Police Shoot Dog At Vicious Animal Call

I had a similar experience recently when three vicious dogs approached me, no owner in sight no leashes, no enclosed fence area for them. They were free to roam and attack at will. I did nothing to agitate them yet they were approaching me and I had NOTHING to defend myself. My job puts me in harm way often and being a female this type risk is unacceptable. I also retreated to my vehicle in time and immediately called animal control. I even gave them the specific address where the dogs obviously were being kept. They couldn't find them....how I'd like to know couldn't they find them when I gave them the address where the owner's live? Imagine for just a moment had this police office been a child, unarmed with the opportunity to defend themself with a handgun. It is time for Animal Control to step up their game and actively enforce the laws already in place. Be a little more assertive when looking for an aggressive and unrestricted vicious animal and FINE the _ _ _ _ out of their owners who disregard the law that is there for the protection of the innocent.

Nina Noelle... did you create a new profile under the name of Debbie Cunningham? Jesus - what is it with you women who have a story that goes along with EVERYTHING you read?! Chill the _ _ _ _ out already. You're so angry... always lashing out. FINE PEOPLE! THROW THEM IN JAIL! LEAVE NO ONE BUT ME TO ROAM FREE! NO ONE IS SAFE! oy... Debbie DOWNER.

Carry a can of the wasp spray, the kind that shoots 25 feet. If a dog is mean enough to charge and threaten to bite you, he's a useless dog. The spray is caustic and will blind them.

I wonder why they released the dog to its owner. They are fortunate the dog didn't hurt anyone----this time! What do you want to bet it was a pit bull and the owner has lots of excuses?

First of all, my rant: Pump your brakes Debbie. "As a woman" this type of risk is unacceptable?! This type of risk is unacceptable for anyone REGARDLESS OF GENDER. Do you think that my gender makes me less entitled to safety? Dog bites hurt, regardless of what's between your legs. Secondly(and more importantly) I've noticed a lot of dogs sort of just running loose around my neighborhood and throughout the town. Are there not strict laws in place regarding maintaining control of your animals in this city? I have a dog that is 1/4 "vicious breed" so I already face a challenge when it comes to renting/insuring homes. Being 100% responsible for my dog is just a fact of life, and I feel like any dog owner should feel the same. Although my pup wouldn't hurt a fly, I always take every precaution to ensure she is safe and sound. She never leaves my sight and I've got my eye on her even when she's in the back yard. The idea of her roaming the streets alone is scary and heart breaking! P.S. Kudos to SAPD for putting up with this nonsense so patiently. Whatever law enforcement officers get paid, I'm telling you, it's just not enough!

Big Daddy strikes again! Go back to sleep.

I've called for animal control and SAPD for three different situations over the past few years, and never have they been around when needed. I don't know if they need more funding to hire more people or what's going on, but I have an extremely low opinion of animal control around here. My first call was on a Saturday morning at 11 AM; a beautiful husky was running in traffic on Sherwood Way. My second call was on a Saturday night when a wounded collie rushed me while I was on my porch and actually got inside my house (thank the Lord the dog was panicked but not vicious). The third situation is my neighbor's dog down the street that is ALWAYS running free and growling/barking at the people in our neighborhood. I see that dog at least twice a week, and once it came up on my wife and daughter when they were getting home from school. If I'd have been home at the time I would have shot the damned thing because one of these days it's going to try hurting someone. Animal Control's (and SAPD's) response to every one of those situations? Sorry it's not an emergency so you handle it. Animal control is worthless.

"Prior to today’s incident, San Angelo Police and Animal Control officials have responded to the location multiple times regarding the dogs." There you have it.

I'm not certain if it's cultural or just due to the abundance of country bumpkins in the area, but the loose dog situation is far to common here in San Angelo. My issue with loose dogs is not a free roaming dog in of itself, rather the fact that most of the time; these dogs tend to be the aggressive types. There are a few in the neghborhood whose owners make no effort to contain. These dogs are of the larger breeds, and of course, going back to the mindset of some of the low-rent dregs around here -- "let's get the biggest, loudest and most aggressive dogs possible, put them behind a 3 foot fence (sometimes with an open gate) and expect everything to be fine". The dogs will go after kids walking to the bus stop in the morning, sometimes joggers. Animal control officers have to witness the dog running loose or chasing someone to take any meaningful action; and the chances of them being there to witness anything firsthand are slim to none. The best way to (at the very least) curtail the incidents is to report them. The types of people who have the roaming pitbulls and other large dogs of questionable natures do not particularly enjoy a regular police presence or other city officials poking around their hovels. You may have inconvenienced people who can't spell "citation" or for that matter, read the print contained therein. Remind yourself to work up some guilty feelings about that later. In my experience, the incidents either cease or the constant heat forces them to relocate. In response to Debbie, this is the typical m.o. of American society: allow the most enept and intellectually vacant people to make as many poor choices as possible. If this means multiplying like roaches or owning animals they can't care for, that's fine. We'll fund and sustain their rights to soil the community, even at the expense of the public's safety. Prevention and proactivity are concepts which make our brains hurt, as they require foresight and resolve. It's easier to simply allow one to run blindfolded with scissors than to provide reasons as to why they shouldn't. We can always cry about things AFTER someone is bleeding. Band-aids, not safeguards -- "thoughts and prayers" rather than discretion.

Too bad the dog survived the shot to the face. I love animals - but a vicious animal has no place roaming free.