On March 17, in Erda, a local sheriff's deputy arrived at a residence in response to a complaint about a dog, the family pet of a young girl. (See "'Dangerous' pets force hard choices," March 20.) This dog was described very differently by this young girl than it was by her neighbors, who filed the complaint. She, and basically everyone else who came in contact with this dog, described him as a loving, caring, tender dog who wouldn't hurt anybody. The complaining neighbors painted the picture that comes to many people's minds when the word Doberman is uttered: a mean, vicious canine that victimizes residents and terrorizes the community. When the deputy arrived on scene, he too had this picture already painted in his mind. When the deputy exited his vehicle, he reported the dog acting very aggressive. The deputy told the family that he saw the dog snarl and became intimidated. He reported to his office that the dog attacked and left him with no choice but to put the dog down with a 9 mm to the chest. No call was made to animal control, nobody witnessed the event, and a dog was shot on his own property. I ask you to think about this occurrence and the many others like it. Are we putting too much trust in a tin badge? Are our officers becoming a little too trigger happy? It's worth a thought.

Carri Chaddon

Tooele