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.
The dog thing was horrible, But she also shot and killed a goat because it smelled.
Why did the goat smell?
Because she didn’t get it castrated.
She pretends to be a farmer with stories about killing dogs that can’t hunt and goats that smell weird, But an actual farmer would have had the goat castrated if they weren’t planning on breeding it and they absolutely would have just retrained the dog.
Also, she didn’t just kill it. She tortured it. She shot it, and it didn’t die. She then walked over to her truck to get another round, walked back, and shot it again.