Why Did Mindy McCready Shoot Boyfriend’s Dog? A Friend Explains

After Mindy McCready’s suicide was reported, interest turned to one of the sadder circumstances aside from the death of a young mother — that just ahead of the gunshot would McCready fatally inflicted upon herself, she shot and killed her dead lover’s pet dog as well.

Mindy McCready’s dog’s death has puzzled and confused many, as despite her troubles, the country singer was known to be exceedingly kind and personable.

Even in a place that low, why would Mindy McCready shoot and kill a helpless dog?

Friends of McCready insist the singer was a good woman who fell on exceedingly hard times — struggling through addiction and then suffering the loss of partner David Wilson last month, and then the removal of her children to foster care earlier this month.

One pal, who did not provide a name, says Mindy would never have hurt the animal on purpose, and rather that she likely worried about the pet’s fate with both Wilson and McCready dead.

The friend told Fox:

“Mindy hasn’t gotten any breaks in months. First David, then the kids, then rehab … She’s been up and down in recent times. But after David, it was just too hard for her to bounce back.”

McCready’s friend also says that coming home to a house without her partner and children may have been too much for the country star to bear, explaining:

“She didn’t really have a support network and coming home to an empty house seems to be what really did it … It is tragic. She was a sweet and kind girl at heart.”

The pal concludes:

“Mindy really loved her dog and that would not have been an act of malice at all … It would have been more of a case where she just didn’t want to leave the dog alone.”

A memorial for Mindy McCready is currently being organized.