Its a natural response to a perceived threat. Sorry, but a golden retriever or smaller dog running at me is not a perceived threat. Maybe a large rottweiler, but not a retriever, lab, doodle, or any of many other breeds known for being people friendly and playful. So no, not 'any animal' can be perceived as a threat by an adult male. A person who feels his only response to a dog running towards him is to shoot the dog is not a man, not an adult, and should not have a gun.
That was not a golden retriever that charged the officer. Watch the video. The owner claims that it was a yellow Lab. Who knows if that was true either. Part of a pack of dogs running wild. I’m thankful I’m not a police officer having to deal with that. Thank you law enforcement for all you do. Not an easy job making split second purbred dog assessments.
Sorry but a golden is NOT a small dog.
I have owned golden’s, they are not by any classification system a small dog.
You and others like you seem to think that because you are familiar with the breed that everyone walking the planet is. This is nonsense.
Not everyone walking the planet is familiar with dog behavior in general let alone particular breeds. Sadly many dog owners are just flat out ignorant, and think because they are comfortable around their dog, that everyone will be, this is a very delusional world view.
A 75 lb animal running at someone, I don’t care what the animal is, can and often is perceived as a threat. Some dog owners sadly, are just flat out oblivious to how others in the world perceive their pets. Assuming every other person on the planet perceives your pet and its behavior the same way you do is a fools errand.
Your animal runs up to someone, even if its the most mild mannered animal in existence, the person they are running at can perceive them as a threat. Fido may only be wanting to say hi and be petted, but to the person they are running at, that is not how they are guaranteed to perceive the behavior. They can perceive it as a threat, and you have no right to say they are unjustified in that response. Your dog absolutely can trigger a fight of flight response, and no one deserves to be strung up from the nearest tree when it does trigger them and they react with fight.