I agree with Dave B. I just gone watching a movie with James Woods about the Mercury7 days .... there was a part where they referred to the dogs that died during the Russions space tests... It dawned on me then as to whether that is where the expression "don't screw the pooch" came from (making a mistake that will result in another killing of a dog) ...especially since it seems to be tied space jargon... I immedietley googled to see if my assessment was correct... a lot of speculation.. but Dave B validates my assumption.

Dave B... how did you know that is where the expression came from