Thread: Almost had to draw today... But not on a human

TRX
02:31 PM #22

I was just reading an archived thread on another forum, about a guy who was threatened and robbed at "dogpoint." A pair of thugs accosted him with a large dog, and threatened to have the dog attack him if he didn't hand over his money.

The way I see it;

1) the dog was a "weapon." Whether it would be a "deadly" weapon would depend on local laws and probably the breed and size of the animal.

2) if using "deadly force", the natural target would be to shoot the dog, since my primary goal would be to avoid being bitten

3) shooting either or both of the thugs, either before or after they loosed the dog, would be hard to defend under my local law. Before, because the thugs weren't directly attacking me; after, because they were no longer a threat. (unless they pulled a conventional weapon)

4) a dog is a small and fast-moving target. In all honesty, I'm not sure I could pull and shoot before being bitten; even with a couple of seconds' warning, it's still not something I've trained for or thought much about; "down there and moving rapidly".

5) I had considered reaction to dog attacks long ago, just not by human direction. Back then, I decided the best approach would be to let the dog have my right arm (I'm left-handed) and then ride it down to the ground; 300 pounds on a knee to the ribcage would certainly help my situation. Back then, both knives and guns were prohibited in my area, and there was no CCW yet. As an updated approach, I'd still offer up an arm to get some time to pull my gun and shoot.

6) I realized I don't know anything about "attack dogs." Police dogs are normally trained to "bite and hold", ie chomp an arm and throw someone off- balance or drag them down. Untrained dogs will normally latch onto whatever they can get (by preference, a moving arm or leg) and then just stay there, in my experience. But even if Cujo isn't going to try to rip my throat out, I still don't want to be bitten. And who knows how (or if) the dog was trained.

7) I'd be very angry. Even if the dog was trained to attack, it's still an annocent, just doing what it's told. After killing an innocent, I'd have to stand there and *not* shoot the jerkward that sent it, because I would no longer be in immediate danger.