Republican South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is pushing back against allegations she murdered an innocent puppy, calling those claims fake news smears.

Speaking to Fox News’ Sean Hannity Wednesday, Noem addressed rumors circulating in the mainstream media and on social media regarding an excerpt in her new book, in which she discussed the tough decision to put down her 14-month-old canine Cricket.

“Sean, you know how the fake news works,” the potential Donald Trump vice president pick told Hannity, referring to anti-conservative propaganda spread by the left-leaning mainstream media.

“They leave out some, or most of the facts of a story. They put the worst spin on it and that’s what’s happened.”

She continued, “In this case, I hope people really do buy this book and they find out the truth of the story, because the truth of the story is that this was a working dog and it was not a puppy.”

Noem went on to explain she included the story in her book to illustrate how her life experiences have equipped her to make hard choices, and that she felt the dog needed to be put down after she determined it posed a risk to her and her children.

“It was a dog that was extremely dangerous. It had come to us from a family who had found her way too aggressive. We were her second chance and she was… the day she was put down was a day that she massacred livestock that were part of our neighbor’s… she attacked me and it was a hard decision.

“And the reason it’s in the book is because this book is filled with tough challenging decisions that I have to make throughout my life.

“And I hope that people understand from this that what the point of the story is is that most politicians they will run from the truth. They will shy away and hide from making tough decisions. I don’t do either of those. I tell the truth and I make tough decisions. People attacked me during Covid for keeping my state open. They called me wrong and attacked me night after night on TV for not doing mandates and not forcing people to get vaccines or wear masks. They’re doing it again. Now with this.”

Noem also addressed the issue on X earlier this week, writing, “The fact is, South Dakota law states that dogs who attack and kill livestock can be put down. Given that Cricket had shown aggressive behavior toward people by biting them, I decided what I did.”

“As I explained in the book, it wasn’t easy. But often the easy way isn’t the right way,” she added.

The attacks against the South Dakota governor come as Noem is among the shortlist of VP picks for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.