Dear Editor,

I am writing with regards to the deputy sheriff/goat incident in Yosemite Lakes Park that was reported in the Sept. 20 Sierra Star.

We have a yellow lab that is extremely smart and determined and has been a challenge to us since the day we adopted her several years ago. She is being kept inside a large pen where she can run around freely but she still tries to jump over the fence every chance she gets.

No matter what I do to the fence, she finds a way out.

Animals should not be allowed to run around loose and become a nuisance to other people. But they do get out every once in a while and may end up on other people's properties. After all, they do not know any better.

It's their owners' responsibility to control them to assure their safety as well as their neighbors. It is unfortunate that people tend to perceive any behaviors exhibited by them as aggressive and threatening. Perhaps, these animals are only reacting to the hostile manners displayed by humans.

Let's not forget that these animals are somebody's pets.

Pet owners treat them as if they're their own children. Shooting them without considering all other options is nothing but cruel.

Ryoichi Morita, Coarsegold