“I tried, but I didn’t think I could get away from her,” he said haltingly. “I told her to ‘get back,’ she wouldn’t get back ... and I fired two shots.”
I can’t comment about the dog, because it is possible that it was a highly aggressive one, but he expected it to understand English?
She was “coming right at him” so fast, he had to shoot her in the back of the head.
How about sit, down, but get back? I have never told a dog to get back. I don’t think back is something a dog is familiar with hearing. But sit and down are commonly used. Might have been a better choice of recognizable words. For the dog that is.