Face it, WAY more first-responders (police, fire, etc) are more comfortable with dogs than reptiles, especially where there's KNOWN to be venomous snakes+.

Glad I never had any emergency issues when I lived in the desert: everyone knew what I did & I had signs on entry doors "Rattlesnake on duty" but also
had 4 big dogs (2 Dobies & 2 shep. mixes) to contend with, & I can't tell you how many news stories I've seen from THIS country where police have shot a dog
that merely barked at them & was unrestrained when they went to arrest the owner or someone else that lived in the house. I don't blame them for not
wanting to be attacked or killed in the line of duty, but there HAS to be a better way than being trigger-happy...most anyone's PET dog will bark to protect
their house & owner & should never be killed for that. I DO think that in the event of a fire, you cannot really expect fire fighters to run in & rescue venomous
snakes though. I suspect that owner already has agreed to that...but it's more dramatic to end the story the way they did.

Cool article, Craig...looks like an interesting guy to visit, eh?