had a woman start screaming bloody murder when I rounded a corner with my yellow lab once. I though something was happening behind me because she reacted so extreme, I figured for sure someone with a gun or something was running around because she acted as if she didn't run immediately she would be killed. My dog didn't even chased her. When I realized it was us she was afraid of I told Maverick to sit and he did. He was sitting there wagging his tail looking at me like "what the heck is her deal?" I tried to get her to come pet him and show that he's friendly (from where I was standing, I did not follow her) but she just kept screaming picked up her kids and ran inside. Leash your dogs people. They are not afforded the same protections under the law that people are and there are A LOT of crazies out there.


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## chicagojosh (Jun 22, 2010)

poor guy and dog. if phone records and all are checked and this women did correspond with the shooter then they both should go to jail.

as others mentioned...if the dog is 40 feet away, why not get back in your car real quick if you're that scared? sounds like ex-trooper and angry biker girl need to get justice served up


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## northwoodsGSD (Jan 30, 2006)

While I would have kept my dog on leash when out in public...this is a private owned area & there is NO leash law for these trails. Bikes however are not allowed & this is what the owner got into it w/ the ex-cops girlfriend....
Shooting a dog when it's 30 feet away from you is not(IMO) shooting out of self defense! Then to walk over to the dog & shoot it 2 more times!!! Something doesn't add up no matter what way you roll the dice.


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## kiwilrdg (Aug 26, 2010)

With the dog being leased on the way to the owner's car then suddenly running free towards someone who the owner says was a friend of someone who he has had an altercation with; I see too many possible scenarios to guess who is at fault.



> poor guy and dog. if phone records and all are checked and this women did correspond with the shooter then they both should go to jail.


How would you know what the conversation was about?


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## Jelpy (Nov 8, 2009)

FYI, the ex-officer is being charged with felony animal cruelty in the case. He is pleading 'not guilty'. Even if he doesn't get found guilty, he's gonna get a whopping large attorney bill for all this. 

Former state trooper pleads not guilty to charges in dog killing case - Utica, NY - The Observer-Dispatch, Utica, New York

Jelpy


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## Jelpy (Nov 8, 2009)

Oh this is interesting:

Prosecutor: Woman was with ex-trooper at dog shooting - Shelter Dogs of Oklahoma

Apparently the woman the dog owner had an argument with the night before showed up at the park with the ex cop at the time of the shooting and sitting in his car. That's one of the reasons the prosecutor is pursuing the case.

Jelpy


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## DharmasMom (Jul 4, 2010)

Good. I hope the dog and his owner get justice. It sounds like they are going to plead it down though and the ex-trooper is just going to pay a piddly fine. Basically he will get away with it.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

What is it with people attacking people's dogs to take revenge on them? I suppose it is not all that new. In fact, it has often been the case in domestic violence incidents, where a parent or spouse will torment or kill an animal to hurt the child or spouse. And many stories float around about neighbors shooting or poisoning dogs. I suppose the atmosphere attached to dog ownership has changed so much that attacks on dogs are now news worthy.


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## chelle (Feb 1, 2009)

We had an incident here a couple of years back that a state trooper shot the neighbor's dog. The state trooper said he "feared for his life." What a crock of crap, IMHO. I figure it was a combination of neighbors that didn't get along, a cop power trip and maybe a less than well behaved dog. Don't know,,, but the trooper got off scott free and the dog was dead. I'm not anti-police in any sense, but it made the news for a time and disappeared. I think the trooper should've caught far more grief over that incident. 

http://www.whotv.com/news/who-story-dog-shooting-trooper-110209,0,3317210.story
http://www.whotv.com/news/who-story-pet-shooting-110209,0,6561559.story
http://www.kcci.com/news/21503688/detail.html

Clearly, conflicting views, to be sure... but shooting him dead seems very over the top to me. Guess that just enforces you'd best keep your dog contained... whether it's a nice dog or not.


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## Angel55 (Sep 1, 2011)

Here is the latest news:

Former State Trooper accused of killing man's pet dog rejects plea deal | NBC-WKTV News Channel 2 - Utica News, Weather, Sports - | Local News

After reading about the unjustified killings of innocent dogs from those who have posted here, I do hope that all of us will expect that cases such as these will be investigated, no matter who the shooter is.


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## cuttingedge (Nov 23, 2009)

So sick of hearing about people killing others dogs. I know this may sound crazy to some but whenever I go out with my dogs I am packing for this reason. Since I do not have human children my dogs are my life and if someone is willing to take the lives of my kids you better be prepared for the consequences.


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## Mrs.K (Jul 14, 2009)

how can we trust a news article if they can't even get the breeds name right?



> *TRENTON, N.Y. (WKTV) *- A local man wants action taken after he claims his beloved *German Shepard *was shot to death by a retired state trooper.


Seriously? Shepard?


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## GSDkid (Apr 19, 2011)

So... It was a personal issue and the dog paid the price. WTH!?!


