Shooting to kill is not the answer
Last week our sister publication, North Eastern Tribune, reported on the tragic shooting of Deja – a beautiful and beloved pet.
The pitbull was shot by a private security reaction officer on 24 July, and although the two versions of events differ, the incident should not have happened.
Police and security guards know that in South Africa many homeowners have dogs – not only as pets but as a security measure as well. Officers on duty cannot simply go around shooting dogs that seem aggressive, they must remember that they are the intruders. The mind boggles as to why reaction officers are not equipped with tasers or some sort of humane deterrent, as they must encounter large, vicious dogs on a daily basis.
If the owners’ version of events is correct, the officers entering the property seems a bit suspicious, as the owner of the house was present and was not under threat.
Click here to read the article.
Most people who own animals will say that they are like children to them. They are part of the family and are loved and adored. To have a pet die, under any circumstances, is extremely painful and sad. To have your pet shot in front of you … well, words cannot even describe what devastation this poor family must be going through.
The facts are the facts – a dog was shot and shouldn’t have been. It was protecting its family the only way it knew how.
Yes, there are some situations where an extremely aggressive animal gets out of control and the only solution is to take drastic action, but this was a family dog – could the attack have been that bad? My first instinct is to say no. But if the answer is yes – then this column would probably be about an officer being injured because a pet owner could not control his dog.
My condolences go out to this family and I hope that security companies in Joburg take this as a learning curve and find proactive solutions which don’t involve killing animals.
