Iowa man recovering after being shot by hunting dog

Lucky45 · Post by **Lucky45** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 12:08 pm

Iowa man recovering after being shot by hunting dog in freak accident

By Associated Press
(10/30/07 - DES MOINES, IA) - A hunter is recovering after he was shot in the leg at close range by his dog, who stepped on his shotgun and tripped the trigger, an official said Tuesday.

James Harris, 37, of Tama, was hit in the calf Saturday, the opening day of pheasant season, said Alan Foster, a spokesman with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

"He had surgery and is doing pretty well," he said. "He took between 100-120 pellets in about a 4-inch circle to his calf."

Harris was listed in good condition Tuesday, officials at University Hospitals in Iowa City said.

Harris was hunting with a group about three miles north of Grinnell. The group shot a bird, and when Harris went to get it, he put his gun on the ground and crossed a fence. As he crossed the fence, his hunting dog stepped on the gun, Foster said.

The gun was about 3 feet away from his leg.

"The muzzle velocity is so great that the pellets don't have a chance to spread out," he said.

No one else was hurt, and the dog was not injured. Foster said no citations have been issued.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

GrillKing · Post by **GrillKing** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 12:31 pm

This is exactly why we need mandatory firearms safety training for all dogs over 12 months old. I would even think that licensing might be required after the dog passes a firearms safety course.... Of course we could exempt all dogs who are in the company of another dog 24 months or older.

AFJailor · Post by **AFJailor** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 1:07 pm

We need to incorporate micro-stamping on all shotgun shells, each and every pellet. Then and only then will atrocities such as this be averted.

Dougmyers5 · Post by **Dougmyers5** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 3:44 pm

Hunting Dogs should be totally BANNED from Kaliforia!

Just dangerous can go off at any time!

KBCraig · Post by **KBCraig** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 5:04 pm

If he had a dog, then why was he going to retrieve the bird?

cbr600 · Post by **cbr600** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 5:14 pm

KBCraig wrote:If he had a dog, then why was he going to retrieve the bird?

That's probably why the dog shot him.

Geopagus · Post by **Geopagus** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 6:42 pm

KBCraig wrote:
If he had a dog, then why was he going to retrieve the bird?

cbr600
That's probably why the dog shot him.

Now, that was priceless.
[/b]

flintknapper · Post by **flintknapper** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 8:49 pm

A classic example of the dog being smarter than the owner.

Target1911 · Post by **Target1911** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 11:48 am

WOW......what happened to keeping the muzzle in a safe direction.....not to mention put the gun on SAFE.

KBCraig · Post by **KBCraig** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 3:03 pm

Russell wrote:
KBCraig wrote:If he had a dog, then why was he going to retrieve the bird?
When was the last time you saw a dog that could climb a fence?

I've never seen a barbwire fence that slowed down a dog.

I've also seen plenty of dogs that could climb chainlink fences. Our standard poodle (they're retrievers, you know) can jump a 4' fence without touching it, even at 12 years old.

Greybeard · Post by **Greybeard** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 7:38 pm

Quote: "muzzle in a safe direction.....not to mention put the gun on SAFE."

This type of accident is not all that uncommon. Many shotguns have a crossbolt type safety on or near the trigger guard. With a round in chamber and gun on the ground, Fido can step on trigger guard, pushing the "button" across, then trip trigger with toenail a fraction of a second later. He who is in front of the muzzle at the time gets a very rude awakening that, yes, those dogs can shoot you.