WESTLAKE, Ohio -- Steven Cooke concedes his dog probably ran barking at police officers who came into his back yard.

He can't understand why an officer shot the dog dead.

Cooke's yellow Labrador retriever Callaway was shot once in the head by officer Mark Morales near the back door to Cooke's house about 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

Cooke said he was away at Mass when his burglar alarm went off. Officers responded and started to check the back door to see if anyone had broken in .

The dog ran at Morales in a "full aggressive charge," the officer wrote in a preliminary report, and posed an "imminent threat of physical harm."

Cooke, a dentist, noted that Morales was not bitten or scratched by the dog. He said Morales should have either kicked the dog away or used his Taser or pepper spray.

"He could have done any number of things, other than shoot the dog," Cooke said. "I don't think any family should have to endure this."

Police took Callaway, named after the golf equipment, to the West Park Animal Hospital and notified Cooke and his family. Cooke said he agreed to euthanize the dog.

News of the shooting made its way through animal rights e-mail lists Sunday and Monday. Most of those e-mails did not mention the dog charging the officer, only that it barked. By late Monday, police and Westlake Mayor Dennis Clough received several calls and e-mails angry over the shooting.

"I am mortified," wrote resident Linda Stacks.

Resident and dog owner Jessica Monnolly called the shooting "shocking" in an e-mail.

"I am rightly concerned about my own dog's well-being should something like this (house alarm, etc.) happen at my home," she wrote. "What are the regulations that protect us and our dogs from the same fate!?"

The Animal Protective League in Cleveland plans to review the incident, said director Sharon Harvey. The group needs to know more facts before reaching any conclusions, she said.

Clough cannot remember any previous incidents of officers shooting pets at homes in his more than 20 years as mayor. He said he would wait for a full report before making further comment.

"We're sorry about the dog being shot," he said. "It's an unfortunate incident at this point."

Police spokesman Ray Arcuri said officers do not believe any neighbors were home at the time of the shooting and urged any witnesses to come forward. He said supervisors will talk with Morales, but the standards for how police respond to the shooting of an animal differ from the shooting of a person.

Morales has been on the force four years and has never fired his gun on duty before. He will continue working during the investigation, Arcuri said.

Police and Cooke agree on the events that brought police to the house: Cooke said he keeps his two retrievers in his garage while away from the house and that the dogs probably pushed open the garage's back door, setting off the alarm. A third dog belonging to his daughter was also there.

Arcuri said the home has had four false alarms since the start of December and had a few earlier last year.

Cooke said the dogs would naturally bark and approach officers and bark or growl since the officers are strangers on the dogs' territory. But he insists the dogs do not bite and pose no real threat.

Arcuri said one dog trotted toward Morales barking but Callaway ran past the other at the officer. Morales backed away and yelled at Callaway to stop, but he did not. The dog was shot three to four feet from where the officer was standing.

"He didn't have the option to go to things less than lethal," Arcuri said.

Cooke said Morales could have taken shelter behind yard furniture near the door or gone around a fence. In the calls and e-mails to the city, others questioned training they said should have had the officer better prepared.

U.S. Postal Service carriers deal with dogs on their routes all the time, but carry only pepper spray, said spokesman Victor Dubina. But in coming through the same areas regularly, they learn the dogs and behaviors and know which ones to watch out for.

Even so, 18 carriers were bitten last year in the Greater Cleveland area, which includes most of Cuyahoga County. Another seven were injured evading dogs.