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Unfortunately, news of dogs being shot is far too common these days. But, it’s not often that a dog shoots a man! Such was the case during a recent Iowa hunting accident involving a pheasant hunter, his dog, and a loaded 12-gauge shotgun.
William Rancourt, 36, of Lebanon, New Hampshire was pheasant hunting with three other hunters when he was hit in the back by bird shot pellets from another hunter’s 12-gauge shotgun.
The hunting party – which included two dogs, two Iowans and another man from New Hampshire – had been pheasant hunting in the Boone River Greenbelt Conservation Board Public Hunting Area when one of the men placed his shotgun on the ground without unloading.
The shotgun was still lying on the ground when the dog stepped on the trigger guard, causing it to discharge. Rancourt was standing about 22 yards away when the bird shot struck him in the back.
The hunter was transported to Trinity Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The incident serves a good reminder to all hunters to both unload and double check the safety before putting any guns down or leaving them unattended, DNR conservation officer, Ken Lonneman said.
Della Williamson
Dec 1, 2017 at 1:42 pm
The guy was either new or stupid. We’ve gone out with people who would slam their doors then complain about nothing to shoot. So we learned quick to be careful who we went out with. Some people just don’t get it. When your hunting. Be quite. When your not using your gun make sure the safety is engaged. And like it said here. Unloaded. My Dad always taught us “safety first”. It should be that in all situations