Dear Family: We Killed Your Dog

Friday, 01 October 2010 | by Pat's Picks

I wonder if shooting a stranger’s pet is something Emily Post covers. Police officers responding to a burglar alarm entered an Oakland home where they encountered Gloria, “an 11-year-old, arthritic yellow Labrador.” Feeling threatened, they shot and killed the dog says the San Francisco Chronicle. And then they left a note.

According to Gloria’s owner, she came home to find this message taped to her front door: “Oakland police responded to your residence to investigate a burglar alarm. While circling the rear perimeter, lab advanced on officers in a threatening manner before being shot and killed.” The ‘lab’ in question is Gloria, who her owners say has never growled at anyone.

Bay area police came under fire earlier this year after video of several officers shooting an (unarmed) deer were posted on the Internet:

More on Gloria’s untimely death: