Officers forced to shoot, kill stray dog

McCOOK, Nebraska -- A German Shepherd that had been on the loose in McCook for several months was shot Thursday evening after it became aggressive with officers attempting to capture it, according to the police chief.

A live trap had been set near the 400 block of West 10th Street for the animal, after an increasing number of calls from citizens about the animal were received.

Chief of Police Isaac Brown said his department received seven calls in the last two weeks about the animal being aggressive towards citizens.

Thursday evening, officers found a cat trapped inside the live trap and the German Shepherd on the outside attempting to get at the feline. Officers subsequently followed the dog to an area near Riverview Cemetery, just off of West 11th Street, where it became aggressive with officers who subsequently shot and killed the dog with a single gunshot.

Brown said the animal had only recently become aggressive and officers made every effort to catch it safely before deciding they had to destroy it.

Brown explained that when aggressive animals are on the loose, such as this one was, the concern becomes that they may harm children or elderly citizens and there is no way of knowing whether or not the animal has rabies.

"It becomes a scenario where we have no other choice, our officers will do what they have to do to protect the citizens," said Brown.