Shoot the Dog

"Shoot the Dog"
Single by George Michael
from the album Patience
Released	29 July 2002 (2002-07-29)
Genre	Synth-pop[1]
Length	5:01
Label	Polydor
Songwriter(s)	George Michael Philip Oakey Ian Burden
Producer(s)	George Michael
George Michael singles chronology
"Freeek!" (2002) "Shoot the Dog" (2002) "Amazing" (2004)

"Shoot the Dog" is a song by British singer-songwriter George Michael, released as the second single from his fifth and final studio album, Patience, though released a year and a half prior to the album. It was his last release for Polydor Records, after which he departed from that label and returned to Sony Music, on which the album Patience, including the song "Shoot the Dog", was released. The song is a protest song referring to (and critical of) British Prime Minister Tony Blair and American President George W. Bush. Released on 29 July 2002, it peaked at number one in Denmark and number 12 in the United Kingdom.

The music video for the song is completely animated. The single marked 20 years since the release of Wham!'s first single, "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)", another politically charged song written by Michael. "Shoot the Dog" samples the Human League song "Love Action (I Believe in Love)". It also samples the "That's right!" vocal from Silver Convention's "Get Up and Boogie", as well as the "Gotta get up" vocal from Michael's own song "Fastlove" (1996).