SAFETY HARBOR - A 73-year-old man this morning shot and wounded a 4-year-old Labrador retriever that had made its way into the backyard of the man's daughter, Pinellas County sheriff's authorities said.
The dog, named Emma, is expected to survive, authorities said.
The shooter, Patrick Lauer, told deputies the animal was being aggressive and that he was protecting himself, his daughter and his granddaughter, sheriff's authorities said. Lauer was not charged, but the Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's Office is expected to consider whether to charge him with animal cruelty and improper exhibition of a firearm.
Lauer was visiting his daughter at her home at 35 Harbor Lake Circle when he saw the dog in the backyard at about 9:20 a.m., authorities said. The dog had apparently dug a hole under the privacy fence that separates her owner's property from Lauer's daughter's property, authorities said.
Lauer shot at the dog five times with a .38-caliber handgun, authorities said. One bullet lodged itself in one of the dog's legs.
The owner of the Labrador, Zion Wooldridge, 32, emerged from the house next door and exchanged some words with Lauder, authorities said. He noticed his dog was bleeding and took it to a nearby animal hospital while Lauer called authorities, sheriff's officials said.
Lauer told deputies the dog escaping from its own yard had been an ongoing problem.
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