An animal control officer in Van Zandt County in east Texas has been charged with cruelty after shooting his own dog in an unusually cruel manner.

Michael Bradford Goggans, an ACO for the city of Wills Point, was arrested on June 20 and charged with Cruelty to Non-livestock Animals – Torture, a 3rd degree felony, and booked into the Van Zandt County Jail with a $50,000 bond.

According to a release, Goggans killed his dog after neighbors complained, but it's the manner in which he did it: He used birdshot ammunition which resulted in a prolonged and cruel death.

On June 12-13, 2024, the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office responded to separate reports that an unaltered male, mixed breed dog named Rip, who belonged to Goggans, was running and playfully jumping up on the neighbors. On June 13, a sheriff’s deputy advised Goggans that he needed to keep the dog confined to his property and warned him that he would be issued a citation if he continued to allow the dog to run loose.

Goggans' response to was that he intended to kill the dog, then contacted the deputy again to inform him that he had killed it and that the dead dog was in his front yard.

Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office personnel immediately contacted the SPCA of Texas Animal Cruelty Investigations (ACI) Unit. An SPCA Investigator met with Goggans, who He admitted to shooting and killing his dog with a shotgun and using a type of ammunition utilized for bird or small game hunting.

SPCA of Texas performed a necropsy on the dog which revealed that the dog was shot in its side from a distance with birdshot ammunition. Multiple tiny pellets entered the dog’s torso and caused the dog to slowly bleed out internally. This act caused unjustifiable pain and suffering to the dog before it succumbed to its injuries.

“Texas law does not prohibit an individual from euthanizing their own animal; however, it must be done in a humane manner that prevents pain and suffering,” said SPCA of Texas Chief Investigator, Animal Cruelty Investigations Unit, Courtney Burns, CAWA. “Unfortunately, in this case, the evidence shows that the dog suffered greatly at the hands of his owner and without any justifiable reason.”