Dale Moore should be ashamed of himself - what a jerk.

I think this should go into effect. Personally, if you hurt anyone in my family ... including my animals... a federal ruling against you will be the least of your worries.

Will this also include city workers and law enforcement who run over dogs with city vehicles on purpose? Vehicle = deadly weapon.

Maybe Hixson could make it illegal to walk on the tracks...wait...it already is. Why was James Morke walking his dog on the tracks anyway? Its not easy walking on them and is hard on the dogs feet. Does he even live in the area or was he there to bother Dale?

This was just wrong on the part of the shooter. Why didn't he just yell at the owner to get the dog away from him? That would have been much easier and less expensive on the shooters part. I think this law should go into effect, then people who leave their dogs in cars or outside in the heat and they die will get what they deserve, too.

Think about it. The dog is walking along the tracks, the guy is on his lawn mower. He has time to look at the dog, yell at it, get off the tractor, walk to the garage, get the bow and arrow, walk back to the edge of the large yard, take aim and then shoot the dog. All the while the dog is just standing there, NOT barking, growling or acting assertively/aggressively. The guy had plenty of time during that scenario to realize this was not a threatening dog. He was also shooting to kill, not just scare off the dog. Pyrenees have quite a distinctive size and look, not easily confused with other dogs. We have a lot of little white dogs in our neighborhood, should I start shooting them if they stop in the road out in front of my house and look at my lawn?

Quick Mr Hixon!! I saw someone in the 20 items or less lane with 23 items!!! You need to make that a felony! How about all the folks in the Jville area that fail to come to a complete stop at a stopsign, surely that endangers lives and is worthy of a felony conviction.

Ezoner/ Nice drama post. If a dog ATTACKED a child or adult is a totally different issue from what we are talking about on this blog. Stick to what actually happended. This moron shot a dog with a bow and arrow. The dog was NOT attacking anybody. Insert appropriate eye roll here.

If my kids are standing there and a dog comes toward them I WILL NOT wait until the dog chews on them before I take action. The dog will not get to them period. If people want to walk around with their animals unleashed, then need to understand that the animla may be viewed as a threat.

Its simple. Keep your dog in your yard or on a leash.

I don't condone shooting dogs with weapons because they are on private property and off a leash.

Hixson also states, "I know I’d do just about anything to keep my wife and children out of harm’s way." Would you shoot a dog if you thought it could potentially attack your family? What if you did. Then the owner of the dog went to the media and police telling how their dog wouldn't hurt a fly. Mr. Thomas K. Hixson is then charged with a felony from a law he authored. That would be poetic justice.

I am just glad it was not a child that was walking behind Mr. Moore's home! Would he have done the same thing if a kid was walking the railroad tracks. Being a dog owner and lover, I agree that there should be stiffer penalties for this type of action. The dog was not hurting him in any way, just walking by. Even if the owner was not around, that still does not justify Mr. Moore shooting the poor defenseless animal. The dog is not at fault, the shooter is and he should be punished for his actions. He already confessed that the dog was not approaching him in anyway. Why would he even do what he did, it appears that he felt he had a good target and used it in a malicious manner. Now that is just WRONG!

I don't think what Mr. Moore did should be a felony.
I think Kim Hixson is pandering for the emo vote.

I guess its starting to sink in that Hixon is a ventrioquist dummy of a politician (sit there and vote yes when told). What better way to fight that image by jumping into action against this massive epidemic of pet shootings.
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what are they going to do when everything is a felony? make a new category of super felony?

Has anyone heard of a woman shooting a pet with a bow and arrow or gun? (I don't mean female hunters) Funny how it's usually a man. Just making a point....

Dale was my barber. I live with a Great Pyrenees. They are gentle and kind dogs. Dale surrounds himself with bow and arrows, trophy heads and a loaded pistol within reach at his shop. He spends his time planning his next hunt (kill). If I were his wife or children I would be worried for my safety. Stay away from this guy. We need laws to protect people and pets from this predator. People who think this owner and dog were in the wrong need to look seriously into their own mind.

