is a dog very likely to die from any random bullet wound within the next several days? Do they use quality rifle scopes and aim for the head? Do they lure them nearby and use shotguns? Or how do they do it?
I’ve always called them in within close range and used a pistol. That’s my personal way of handling untagged dogs that come onto my ranch making trouble. I’ve got no idea how the county or city officials would handle it.
You just shoot random dogs on your property?
Yes. Dogs that are not collared and are messing with my livestock. I sure as hell do.
The Animal Control Lady I dealt with only said, “I take the head” meaning she decapitates the animal so someone can check for rabies. I’d like to know how they do it, too.
Is this something specific we’re talking about here, where a dog is already suspected of being rabid, or general purpose euthanasia at the pound?
I thought the latter was done with gas.
I believe they needle them at the shelter here. I presume the question is about a stray suspected of rabies.
Some jurisdictions euthanize unwanted animals in a carbon monoxide chamber.
Some shoot them with rifles or pistols (usually a .22).
Some feed lead pellets (to poison the animal).
Some dogs are lured to a spot with food, then shot from a (short) distance. Others are trapped and then shot, gassed or poisoned.
As to why some jurisdictions use gas, shot or poison instead of direct lethal injection, this often has to do with the agency’s budget. While many jurisdictions would like to use the more humane lethal injection method, they simply don’t have the money in their operational budget.
As for the legality of shooting stray/feral dogs on one’s property, yes, this is legal. Ranchers and farmers have the right to protect their livestock, including using lethal force, from marauding animals. Even the most loving and submissive pet dog can become a danger to livestock (and people) if allowed to roam free and join a pack.
ETA: free-roaming dogs can also be a danger to wildlife. See this link for more info: Outdoor Life: Hunting, Fishing, Gear Reviews, Survival Tips
Hope you find this info useful. Regards,
The AVMA guidelines for euthanasia of companion animals, including those in institutions (animal control). It includes references.
The “gold standard” for euthanizing animals is intravenous injection of barbiturates (preferably to an already sedated animal). There are various methods that are “conditional” and acceptable in institutional settings, including animal control.
Decapitation is not an acceptable method for euthanasia in animals. When they say “they take the head”, they usually mean they decapitate AFTER the animal is dead.
A bullet to the head is not necessarily the best option when you’re trying to obtain samples for rabies. Rabies virus is found preferentially in some areas of the brain compared to others, and a shot can damage the areas needed for sampling (yes, this does happen).
Cite?
I am asking about killing dogs “on the street” without catching them, not killing at the shelter. Not sure if rabies suspicion or any other particular rationale is relevant, unless of course potentially rabid dogs are killed differently than others.
do you know how fast they die after a pistol wound? Do they drop on the spot and bleed to death? Or try to walk away and die within sight? Or successfully flee?
How long does it take for an animal that has ingested lead pellets to die?
This just intuitively sounds like a looooooooooooonnngggg drawn out process.
I keep imagining the dog eating them from a pile, and the animal control officer standing nearby with a large U shaped magnet drawing them into the gas chamber, ala Wiley Coyote and the Roadrunner.
I shoot them in the head. Normally one shot, sometimes two. Dead.
Then thrown on the burn pile.
I’ve got a horrible feeling this is going to turn into another thread about inefficient business practices…
Where I used to live (rural Virginia) ALL strays were to be suspected of rabies and were to be shot on sight, with the head given to the health department.
I am confused. If you are able to call them in, why not tie them and call the local shelter to pick them up?
I suspect that the operative phrase is “within close range.” A feral dog - or a pet dog running loose - may not be willing to let itself be caught and tied. It may approach out of curiosity or out of a desire for food while keeping out of arm’s reach.
Sorry, no documentary evidence. All I can give you is I was told this by an Animal Control Officer who told me it was done at the animal control facility in a small rural Texas town where he had worked and at other ACFs in small rural towns. 
ETA: IIRC, this dealt with county-run facilities that were a division of local law enforcement.
Yeah, it is very weird for a private citizen to shoot a dog that belongs to someone else instead of calling animal control. This type of killing is so unnecessary, and shooting someone elses dog is also illegal in most places.
There is a difference between an official animal control officer shooting an animal. I dont have a problem with a proffessional pubic animal control officer killing an animal if he so determines that it is necessary. On the other hand, it is not the same thing for a private citizen doing it just because he wants to kill it.
That would certainly be the decent thing to do. Shooting someone else’s animal is very questionable, esp if it is habitual, as it sounds like it is. I think shooting a dig that belongs to someone else dog is the last thing that should be done, and then only if the dog is threatening or rabid.
If one can call in a dog close enough to shoot it with a pistol then not killing , then it and holding it for the Humane Society to come and take it would be what most people would do.