Governor Who Bragged About Shooting Her Dog Is In for a Fright This Halloween
Everyone recoiled in horror when South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem bragged in her recent book about losing her temper, dragging a rambunctious puppy named Cricket into a gravel pit, and shooting her dead, rather than attempting to train her or giving her to someone who would have shown her the love and patience she needed. Now PETA has announced a limited-edition Halloween costume—called “Cricket’s Revenge”—featuring a mask of Noem’s face, complete with a camo hat and devil horns and imprinted with the words “Noem: Puppy Killer.” The costume also includes a corrugated plastic rifle cutout and the pièce de résistance: a stuffed dog to “bite” the neck of the wearer, adorned with a bandanna that reads, “Take a Bite out of Cruelty.”
This exclusive get-up is available for preorder at the PETA Shop, and all proceeds will benefit our vital work to help pups and other animals.
Anyone unfeeling enough to blow a rambunctious puppy’s brains out instead of attempting to train her or find her a responsible guardian is as scary as any horror movie villain. With PETA’s Noem costume, dog defenders everywhere can amuse and terrorize their friends when they appear as the most ghoulish monster at the Halloween party.
PETA urges everyone to consider whether they have the time, patience, funds, and other resources necessary to socialize and train a dog before adding one to the family. Humane dog training uses only positive reinforcement—never fear, intimidation, or painful methods such as shock collars, which Noem admits to having used on Cricket prior to killing her.
Originally published on April 29, 2024:
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem admits that she shot and killed her energetic, 14-month-old pup, Cricket, as well as a goat she says smelled “musky.” She reveals these cruel actions in her book, No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong With Politics and How We Move America Forward.
PETA is making it clear that Noem should have found a humane dog trainer or found a different home for Cricket:
“Most Americans love their dogs, and we suspect that they’ll consider Gov. Noem a psychotic loony for letting this rambunctious puppy loose on chickens and then punishing her by deciding to personally blow her brains out rather than attempting to train her or find a more responsible guardian who could provide her with a proper home. Noem obviously fails to understand the vital political concepts of education, cooperation, compromise, and compassion.”
—Colleen O’Brien, senior vice president of media relations at PETA
Kristi Noem Shot Her Dog and Goat—Here’s What You Can Do to Help Animals
Every animal is someone. It’s speciesist to believe that farmed and captive animals, like goats, don’t suffer or feel emotions to the same extent as the animals with whom we lovingly share our homes, like dogs.
Help animals by taking PETA’s vegan challenge. After three weeks, you’ll be a pro at finding vegan options at your favorite restaurants, eating vegan on a budget, and meeting all your nutritional needs:
