Had a cop threaten to shoot my dog...need advice

you didnt notice 4 cop cars in your driveway? they didnt have any business being there after you called them? What kinda dogs are they? Im thinking there is more to the story. Dogs dont know a uniform, if you have aggressive dogs and you called the cops there and arent controlling them....the cop may have or may not have been rude depending on the situation. But if it comes down to being bitten the cop would shoot the dog, and rightly so, its your job to control your animals.

File the complaint. This is between you and the cop, so your husband can stay out of it. Your dogs are your property and he threatened to destroy your property (they're your friends...I know, but the law generally doesn't differentiate) .

BTW, if your husband didn't want trouble....he would have let you go to your mother's.

My driveway is offset to my entrance door and I was arguing with my husband. I did call them and they were going to send A car. We live on the edge of city limits so they probably had staters come as well as city.

My dog was barking at his dog, who was in the car. The cop was on the other side of the car. My dogs mind me very well and came when called. The cop was trying to be intimidating and he was not going to get away with that shit on my property. They are paid to protect and serve, not threaten and intimidate. They answered a domestic disturbance call, not a bar fight!

Thank you! That is my point exactly!

A year ago my dog ran out of the yard and went down the street where some kids were playing and the parent called the cops because they didn't know the dog and he is pretty big, but sweet as they come. He wouldn't harm a fly. But he has a big bark and he likes to bark when he's saying hello or whatever. Well the cop showed up and immediately took out his gun and I guess he told the home owner that he was going to shoot my dog if it kept barking at him. Thank god he stopped barking for whatever reason. But I know how you feel because when I was told this I got real pissed and I don't know what I would have done if he did shoot my dog. I really don't think it would have turned out well for either of us. But anyway I heard it's common procedure and not to take it personally. The cops have the right to defend themselves and if it's a cop that isn't fond of dogs, then he'll be an asshole and pull the trigger and ask questions later.

my advice:

you are angry because you found yourself powerless at that moment. anger is a result of lack of confidence and control of the situation. you need to increase your inner power until it surpasses life and death itself. only then you will no longer fear cops or even the prospect of being jailed. this is the only real solution in the long run. we have to overcome the System with raw power instead of trying to "cope" with it.

FAIL!!!

I am in no way afraid of any cop, my husband might be, but I am not. I am almost 50years old. If they want to push around the 20 somethings and can get away with it, shame on them. I refuse to allow them to push me around. I am angry because the cop threatened me and my dogs for no good reason other than he is an ASS!

If I showed up at a DV situation, which is already one of the worst situations for cops to go to, and your dog was barking at me and appeared aggressive, I would have done the same thing as the officer did. I may not have been that rude about it, but I know exactly what I would have been thinking... If that dog so much as licks its lips at me its getting lead poisoning.

Deal with your drama with your husband and quit taking your anger out on a cop who was just trying to do his job and was trying to avoid getting bit in the process.

Try being a little more responsible with your money and your husband won't bitch at you 2 nights in a row.

You might want to consider not filing a complaint...believe me I understand how you're feeling, but if you should ever call them and need them in the future, there will be hell to pay.

If you file a complaint against one officer, they will consider it a complaint against them all. Most of them are assholes.

No it's of course not right, but that's how it is, unfortunately. I wish you could file a complaint against them all, and WIN!

I am sorry that you had that experience, but it is quite a bit different than mine. My dogs did not leave my property and they were not threating anything. They were barking at another dog! I don't see how a cop can have a canine unit if he hates dogs.

"Your" property had nothing to do with it. They were there because you called them and they had reason to be on your property due to exigent circumstances. They have a right to protect themselves on "your" property, even if that means shooting your dog.

For your information I make 3x the money my husband does, and he is the one that is irresponsible. You shoot my dog on my property and I will have my boot up your ass as fast as you pull the trigger.

If a person can't tell the difference from a vicious dog bark and one that is not or can't tell if a dog is agressive or not then that person needs to go live in a hole. If that person is a cop then that person needs the shit beat out of him or her and then a stun gun discharged up their ass till they bleed to death.

He should have stayed in his fucking car if he is afraid of dogs. I told the dispatcher I wanted to take myself and my dogs to my mothers. They should have been much more prepared and they sure in they hell didn't need 4 cops. Must have been a slow night in town. The guy was just an ass looking to get his ego boost!

OMG...we have a social worker on GLP of all places.

anger is still fear.

anger is fear of having to accept a situation.

if you were in control of the situation you would be able to accept it without trouble.

thus it falls back to what i said on my other post. :P

doesn't sound like you want advice as much as you want re-enforcement....


maybe you're just letting off steam.

my advice? let it go.

Here is my suggestion, go in person tot he station, and ask to talk to the person in charge, the highest level person possible.

Do not disclose the reason and if pushed, say that you are trying to help the police department stop a potential problem with an officer, but you want to do it in a way that keeps this officer out of trouble. (This is important! You have to seems like the good guy and cops close ranks when they feel a fellow officer may get in trouble.)

When you get in to see this person, preface the discussion with a full admission that you were angry with your treatment, but that this is not why you are here...

Then go into what you said about a K-9 officer being so willing to shoot a dog...

