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South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and I have some things in common. We grew up within a hundred miles of each other on opposite sides of the Minnesota/South Dakota border. We have both killed a dog and, as of this moment, we have both written about it.
That’s where similarities cease. By now you certainly know that Noem shot and killed a 14-month-old hunting dog named Cricket. She told the world about it in a book that is no doubt intended to boost her chances to become Donald Trump’s running mate. It appears that, instead, she has become the victim of self-inflicted political damage that might stunt her career indefinitely. That’s because dogs get more respect than people in segments of our society, and dogs are bipartisan.
Oh, and what the governor did was both premeditated and intentional. And unnecessary.
For the record, I am not a dog lover. My dad owned a small power company, and I was recruited to read meters as a teenager. That gave me the opportunity to be chased and bitten by all variety of canines. A chihuahua got me by the ankle. A Doberman chased me out of a basement hitting the door on the fly when I closed it just in time. The prettiest collie you ever saw was preparing to attack me when the woman who owned it smacked it with a broom.
For most of my childhood, we had no dog at home. Then one day, my parents decided we should get a little cocker spaniel. We called it Candy. It did not behave well, and my sister Carrie was the only one of the seven kids who took care of it. After one too many neighbors was bitten, I got the duty of driving Carrie and Candy to the humane society (in South Dakota, coincidentally), where the dog was left to an uncertain future. That’s what you do with dogs you don’t want, Gov. Noem.
When I got married, my wife wanted a puppy, and I lost the argument. A mutt named Barney entered our world. But then our apartment manager declared that, if Barney didn’t leave, we would. We gave the dog to my dad, and they became fast friends. That’s an option, Gov. Noem.
Years later, with children begging for a pet, I gave in again. A terrier named Shaggy moved in. He wrecked the yard but served his purpose until dementia took hold. Then it became my duty to drive my wife and Shag to a vet’s office so he could be put down. That’s another option, governor.
We also went through that with a shih tzu, Astro, before my wife died in 2019.
But what about the dog I killed? It was a stray pit bull that ran in front of my truck as I was driving home from work one day. There was no avoiding it. I did what I learned in driver’s ed and avoided swerving. It was an accident that bears no comparison to the fate dealt Cricket.
I remarried in 2022, and my new wife hates that story. She’s a dog lover who has owned several pets in her life. She feeds the neighbor dogs, Bean and Pepper, every day.
Now the Cricket story has her longing to rescue someone else’s dog. I hate when she looks at me with puppy dog eyes. If a new dog enters my life, I will blame Kristi Noem.
Never mind what her politics might be, I can’t vote for that.•
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Shella hosted WFYI’s “Indiana Week in Review” for 25 years and covered Indiana politics for WISH-TV for more than three decades. Send comments to ibjedit@ibj.com.
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Jim’s wife: there is a dog named Commander at the White House with only 25 documented (by the Secret Service) biting incidents that may be available. Make Jim happy.