Michael Paxton and his 7-year-old dog Cisco were playing together outside minding their own business when the police showed up demanding to see Paxton's hands. The animal, that was a Blue Heeler, automatically responded by barking and running toward the officer. Unfortunately, Cisco was dead in seconds when the policeman shot him. What a horrible mistake!
Paxton said, "I told the officer, you know, don't shoot my dog cause I knew the dog was going to run forward towards us. He (Cisco) ran to the officer's feet; the officer shot him and killed him. I was panicked, traumatized. It's a very painful loss for me."
Obviously. It is actually traumatizing to think about something like this happening. It is almost unbelievable. What a terrible way to lose a beloved pet!
Unfortunately, the 911 caller gave the wrong address, which meant that the officer responded to what he thought was a man holding up a woman, and it was really a man and his dog playing outside on a Saturday.
Paxton would like the department to clarify its use of deadly force with animals after this terrible mistake. Surely anybody would feel the same way.
The mourning pet owner said, "I'm not on a vendetta against the police. I understand that they have a difficult job and they have to react quickly, but you also have to be able to make rational decisions quickly, not just any decision. I think that there's an opportunity to make a change for the positive," he added, so that "my sweet boy, he didn't die in vain. ... He can make a difference."
Hopefully Cisco will make a difference. What an awful situation. Have you ever experienced anything like this? How did you overcome it? The video below gives details of the incident including the dog's shooting.
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