Dog's Reaction to Kristi Noem Goes Viral—There's Just One Problem

A video showing a dog reacting in fear to South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has gone viral on social media, after she admitted to killing one of her own puppies in a gravel pit following a pheasant hunting trip—however, the clip is not real.

In recent days, Republican Noem has faced a wave of backlash after British newspaper The Guardian published an excerpt of her upcoming book, No Going Back: The Truth on What's Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward. In the book, the governor shared an account of shooting a 14-month-old puppy named Cricket, which she wrote had an "aggressive personality."

On the way home from the trip, Cricket escaped Noem's truck and attacked a family's chickens, "grabb[ing] one chicken at a time, crunching it to death with one bite, then dropping it to attack another."

This made the chickens' owner cry and Noem paid them while also helping clean up the mess the dog had made. She added that when she grabbed Cricket, the dog "whipped around to bite me."

"At that moment, I realized I had to put her down, the governor wrote, adding that she "hated that dog," describing Cricket as "untrainable" and "dangerous to anyone she came in contact with."

Since the release of the passage, Noem, a close ally of former President Donald Trump and a possible vice presidential pick, has faced scorn from her fellow Republicans and Democrats, alike.

With the subject continuing to dominate conversations on social media, self-described graphic satirist Tarquin Helmet, who regularly posts politically-inspired memes, shared video of footage showing a dog cowering behind a couch while watching Noem on TV during a Fox News interview.

In the video, Noem was seen defending killing her puppy, while the dog watching the TV cautiously moved from the atop the couch and retreated its side while continuing to peer at the screen.

The video was picked up and shared by political commentator Luke Beasley, who added the caption: "I can't stop laughing."

As of press time, the footage has garnered more than 600,000 views. Newsweek has contacted Noem via a website request form for comment.

However, the clip was actually edited to include footage of Noem. The original version of the video, which has been viewed more than 8 million times on YouTube on the account @Elliethegoldenone, shows golden retriever Ellie reacting during her first glimpse of Darth Vader in the original Star Wars movie.

On Sunday, Noem responded to the widespread criticism of her actions, writing in a post on social media platforn X: "I can understand why some people are upset about a 20-year-old story of Cricket, one of the working dogs at our ranch, in my upcoming book—No Going Back. The book is filled with many honest stories of my life, good and bad days, challenges, painful decisions, and lessons learned."

Noem also contended that she had "followed the law and was being a responsible parent, dog owner, and neighbor."

"South Dakota law states that dogs who attack and kill livestock can be put down. Given that Cricket had shown aggressive behavior toward people by biting them, I decided what I did. As I explained in the book, it wasn't easy. But often the easy way isn't the right way," she continued.

Chapter 40-34 of South Dakota law under Dog Licenses and Regulations states: "Any person owning, keeping, or harboring a dog that chases, worries, injures, or kills any poultry or domestic animal is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor and is liable for damages to the owner thereof for any injury caused by the dog to any such poultry or animal."

The governor said she believes the book's passage about the death of her puppy shows people that she is "authentic."

"My hope is anyone reading this book will have an understanding that I always work to make the best decisions I can for the people in my life," Noem wrote on X. "Whether running the ranch or in politics, I have never passed on my responsibilities to anyone else to handle."