Dog attack in St. Petersburg - OK to Shoot Attacking Dog ?

[gamboolman]

Saw this over on Glock Talk and wanted to ask if it would be justified / legal to shoot the attacking dog in Texas by LTC Holder ?

It sure looks to me like it would be justified to shoot the attacking dog?



Thanks, gamboolman....

[Tex1961]

I honestly don’t care if it legal or or not. You attack me or mine, I’m going to stop the attack. As far as justified, it is to me.

[joe817]

When Rick Perry was Governor, he was out jogging with his dog, when a coyote attacked his dog. Gov. Perry shot the coyote dead(with a Ruger LCP .380 no less. )

If it's ok for him, it's ok for me.

[K.Mooneyham]

The folks that own those aggressive dogs, judging by the house and cars, won't have a problem with a $148 citation. They'll probably be laughing while they write the check.

[chasfm11]

The folks that own those aggressive dogs, judging by the house and cars, won't have a problem with a $148 citation. They'll probably be laughing while they write the check.

That is pretty much the problem. I've been attacked and bitten by a dog while riding my bike. While it might seem unbelievable, the dog was leashed at that time and the owner refused to take any responsibility for its actions. I have to cross several different school areas where the kids overlap with the bike path in organized recess so I've been reluctant to carry when I ride. I do have OC and, after several encounters with other aggressive dogs and their owners, I bought a bigger can of OC, figuring that I might end up spraying the owner if I sprayed the dog. I have another dog that repeatedly chased me. I reported it to animal control and so did several of the neighbors - more than 30 times. Animal control can only issue $25 fines here and they've done that several times.

I'm pretty sure that the smoke won't clear from the end of my barrel after shooting an aggressive dog before the process server would be at my doorstep, letting me know that I was being sued. I don't know about St. Peterburg but based on the social media responses to past threads on aggressive dogs, I would worry about getting a jury of my peers that was unbiased about my shooting a dog, even in a clear case of self defense. This is one over several situations which I believe prevention is the only solution. I don't go any place where I have previous information about aggressive dogs.

[K.Mooneyham]

The folks that own those aggressive dogs, judging by the house and cars, won't have a problem with a $148 citation. They'll probably be laughing while they write the check.

That is pretty much the problem. I've been attacked and bitten by a dog while riding my bike. While it might seem unbelievable, the dog was leashed at that time and the owner refused to take any responsibility for its actions. I have to cross several different school areas where the kids overlap with the bike path in organized recess so I've been reluctant to carry when I ride. I do have OC and, after several encounters with other aggressive dogs and their owners, I bought a bigger can of OC, figuring that I might end up spraying the owner if I sprayed the dog. I have another dog that repeatedly chased me. I reported it to animal control and so did several of the neighbors - more than 30 times. Animal control can only issue $25 fines here and they've done that several times.

I'm pretty sure that the smoke won't clear from the end of my barrel after shooting an aggressive dog before the process server would be at my doorstep, letting me know that I was being sued. I don't know about St. Peterburg but based on the social media responses to past threads on aggressive dogs, I would worry about getting a jury of my peers that was unbiased about my shooting a dog, even in a clear case of self defense. This is one over several situations which I believe prevention is the only solution. I don't go any place where I have previous information about aggressive dogs.

Well, there is certainly a big difference between a dog on its own property, and one roaming around. Though I understand your trepidation about all of it, and your not-unreasonable fear of being sued if you were forced to defend yourself from an aggressive dog. I live in the country, on 11 acres, and maybe 1.5 of that is between my house and the highway...and I still don't let my dogs go out except into our nice big backyard. I value my pals, and I also wouldn't want them to get out and go bother anyone.

[AJSully421]

Yes. 9.22 covers anything that is not specifically outlawed, so long as you are acting reasonably and your actions outweigh the harm you are seeking to prevent.

So, two rounds into Fido who is actively attacking you, your pet, or a third party with no collateral damage, you are good.

Empty a magazine towards a dog just walking down the street and hit some houses across the way... not so much.

[chasfm11]

Well, there is certainly a big difference between a dog on its own property, and one roaming around. Though I understand your trepidation about all of it, and your not-unreasonable fear of being sued if you were forced to defend yourself from an aggressive dog. I live in the country, on 11 acres, and maybe 1.5 of that is between my house and the highway...and I still don't let my dogs go out except into our nice big backyard. I value my pals, and I also wouldn't want them to get out and go bother anyone.

I ride my bike three times a week and pass hundreds of dogs in the course of a month, nearly all of which are no problem. Though our city has a leash ordnance, at least 20% of them are off leash and pose no threat to me or to anyone else. I leave them alone and they don't bother me. I've had dogs bark at me from their own properties but never attempt to leave those boundaries. Like about everything else, the problems come from a minority of dog owners who don't think like you do about your dogs bothering others. Those people don't recognize that their animals ARE a bother and sometimes worse.

If nothing else, my encounters with dogs have improved my situational awareness. I quickly assess the age of the dog based on its movements. Older dogs have never proven to be an issue so I focus on the younger ones. I've had them start chasing me from more than 50 yards out so I have to keep sweeping my surroundings to pick them up before they can close the distance. If they look like they are getting too close, I dismount and hold my bike between them and me, moving it as they circle me. It is rare that I don't gauge their attack speed correctly and either increase my own speed to outrun them (mostly smaller ones) or dismount and use my bike as a shield. My OC is on the belt of a fanny pack that I wear with some bike tools in it so it is no problem to grab it if the bike doesn't seem to be working. I've had a couple of times were it was two dogs and they started to use pack technique for one to circle behind me while the other continues directly. It is in those kinds of circumstances where I've often wished that I had my firearm. Fortunately for me, once the bike stopped moving, the dogs lost interest in me after a couple of minutes of us glaring at one another.

[Ruark]

One question is, what constitutes an "attack"? Running full speed towards you with it's fangs flashing? What if it stops 10 inches away and stands there barking violently? What if it's not focused on you, but the dog you're walking? Lots of "what if" questions on this topic.

[imkopaka]

When Rick Perry was Governor, he was out jogging with his dog, when a coyote attacked his dog. Gov. Perry shot the coyote dead(with a Ruger LCP .380 no less. )

If it's ok for him, it's ok for me.

I actually own one of the limited edition "Coyote Special" LCPs. After that incident, Ruger made 1000 of them to commemorate the Governor's marksmanship. I carry it in my back pocket as a backup gun or for easy CC in 30.07 locations.

[joe817]

When Rick Perry was Governor, he was out jogging with his dog, when a coyote attacked his dog. Gov. Perry shot the coyote dead(with a Ruger LCP .380 no less. )

If it's ok for him, it's ok for me.

I actually own one of the limited edition "Coyote Special" LCPs. After that incident, Ruger made 1000 of them to commemorate the Governor's marksmanship. I carry it in my back pocket as a backup gun or for easy CC in 30.07 locations.

I wish I would have bought one of those when I had the chance. They're probably collectors items now!

[Caliber]

I saw a video about this somewhere. The message was basically, no, the law does not have a provision for you to be able to shoot your gun (within city limits) at charging animals. You can be subject to a negligent discharge problem. However, this sort of thing happens and the negligent discharge problem is rarely enforced, but there's no guarantee.

[tbrown]

One question is, what constitutes an "attack"? Running full speed towards you with it's fangs flashing?

That sounds like the dog equivalent of a man running at me while yelling and waving a machete.

What if it stops 10 inches away and stands there barking violently?

I'm willing to stop shooting when the threat stops. Same as a human attacker.

[LeonCarr]

Is a dog capable of inflicting death or serious bodily injury?

Just my .02,
LeonCarr