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Dog shot while attacking HCSO Mounted Unit horses

For Immediate Release : Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office
Release Number: 20-025

Date

Saturday January 25, 2020 6:30 PM

Location

325 Bayshore Blvd Tampa, FL 33606

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a shooting involving a dog that occurred on Bayshore Boulevard following the Gasparilla parade on Saturday.

At approximately 6:30 p.m., deputies with the HCSO and Tampa Police Department Mounted Units were exiting Bayshore Boulevard near Platt Street when a pit bull, believed to be approximately 70 lbs, broke free from a gate its owner had tied the dog to at 345 Bayshore Blvd, near the exit ramp for Tampa General Hospital.
 
The dog charged at the horses, attempting to attack them three times.
 
The first time, the dog ran towards a horse with the TPD mounted unit, barking and growling at the horse as it tried to bite the horse’s hind legs. A deputy nearby attempted to deploy his taser on the dog, but could not establish a clear point of contact without potentially tasing the horse.
 
The dog ran back to the side of the road before running towards the horses a second time, this time towards Romeo, a 16-year-old horse that has been with the HCSO Mounted Unit for 14 years. The dog attempted to bite the horse in its sheath area and successfully latched onto the horse on one of its front lower legs, biting the horse on the protective covering on its leg.
 
The dog unlatched and began charging at the horse a third time. In an effort to prevent any further attacks, Deputy Crystal McClelland, who was riding a separate horse, shot the dog once on the center of its back, causing the dog to finally retreat from the horses. The dog ultimately died from its injuries at the scene.
 
The owner of the dog, who is homeless, was present during the attacks, but made no apparent attempts to grab the dog as it attacked the horses. Following the shooting, the owner began making threatening statements to harm the deputies on scene and himself. He was Baker Acted. A knife was located in his pocket.
 
Deputy McClelland has been with HCSO for 26 years, a member of the Mounted Unit for 18 years, and she has no prior shooting incidents. 
 
None of the horses were seriously injured during the attacks. Saturday's shooting remains under investigation.
 
“It is never an easy decision for a deputy to deploy their weapons, especially for a member of our Mounted Unit, deputies who have dedicated their lives to working with animals, to use force against one,” said Sheriff Chad Chronister. “While it is extremely upsetting that a dog lost its life in this incident, there could have been many more injuries and potential losses had the horse been badly injured, not only to the horse itself, but also to the deputy riding him, the crowd of people walking nearby on Bayshore Blvd and the other horses who could have reacted due to their herd mentality. We are extremely thankful that this incident did not end with anymore casualties.”