South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem defended her puppy shooting after her confession sparked a massive backlash.
Noem, a potential vice presidential candidate for Donald Trump, caused a storm after revealing she shot the puppy, a 14-month-old puppy named Cricket, in her upcoming book, No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move. America Forward.
In response to Sunday’s backlash, Noem said she “can understand why some people are upset about a 20-year-old cricket story.”
The Republican continued: “The book is filled with many honest stories from my life, good days and bad days, challenges, painful decisions and lessons learned. What I have learned from my years of public service, particularly leading South Dakota during COVID, is that people are looking for leaders who are authentic, willing to learn from the past, and who are not afraid to challenge difficult challenges.
“I hope everyone who reads this book understands that I always strive to make the best decisions possible for the people in my life.”
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem defended her puppy shooting after her confession sparked massive backlash
“The fact is that South Dakota law states that dogs that attack and kill livestock can be put down. Since Cricket had been showing aggressive behavior towards people by biting them, I decided what I would do. Whether running the ranch or in politics, I have never entrusted my responsibilities to anyone else. Even if it is hard and painful.
“I followed the law and was a responsible parent, dog owner and neighbor. As I explained in the book, it wasn’t easy. But often the simplest solution is not the right one.
Noem claimed she included the story in her book to show her willingness to do something “difficult, messy and ugly” if it had to be done.
The Republican writes that she took Cricket on a hunting trip with older dogs in hopes of calming the wild pup. Instead, Cricket chased the pheasants while “having the time of his life.”
As former President Donald Trump considers who should become his vice president, Noem has written a new book, No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward, which will be released on May 7.
On the way home from the hunting trip, Noem writes that when she stopped to talk to a family, Cricket got out of her truck and attacked and killed some of the family’s chickens, then bit the governor.
Noem apologized profusely, wrote the distraught family a check for the deceased chickens and helped them dispose of the carcasses, she wrote. She wrote that Cricket “was the picture of joy” as all this unfolded.
“I hated this dog,” Noem writes, deeming him “impossible to train.”
“At that moment,” she said, “I realized I had to put her down.
Noem then remembers leading Cricket to a gravel pit and shooting her.
That wasn’t all. Noem writes that her family also had a “mean, nasty” goat that smelled bad and liked to chase her children, so she decided to go ahead and kill the goat too.
She writes that the goat survived the first shot, so she returned to the truck, retrieved another shell, then shot it again, killing it.
Shortly after, a school bus dropped off Noem’s children. Her daughter asked, “Hey, where’s Cricket?” Noème writes.
The extracts, first published by The Guardian, immediately sparked criticism on social media, where many posted photos of their own pets. President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign surfaced on social media, alongside a photo of Noem with Trump.
A Facebook photo shows South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem with a gun. In her upcoming book, she writes about Cricket, a 14-month-old wirehaired pointer, who Noem shot in the gravel pit on her family property, moments before her children came home from school.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is pictured with another dog she owned, Hazel, a Vizsla.
The Lincoln Project, a conservative group opposed to Trump, released a video it called a “public service announcement” showing poorly behaved dogs and explaining that “shooting your dog in the face is not an option “.
“You shoot old dogs, hurt dogs and sick dogs humanely, not by shooting them and throwing them in a gravel pit,” wrote Rick Wilson of the Lincoln Project on X. “Unsportsmanlike and deliberately cruel… but she wrote this to prove that cruelty is the goal.
Noem had previously taken to social media to defend herself.
“We love animals, but tough decisions like this happen all the time on a farm,” she said on X.
“Unfortunately, a few weeks ago we had to put down 3 horses that had been in our family for 25 years.”
Noem claimed she included the story in her book to show her willingness to do something “difficult, messy and ugly” if it had to be done.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks to North Dakota Governor Kristi Noem during a Buckeye Values PAC rally in Vandalia, Ohio, March 16, 2024.
She urged readers to pre-order her book if they want “more real, honest and politically INcorrect stories that will make the media gasp.”
Republican strategist Alice Stewart said that while some Republican voters might appreciate the story “as a testament to her courage,” it ultimately creates a distraction for Noem.
“It’s never a good look when people think you’re mistreating animals,” Stewart said. “I have a dog that I loved like a child and I can’t imagine thinking about doing that, I can’t imagine doing that, and I can’t imagine writing about it in a book and telling everyone the world.”
This isn’t the first time Noem has attracted national attention.
In 2019, she supported the state’s anti-methamphetamine campaign, even though she was mocked for the “Meth” slogan. We take care of it.’ Noem said the campaign got people talking about the meth epidemic and helped some get treatment.
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