Kristi Noem's pheasant-opener post with her dog Foster draws online mockery
Former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted a photo with a shotgun and her dog Foster for South Dakota's pheasant season opener. Many X users responded by recalling her account of shooting another dog, Cricket.
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The story, neutrally told
Mixed · 2On Saturday 17 October 2026, former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted a photo of herself with her dog Foster to mark the start of pheasant hunting season in South Dakota. Washington ExaminerR “Social media users on X ripped former Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem after she posted a picture with her dog for the start of pheasant hunting season in South Dakota.” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ Raw StoryL “On Saturday, Noem marked South Dakota's pheasant season opener with a photo of her holding a shotgun while holding her dog Foster.” Read at Raw Story ↗ Right · 1Her post read: "Happy Opener, South Dakota! Foster and I wish you good luck in the field! Pheasant hunting is part of who we are, and it's a tradition worth passing on to our kids and grandkids." Washington ExaminerR ““Happy Opener, South Dakota! Foster and I wish you good luck in the field! Pheasant hunting is part of who we are, and it's a tradition worth passing on to our kids and grandkids,” Noem said on X Saturday.” Read at Washington Examiner ↗ Left · 1Users on X reacted critically, with many recalling Cricket, a 14-month-old wirehaired pointer that Noem wrote in her 2024 memoir "No Going Back" she had shot dead in a gravel pit. Raw StoryL “Critics flashed back to Cricket, the 14-month-old wirehaired pointer she shot dead and later wrote about in her 2024 memoir "No Going Back."” Read at Raw Story ↗
Left · 1According to Raw Story's account of the memoir, Noem said Cricket had ruined a pheasant hunt and attacked a local family's chickens, and she called the dog untrainable and dangerous; Raw Story says the admission sparked bipartisan outrage. Raw StoryL “In her memoir, Noem described shooting Cricket in a gravel pit after the dog ruined a pheasant hunt and attacked a local family's chickens. She called the dog untrainable and dangerous.” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 1Raw Story reported that the post drew more than 340,000 views within hours. Raw StoryL “Her post on Saturday quickly reopened that wound, racking up more than 340,000 views within hours.” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 1Critics quoted by Raw Story included Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson ("RIP, Foster. You looked like a good boy"), HuffPost's S.V. Dáte ("Run, Foster, run!"), commentator Molly Jong-Fast, conservative writer Sarah Rumpf ("Gonna need proof of life for that pup asap, Kristi"), researcher Jim Stewartson, and the account Republicans Against Trump ("Somebody save Foster"). Raw StoryL “"RIP, Foster. You looked like a good boy," quipped Lincoln Project co-founder and former GOP operative Rick Wilson in a reaction post on X.”“"Gonna need proof of life for that pup asap, Kristi," she warned.” Read at Raw Story ↗
Right · 1The Washington Examiner headlined its report with a similar reaction, "Save the dog". No response from Noem to the criticism was reported in either article. Washington ExaminerR “Kristi Noem draws backlash over hunting post online: ‘Save the dog’” Read at Washington Examiner ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left1 outlet
- Framing
- Treats the reaction as a mocking pile-on, tying the post to Noem's shooting of Cricket and listing many critics' quips.
- Emphasis
- The Cricket memoir episode, named critics' reactions, view count.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not report any response from Noem.
- Charged language
- “Horror”“morbid 'RIP' pile-on”
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right1 outlet
- Framing
- Short report that X users criticised Noem's post, centred on the 'Save the dog' reaction, quoting her post.
- Emphasis
- Noem's own post text and the backlash on X.
- Leaves out or plays down
- The visible text does not mention Cricket or the memoir, or name critics.
- Charged language
- “ripped”
- For example
-
“Social media users on X ripped former Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem” — Washington Examiner
What every side reports
- Noem posted on X on Saturday with her dog Foster for South Dakota's pheasant season opener.
- The post drew critical reactions from X users.
- Noem is a former Homeland Security Secretary.
Kristi Noem person
Noem presented the post as a celebration of pheasant hunting as a tradition to pass to children and grandchildren; no reply to critics was reported.
“Pheasant hunting is part of who we are, and it's a tradition worth passing on to our kids and grandkids” — Washington Examiner
Left1 article
-
Horror as Kristi Noem's hunting photo with new dog sparks morbid 'RIP' pile-on: 'Run!'
Mixed Mocking, colourful roundup of critics' jokes linking the post to the Cricket shooting.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right1 article
-
Kristi Noem draws backlash over hunting post online: ‘Save the dog’
Neutral Brief report of the backlash on X alongside Noem's post.
- 17 Oct 17:16 First Raw StoryL Horror as Kristi Noem's hunting photo with new dog sparks morbid 'RIP' pile-on: 'Run!'
- 17 Oct 19:45 +2h 29m Washington ExaminerR Kristi Noem draws backlash over hunting post online: ‘Save the dog’
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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