Finally had my first draw down experience yesterday.  As some of you know, I’m a forester and spend a goodly amount of time out in the woods.  Yesterday I find myself in Buckingham County, conducting tree planting audits where I run check plots behind the tree planters, making sure they’re planting the correct numbers of trees per acre, and that the trees are planted correctly.

Around 11:15 in the morning I’m moving through a wide hardwood bottom between two planting areas and I hear off in the distance what sounds like one dog beating up on another.  You know, snarling from the attacker and yelping from the attacked.  I think “Hmm.  Wonder what’s up with that!”.

I continue on my way and next thing I know I see four feral dogs bounding through the woods, heading right for me.  They don’t respond to my shouts and keep on coming.  By this point I’m thinking “Oh shit!” and draw my G23 (carried in a SafePacker).  The dogs get about 15-20 feet away and I’m getting my sights on the closest.

I fire twice at the closest and think I winged him as he sort of tripped, fell to the ground, then got up and hauled ass.  The two dogs in the back turned tail and ran at the same time.

Dog No. 4, however, was having none of it and kept coming.  I shifted my aim to him and fired twice, putting him on the ground.  He was still alive, trying to get up, so I fired 3 more times and he finally quit.

The whole thing, from the “Oh shit!” to No. 4 going down, was literally less than 6 seconds.  I was amazed at how fast it all happened.

While I’ve got some remorse at having to kill the dog, I’m also very pleased with how I handled myself.  I got 7 shots off in about 6 seconds, on two moving targets, in (for me) a high-stress environment.  I was able to put rounds on target, shift aim, engage and neutralize a second target, all without any conscious thought.  It was “Draw!  Aim!  Fire Fire! SECOND THREAT!!  Aim!  Fire Fire! …  Fire Fire Fire!”.

I realize these were critters, and not people, but I’m much more confident that if I’m faced with a two-legged threat I’ll be able to defend myself in an effective manner.

Gun:  Glock 23
Ammo:  Federal HST, 155 gr.
Holster:  Wilderness Safepacker, on my tool belt.

Oh, and pix…

A draw down story involving a dog shooting.

How can I not get in on this action?

_MaH

In.

You have a future with the ATF if you ever decide to leave forestry.

My baby didn't do nuthin! He was a good dog! Just wanted to lick ya.
Good shoot.

Good Shoot.

Fluffy! Is that you? We were just out hiking and I turned my back for a split second...

IBTDLWSYSHLTEY

(In before the dog lovers who say you should have let them eat you)

Oh snap...

You was scared of that little thing? You prob. coulda kicked it and it woulda ran off.

Good shot!

Feral dogs ain't no joke. Good shoot.

No reason not to set up camp in this bish.

You ran a stop watch on the action?

So in on this.. Way to stay cool OP

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That golden retriever never had a chance.

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aaaaaaannnnnnnnddddd here toy go!

_MaH

3 shots to kill a wounded dog laying on the ground? What were you hitting, the tail?

0/10

undercooked

no alcoholic beverage

no sides

no reloads

no napkin or utensils

That's about a 60 pound dog, him and his three like-sized buddies.

If I'd really been on my game I would have yelled "FO TIME!!!" before firing.

Glad things turned out ok. Good for you, and what a way to test your skills!

 
 
 

do you work for your local swat team

NotSureIfSerious.jpg

Honest question:  As a forester, wouldn't you carry something with a little more power?  A rifle or shotgun?  Are you restricted on what you can and cannot carry?

You've got a career in Law Enforcement if you want one!

J/K good shoot, had to do one like that myself, not fun, but letting it chew on you is a worse option.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usl7WYF_FIE&feature=related

I was being sarcastic.

My friend had an encounter with two stray cow dogs some time back - they are very dangerous

The inside of the goat barn where it happened looked insane.

Good shoot

 

On the assumption that you weren't inside a fence line - good shoot and great shooting!

Loose dogs are trouble, feral dogs even worse.

For a lot of years I was a resource manager and ran 35k acres for a company. Here's my drill:

No collar, dogs acting aggresivley out in the woods coming at me = shots fired.

Drew down once on two Great Danes that ran down a  brushy old fire lane reduced to a mere 10 inch wide path at me once. Didn't see them until they were almost on top of me but I heard a ruckus coming.
Collars and all, just out for a romp and were friendly as hell. I think they were happy to see me. Walked them back up to the road and there was a car going up and down. Sure enough, it was the owner looking for them.


I know.....cool fucking story,Bro.

Good.  Now quit feeding that .40 anything except 180 gr. pills.  Trust me on this one.



If you don't want to take my word for it, go back and cut open the dog.  You'll see what I mean.

In.

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That looks like somebody's dog that they let roam at night, they tend to pack up and kill stuff. They then show up in the morning with a little halo and a innocent look.

In on one

Dogs are tough, they're slow to admit that they're dead.  There are a few armed-man-attacked-by-dog stories out there that ended with it taking the better part of a magazine to stop the dog.

I ain't sayin shit, i have shot my share of vicious dogs. I don't deal well with fluffy trying to tear flesh off my body.

My ex-wife was 5-2 and all of 106 pounds, she was damn near killed by one GSD.  That one got a 12 ga. slug to the chest. She needed over 200 stitches to put her back together.

 the OP did what he had to.

This.



Good shoot too.



 

good shoot

It was coming right at him.  

Got it?

Coming.

Right.

At.

Him.

Stay classy ATF in training.... In on 1

I am sooooooooooooooooooooo In on one.

Runnin to get some kettle corn! BRB.

sooo dibble bar vs .45 ?

was the planting crew short (no pun intended) a few ethnic looking agricultural workers of questionable VISA status

it took me 4 rounsd of 00 Federal reduced recoil 12ga to put down a BIG pit, i can definitely see 5 rounds or more for that thing.

Thats what I'm thinking. lol.

Wow, this really makes you think when heading out into the woods.  

Even in areas where bears and mountain lions might not be a normal threat, a pack of feral dogs can be a serious problem.  In fact, because of negligent or careless pet owners, it could even be more of a threat the closer you are to civilization.  

I remember a story out of the NW where a pack of dogs was killing llamas on ranch land near homes.

Good shoot, OP and thanks for sharing the story.

Good shoot, glad you are OK. About the time Fluffy there sunk his teeth into ya, his 3 amigos would have been back to join in on the action.

You shoot it, you eat it... derp, derp
Why did you have to hurt that poor puppy?  



J/K, good shoot and good shooting.