Um, call me alarmist, but may be if you don't want your animal to get shot, keep it under control.
It's not just an issue of crazy idiots running around with weapons- it's an issue of poisoning, traps, protecting other's livestock, and traffic safety.
To the person that has the large neighbor's dog that defecates in the yard- catch the dog, and call animal control. A couple of fines will go a long way towards getting the message home.
You get an animal, you control it. Period. There are some breeds that just do NOT go off leash. Pit bulls, any type of sight hounds, etc.
I have neighbors that have shot dogs. In both cases it was due to people ignoring the landowner's posted property. harsh way to learn a lesson but if you're too dumb to follow rules you probably shouldn't be responsible for an animal.

Hixson is the same guy that's pushing for a Hwy M interchange to I90 west of Milton. Why? Is a land owner out there padding Hixsons pocket?
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Are these dog owners padding Hixsons pocket too?

i think the shooter was wrong here, but I also think the owner was wrong as well. if he keeps his dog leashed or at least with him, not almost a football field away, none of this happens.

I just can't believe this Hixson guy. I think he should maybe be looking at ways to bring jobs here, or maybe balance the budget, not some stupid law because a dog gets shot.

The posts justifying or at least excusing the arrow shooter show why it needs to be a felony; unfortunately some people have the mind set that they can hurt or kill animals. They don't have it within themselves to see that it is wrong so we have to make it a felony to hopefully make these casually cruel people think twice.
These are the people that would shoot YOU for walking near their property if we didn't have laws with serious consequences for doing so.

I can't believe you guys stretching to somehow justify a neanderthal INTENTIONALY SHOOTING A DOG WITH A BOW AND ARROW!! No leash, private railroad tracks, another dog? Who are you people? None of these things justify anybody intentionaly harming someones dog. Your perspective of thinking scares me that you have either done something similar or would do it. This is wrong on so many levels.

You can't just shoot an animal because you don't like where it's at. If you think having it just stand there is threatening and you shoot it, you better hope a jury agrees with you.

I'm all for people taking action they feel necessary, just be prepared for the consequences whatever they may be

Unfortunately,

I must agree withother posters. The dog was off leash, they were off their property. It becomes an individual call as to what action must be taken to protect you and your property from a loose animal.

Example: I have a neighor that has ignored police and neighbors to leash their large dog. The dog deficates on our properties and has approached our kids. Our kids are terrified to play in our yard. Is the dog violent? Not yet, but it is an animal. So now I must purchase a fence because my neighbor refuses to secure their dog? Police are not taking proper action?

At some point, I must protect my family and my property.

The guy broke the law so they are making another law?

why is this guy walking around with a bow and arrow to shoot anything that moves? - he should be charged with a felony. If he is that paranoid about animals in his yard, he should put up a fence.

Does this mean I might have a problem getting a steak in the future? Since a cow is an animal too.

There is no way the guy should have grabbed his bow and arrow to shoot the dog. So what if he had thought the dog was a different dog. This time the dog was not barking, growling, attacking or threatening in any way. Plus the guys own dog was not even in the yard. All the guy needed to do was to go into his own house to get away and be safe and call the police and let THEM handle the dog. It it THEIR job to handle strays and "aggressive & threatening" stray animals. There is no excuse for anyone to shoot an animal unless they are attacking you and this dog was clearly not doing that. He should have just gone inside and called the police.

Also as a observation had the owners not been walking on the "private Property" of the railroad tracks, this would not have happened either. Plus the dog should have been leashed.
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Fault lies with both parties...but I do not condone anyone shooting a animal unless it is actually in the process of attacking or if you are hunting.

While I ABSOLUTELY do not condone what happened here, "Moore said he thought Casey was a different dog that had previously attacked his own dog."

A case of mistaken identity is not even a good excuse, but I certainly understand the reaction, to a point. Had the dog been leashed, this never would have happened.