The Dog, as he was known around West Valley, Utah, was a German shepherd mix that had no owner. He roamed the town’s streets for years. But he changed. At first, he killed chickens. He then killed goat at Roots Charter High school. Link. Then sheep. More chickens. Then pigs. 40 animals in all. All animals that belonged to Roots students. It appears none of the animals were killed for food, but for fun instead. Rumors were he went for a child. He recognized dog catchers and evaded them with ease.
A former law enforcement officer finally shot him after seeing The Dog in a field near the school farm. Not everyone was happy.
Source: Los Angeles Times, November 7, 2018. Link. . . . the animal services division requested permission to euthanize The Dog in accordance with American Veterinary Medical Assn. guidelines. Gunshot is listed as an appropriate method, according to the organization.
INSIGHTS: In the longest-ever tribute to a rogue, feral dog that, for unknown reasons, killed animals worth thousands of dollars, the reporter slipped in the dog poo all the way past a greater story. The Dog killed more than animals. He abbreviated some Roots School (Link) students’ experiences raising and showing animals and heavily dinged their pocketbooks. Roots is Utah’s first farm-based charter high school, is located in town and uses farm settings to teach kids life lessons in addition to standard classroom instruction. The Dog is not the hero. The students picking up and moving forward from the damage The Dog did is the real story not told here.