"This is not normal, even if police procedure allows for such threats to be made without real cause, a regular officer that dislikes dogs or felt the average dog a threat may say such a thing, but a K-9 officer? A person that should know dogs better than the vast majority of people ever do?

That is indicative of a major mental problem brewing! Yes, maybe the fellow was having a bad day, that happens, but if this is his normal pattern, then he needs help before he harms or even kills someone.

Because killing a dog for a K-9 officer would have nearly the same effect as killing an innocent person for a good non-k-9 officer!"

Then thank them for their time, and leave, after placing your trust in their hands to check into this and make certain the Officer is all right, handling his dog properly and so on, perhaps even get him in for some counseling?

Now, what you have done may not immediately make you feel better than filing a report, but if you filed a report and were harassed by this man later, you will be set up to look bad by the entire force...

This way, if he tries ANYTHING towards you or yours he will look like a loon!

Also, his boss will likely start paying more attention to what he is doing, after all, this wasn't about getting him into trouble, so maybe you have a genuine concern? Better to check it out, even if it sounds like the guy is just a bit stressed out....

NO police officer follows the law all the time and being under scrutiny will make this guy tense and more likely to make mistakes. That's about the best you can hope for in this.

Because really, sneaking up on the guy and killing him with his back turned is overkill for this and there is little else you can actually do to see a bad policeman punished in real life.

OP, this is the WORST place to come for support! Most of these people don't see you as a real human being who's upset and needs some comaraderie.

I know when you feel better, you'll make the decision you need to make for yourself, and not for the
"Anonymous Cowards." Best of luck to you!

Your complaint is going to go nowhere, honestly. If the officer felt threatened, he was in the right. YOU do not determine the officers threat level because you know your dogs and they were on your property.

You called them in the first place remember? They had a right to be there and he had a right to tell you to control your dogs or they will be shot.

Get over it, noone likes to be threatened or to have their pets be threatened but it wouldn't have happened if the cop wasn't edgy about your dogs.

There is another good point being hinted at here by some:

Never, ever, call the police. Avoid them at all cost.

They are not your friends, they are the enforcement arm of the government. Some people think that they can use the police to do what they want, but unless you have a lot of political power (and sometimes not even then) this is a mistake.

Not all cops are bad, but the modern take they are trained to have on their job is bad.

Most men learn this early on, but the police, traditionally, have been nicer to women than to men. This has started to change in the last few years however.

hey starkissed. i think you are right. i came with a very realistic/extremist approach to an apparent simple situation. sorry OP: i am full of shit.

keep the discussing on, and I hope that you can nail that cop!!

I understand your anger, but you'll probably be losing money by getting a lawyer. In many states a "public servant" has a right to come on your property and be safe.

When you called 911, you "invited" them. They have to respond to a 911 call, whether or not you ask them to come.

Most cops would rather handle a bar room brawl than a domestic violence disturbance. Often, when the cops arrive, one spouse gets upset with the cop for saying something or treating the other spouse badly, and it ends up with the people who were fighting, turning on the cop. In other instances, there are weapons. Cops dont' want to be keeping their eye on a barking dog, trying to avoid being bitten, while watching to make sure no one brings out a weapon.

I love my dog and can imagine how you feel. I hope you and your husband can work things out so you won't have to go through that again.

File the complaint.

When the day comes that asshole kills someone's dog, your complaint will be noted and due justice will be served.

Think of it not as a service to yourself, but as a service to the next person that is abused in the same manner.

A single drop of water may not move a mountain, but a river has no such issue.

I guess if I could have shit another set of keys I wouldn't have had to call them then! Can you tell me a story about manifestion! You sir too are and ASS!

Do you know what the "punishment" for a dog killing Police officer is, even if they did so with no provocation?

It varies, but it is generally something like a 1-3 day suspension without pay.

Yep, justice served there all right.

*I know, this was not your point, but there is little to no justice for people wronged by the police.

Short of true brutality (that the state allows them to preform and will cover up for them the majority of the time, claiming it is "part of the job") or murder, it is wrong to kill them, as it would be wrong for them to kill you...

But there is little other justice to be had.

This does not mean you SHOULD kill the police! What I am saying is that there is nothing else to be done in most cases, so you can expect NO justice...

And really, since this police officer didn't DO anything (other than be a jerk) no one will listen anyway.

So undermining him is about what's left. It is sneak and extralegal, but... What else can an honest person do in such a case?

Anger is linked to fear, but it is NOT fear. It is the chemical device to aid us in overcoming fear and taking action.

In general though, it is better to let go of both and take good actions that help your cause without them, as they burn off a lot of energy.

I apologize for calling you an ass. I did not read this comment until after. I really am upset about many things, but I do not believe that I deserved this kind of treatment at all! I live in a small town, 9-10,000 people. I can't imagine what this guy is like to other people if he treated me like this! Our town does not need this kind of cop!

starkissed you are right because I really am not looking for advice, just wanting to blow off steam! I like the idea of just voicing my concern over a K-9 officer that is so ready to shoot another dog. If he can't handle dogs, he should not have one.

Last Edited by Cosmic Cuckoo on 05/04/2009 03:40 AM

you never answered, what kind of dogs do you have?

nope

that is fury. you are talking about fury. fury = good indeed.

anger is indirect fear.