WASHINGTON: Rugged ranch fate, or cruel judgment? South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, a potential Donald Trump 2024 running mate, has shocked Americans by revealing she once shot her family dog – a risky acknowledgement in a nation that cherishes its pets.
In her forthcoming memoir, obtained by The Guardian newspaper, the conservative Republican describes how, after a hunting excursion gone awry, she shot and killed her “untrainable” 14-month-old dog Cricket.
“I hated that dog,” Noem, 52, wrote in “No Going Back,” according to excerpts published by The Guardian.
She explained how Cricket had spoiled a pheasant hunt with her “excitement”, then killed several chickens belonging to a local family. The only solution, according to Noem, was to put her down.
“It was not a pleasant job,” she wrote, “but it had to be done. And after it was over, I realised another unpleasant job needed to be done” – Noem went on to explain how she had killed a “nasty and mean” goat.
The revelation jolted this year’s election season and provoked a deluge of reactions among political commentators, in social media and on talk shows.
Dogs occupy a special place in American life, and public figures often get pilloried when they mistreat canines – as Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney learned in 2012 when he recounted how his family tied their dog Seamus to the roof on a car trip.
