Politicians and dog experts are criticizing South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem after she wrote in a new book about killing a rambunctious puppy. The story — and the vilification she received on social media — has some wondering whether she’s still a viable potential running mate for presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
Experts who work with hunting dogs like Noem’s said she should have trained — not killed — the pup, or found other options if the dog was out of control.
Noem has tried to reframe the story from two decades ago as an example of her willingness to make tough decisions. She wrote on social media that the 14-month-old wirehaired pointer named Cricket had shown aggressive behavior by biting.
“As I explained in the book, it wasn’t easy,” she said on X. “But often the easy way isn’t the right way.”
Still, Democrats and even some conservatives have been critical.
I don’t think you need to be a dog expert. Just have the ability to feel the tiniest amount empathy. This goes way too far for even a lot of Republicans.
What’s worse, is the story itself. She took the dog on a pheasant hunt for the day, cheering it on while it chased the pheasants and went for the kills. On the way home, she stopped at a friend’s house where the dog attacked their chickens. She then led the dog to a gravel pit and shot it in the head.
It thought it was being a good dog, doing exactly what she was training it to do. She addressed her mistake with murder.
Goddamn, every time I get more info on this story it just gets worse. I can’t imagine killing an animal that wasn’t a danger or deserved a merciful death.
Empathy is not a conservative trait.
True, but even plenty of conservatives have enough empathy about their own pets to see this is wrong. And they’ve been saying so.