When I saw the headline about Kristi Noem having a new dog I assumed it was an inappropriate piece of satire from The Onion. It’s not. Nor is it something one of her neighbors out in South Dakota leaked to the press. Noem herself went online to post a bunch of pictures of her with the poor four legged critter that will likely one day meet the same fate as the puppy (Cricket) Noem boasted she shot in the face because she didn’t have the patience to train it.
That’s right. According to The Daily Beast Noem herself went online (both on Twitter/X and FaceBook) and posted pictures of her new hunting dog named Foster. Remember that name because he might not be long for this world. He’s apparently well-trained enough she’d let him go out and retrieve pheasants (pheasant hunting is huge in South Dakota) but Noem isn’t your average hunter. I’ll get to that. The linked article isn’t much when it comes to text but there are large photos of KKKristi with her dog so you should check it out.
Being disabled (and a senior citizen) my hunting days are long behind me but like many others, on opening day of a given hunting season (it varies by the game being hunted) or at least my first time out I would likely post a few pictures of the outing. Given her notoriety you’d think Noem wouldn’t make a big show of her and a new dog. A tweet or post celebrating the opening of the season (again, pheasant hunting is a big deal in her home state) wishing hunters a successful hunt/season and touting her state’s outdoor recreation would be okay. But no, she had to go and show pictures of her in the field with her dog.
One of them is the title picture and there’s a detail I should explain, but first count up the number of pheasants on the ground in front of Foster (her dog). Got it? Also, look at the second one from left. It’s hard to be sure as it might have been placed awkwardly or backwards but it sure looks like a hen. As is typical with so many game birds males (male pheasants are called roosters) are brightly colored and females (the females are called hens) are kind of drab.
First, it’s only legal to harvest (ok, kill) roosters. Second, the limit is three roosters per day! Oh, and the possession limit is 15 which is only legal on the fifth day after the season opens. While the regular pheasant season only began today, there is a resident only season that started on Oct. 10 this year. That of course begs the question of just where he legal residency has been since she went to work for Trump.
Regardless, Noem has WAY over the limit, and again while it’s hard to be sure one of them is appears to be a hen which is illegal. As an experienced hunter Noem damn well knows that. So either she’s a lot dumber than we figured (possible) or she flat out doesn’t care. It’s not crazy to assume she figures because of who she is the state’s Game & Fish Dept. won’t dare cite her. But I can assure you even though most in South Dakata, including and especially hunters who saw this are pissed!
Here’s why I worry for her dog. If she gets called out for having shot so many pheasants she’ll try and claim SHE didn’t shoot all of them. That her dog rounded up other dead pheasants other hunters couldn’t find (not everyone has a retriever) and brought them too her. Then she’ll shoot the dog in anger because… well, you know. There’s something else which animal lovers who don’t approve of hunting (for the record, like most I’ve only hunted and killed what I wound up putting on the table to eat) might not want to know. A prized hunting dog that retrieves has what’s known as a “soft mouth.” What that means is that the dogs jaws only grip just tight enough to hold the bird – gently enough that it doesn’t bit down into the meat, or even leave visible teeth marks once a bird is cleaned.
I pity poor Foster if, as happens sometimes even with a great retriever she finds teeth/bite marks after cleaning/dressing the bird. It would take that many to get Foster a trip to the infamous gravel pit. I’ll bet I’m not the only person to worry about that but comments noted in the linked article are sarcastic in tone. After mentioning the passage about Cricket in Noem’s 2024 book it went on to say online commentary expressed concern for her new dog’s well-being. For example:
“The worst possible thing you could post would be a dog and a gun, lady. Come on,” one X user wrote.
“Blink twice if you’re in danger,” wrote another, seemingly addressing Foster directly.
“You shouldn’t have any pets. Cricket remembers,” another said.
I’m not about to go on Xitter or FB and check out Noem’s posts. However I’m pretty sure there’s an awful lot more similar comments. And some, perhaps many that are far harsher. After Noem was fired from DHS Trump found some sort of consolation job for her but unless I’m mistaken that recently ended too. So I’d at least hoped we’d have heard pretty much the last of Krazy (puppy) Killer Kristi Noem. I certainly never thought she’d grab herself more spotlight at a time when her former boss, and the GOP as a whole is trying to put out election wildfires all over the country. For SURE I didn’t expect her to do a ‘Hey – look at me!!!’ (again) thing with a dog! No wonder Noem was part of Team Trump. She’s got the tone-deaf part down pat.
Well, I say send out prayers for Foster (or if like me and not a person of faith send out good karma) to not wind up like Cricket.
Friends, I know everyone begs you for money. I promise, among all those asking for spare change, we are the smallest and the hardest working. We’re a group of old, disabled people, except for one writer in his mid-50s. The rest of us are in our sixties and seventies, and this is a labor of love. All we’re asking for is the chance to keep telling the truth about Trump and help ensure democracy survives. If you can help, please do. Thank you. Ursula
