Stop trying to teach your old dog new tricks, and teach yourself some gun safety!
A Wyoming man is recovering in the hospital after his dog accidentally shot him. In a phone interview on Thursday, Johnson County Sheriff Steve Kozisek confirmed that Richard L. Fipps, 46, was hospitalized Monday after his dog stepped on a loaded rifle in the bed of his pickup truck and accidentally fired it. The rifle's safety was off, Kozisek said.
According to Big Horn Mountain Radio, Fipps was removing snow chains from his truck when he was shot in the left arm.
"The rifle was loaded and in the bed of the truck [with some other gear], and the dog hopped up there and either stepped on it or caused something to move and set it off," Kozisek told the Huffington Post.
Fipps transported to Sheridan Memorial Hospital via ambulance. His condition was not released, but his injuries were not life threatening, according to Big Horn Mountain Radio.
Kozisek said that the accident could have easily been prevented, had the gun not been loaded.
"Carrying a loaded rifle in a truck is never a good idea, safety on or safety off," Kozisek said.
The sheriff, who has worked in law enforcement for 42 years, said he'd never seen a case where a dog shot a man. However, it has happened before -- in Florida.
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