Cop shoots pet dog that bit him

06:52 PM CDT on Friday, May 27, 2005

By Wendell Edwards / 11 News

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A southeast Houston homeowner is angry that a Houston police officer shot his dog after walking into his backyard Friday morning.

KHOU

Officer K.K. Miller shot the dog after it bit him on the wrist.

The officer was responding to a burglary alarm call on Parliament when he encountered the dog.

"The officer was completely caught by surprise, you know. He was just responding, more or less to a routine alarm call," said HPD Lt. E.W. Harris. "And the dog was just in his backyard and the officer walked in and the dog attacked him."

The dog bit the Officer K.K. Miller on his left wrist so he shot him in the leg.

The dog's owners were devastated when they learned what happened.

They say the Great Pyrenees named J.P. has been part of their family for nearly a decade.

"...It's a loveable dog, but it's here to protect my family," said Franchelle Forgy, the owners' daughter.

Forgy said J.P. was on a long leash that allowed him to move around the backyard. She said the dog was only doing it's job.

"It's a pet, but it's like a human being. It has protected my family," Forgy said. "Years ago, we were robbed and, you know, in this neighborhood right now they need all the protection they can get."

Officer Miller drove himself to the hospital where he was treated and released.

The dog was critically injured and lost a lot of blood. The family says he may have to be put down.

The family took the dog to their private vet. Police cited them for failure to release the dog to animal control as required by law.