Dog of New York Times killed by Blackwater

Blackwater, the private security company recently accused of killing people, is in big trouble. Now, they're accused of killing a dog. And not just any dog, but a dog belonging to the New York Times! So much for the PR blitz. Reuters reports on this latest bizarre twist of the Blackwater saga:

Frankly, I'm more of a cat person myself, but shooting an unarmed mut seems a tad extreme. I mean, ever heard of pepper spray? Anyhow, doesn't matter whose fault it is: Blackwater has no idea what they're in for. Animal lovers can get nutty.

Staff at the newspaper's Baghdad bureau said Blackwater bodyguards shot Hentish dead last week before a visit by a U.S. diplomat to the Times compound.

Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell said the dog had attacked one of Blackwater's bomb-sniffer dogs while a security team was sweeping the compound for explosives.

"The K-9 handler made several unsuccessful attempts to get the dog to retreat, including placing himself between the dogs. When those efforts failed, the K-9 handler unfortunately was forced to use a pistol to protect the company's K-9 and himself," she said in an e-mail to Reuters.