Tehama County deputy shoots dog over fight with his own

Alayna Shulman | Redding

An off-duty Tehama County deputy on Monday shot a bullmastiff three times after it bit his "much smaller" dog around the throat, and it's unknown whether the larger dog survived.

Sgt. Jeff Garrett said the deputy and his wife were walking on the 4200 block of East Avenue in Corning about 7:45 p.m. Monday when the bullmastiff jumped a fence and started "aggressively attacking" their dog.

The deputy grabbed his pistol and shot the bullmastiff three times, hitting it at least once in the side, Garrett said.

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The larger dog fell to the ground, letting go of the deputy's dog, whose puncture wounds to the throat were treated by a veterinarian, Garrett said.

Garrett said that the bullmastiff's owner, Anita Jacobson, helped her dog before taking it to a veterinarian in Chico, but the dog's condition wasn't known as of Tuesday.

An investigation was conducted by another deputy who was called to the scene, but Garrett didn't reveal what the deputy found.

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In a press release on the incident, there wasn't any further mention of the deputy who shot the dog.

The news comes seven months after a Red Bluff police officer shot and killed two St. Bernards, which triggered outrage because the breed is generally known for being gentle and witnesses said they weren't endangering him.

Officer Jike Dever's actions that November day were investigated, but Police Chief Kyle Sanders wouldn't reveal what came of the investigation, though he noted that there were lessons to be learned after the incident.

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