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## caninecrazy (Jan 1, 2012)

I live in Philadelphia and have been a volunteer with many rescue organizations and our local animal control facility for years so I hear and see this cases all the time and the sad part is you can not change a non dog lover into a dog lover, some people will never understand how special a dog can be and they see it as just an animal that is disposable. There were even a couple stories of strays picked up that had microchips and were never scanned or put on the 72 hour stray hold and put down as soon as they stepped into animal control only to be discovered days later they were missing pets and in one case the family had posted flyers at the facility that day. My point here is that with so much neglect out there even at times coming from the people who are supposed to be helping, it's no surprise that someone is capable of something like this. I always leash my dogs th eonly time they are ever off leash is at an intended dog park made for off leash training, agility etc and we only travel there a c ouple times a year. I have trained all my dogs off leash so that if they ever get out or slip their collars they have good recall and I can get them to come back. Living in a large city where there are tons of strays and dogfighting rings where often times the dogs are just left out to fend for themselves if they aren't winning dogs it can be scary to walk your own dogs. I had one instance where I took my Shep mix Izzy out to the park on leash one morning a few months back and a pit came charging towards us. I looked around and saw no owner, Izzy is already protective and dog selective and she stood in front of me and started growling, this dog was highly interested in her and wouldn't back down. What did I do? I picked up my dog and slowly carried her to the house, then I grabbed a leash and went back for the pit, she was afraid of me so she ended up running home to a house with a wide open door, children sleeping on he floor where anyone could kidnap them and no adults in sight. Hours later the owner came around looking for her dog and my husband told her she needed to keep her dog inside and that I had to chase her home, this woman could have cared less and continued to let this dog roam the neighborhood and it did in fact terrorize other dogs at the park. A couple weeks ago I came across a neighbor that had a pit puppy and I found out it was from this woman dog, she has been breeding her as well and was a drug addict who got evicted and sold her dogs for $50. That puppy at 6 months was also aggressive. NowI love all dog breeds including pits but I am an exception, there were other neighbors terrified of this breed. I do have a licensed gun in my home and this dog was a threat when I came in I grabbed a leash, not the gun.
On another note I used to have neighborhood teenagers that went around trying to feed neighborhood dogs nails if they were left in the yeard just for fun. I hate living in this city because of these reasons and it's sad to see that even rural areas have such hate.


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## Kaz (Nov 21, 2011)

one more reason to hate the police!

If i was in the man's position, I would have lain on my dog to shield it from bullets. 

Tough talking cowardly bullies, the police are useless. 

In India and Europe, the police are actually liked. In the US it keeps getting worse. A police man can arrest you or give you a ticket for anything.

My experience: 

I was in Woburn, MA, driving my Mercedes Benz with my elderly parents in the backseat. I was driving on a 2 lane road, one lane headed south was to my left, and I was on the other lane headed north.

A red ford sharply, in reverse, comes from a driveway across the street and gets ahead of me. The ford literally crossed the south lane and the dual solid lines on to the north lane ahead of me. 

I had to brake hard to avoid hitting the ford.

I honk my horn to show my annoyance and the ******* retaliates by slowing down to 10 mph.

I am stuck behind him, and there is a line of cars behind us.

I sound the horn again, and I try to pass him.

The assh0le stops the car, gets out, runs to my car, pistol and badge drawn.

He is an off duty cop, with his family in the car.

Evidently he is high ranking, sergeant or something, and immediately 2 squad cars come in.

The idiots literally get a book out and leaf through it for 15 minutes to find things they can charge me with. 

My father is a retired Navy officer, highly decorated. He is surprised at the events. This is his first visit to the US, he has lived in India and Europe for most of his life.

He tries to get out of the car, and a cop comes up, pulls out his gun and says "Sir, STAY INSIDE THE CAR!" 

You know these cops have this way of making "Sir" sound like a bad word. And their tone is so insulting!

My father is a war veteran, he has been shot at and he has killed people. He is frail in his late sixties. He looks at the stupid cop with his steely grey brown eyes, and calmly says : "Are you going to shoot me for getting out of a car? Are you that stupid?"

I ask my father to get back in.

Anyway, the cops finally charge me with 4 counts:

1) failure to drive carefully
2) Noise pollution (honking the horn)
3) trying to pass unsafely
4) failure to use caution

I decide to fight the case.

We go to the magistrate's court. The police captain is present. The magistrate hears the case, throws it out. The police captain says, the person who charged me is a long time and experienced sergeant, so he will escalate this to the actual court of a judge.

We go to court. The room is packed with other traffic cases, finally its my turn.

The sergeant comes, gives his testimony under oath. His first statement : I have been a police officer for the last 30 years... blah blah blah.

Its my turn to speak. I start by saying : this is my first time in a court, I have no experience with this, so I will just speak the plain truth and my parents with me are my witnesses, and I will leave it for the judge to decide. I also add that this case has been heard and dismissed by the magistrate.

I tell the events as they transpired.

The judge, a magnificent red headed lady, has her nostrils flared and eyes narrowed as she finishes hearing my story. 

Then she turns to the cop, says :"Guess what, I am throwing out this case too! All charges dismissed, and I am ordering YOU to be investigated for endangering the lives of these good people by YOUR rash driving and breaking of traffic laws! You say you have been with the police for the last 30 years? Then how come YOU dont know its illegal to careen in high speed that too in reverse across a double solid line?

THIS is police excess! And I will also inform your captain about this!"


That day justice was served.

I have seen police excess in LA. Bloody good for nothing bullies.

When we are victims of robberies, muggings, etc police NEVER solve the case. They are ONLY good for harassing honest office goers with traffic tickets.

In the last 14 odd years I have been in the US, I have had to call the police 3 times. Twice when my house was robbed in Syracuse, NY. Once in LA when I was attacked by drug addicts trying to get my money and watch.

In LA (Beverly hills!) I called the police while the addicts were attacking, it was an emergency, and the cops arrived 35 minutes later!

Needless to say, they never recovered my stolen laptops and other household articles in NY.

Disgraceful, strong arm, cowardly bullies. I hate the police!


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