Despite attacking 5 people in 7 years, county doesn’t deem dog ‘dangerous’
“He just latched on. I never felt a force as tight as that.”
SMYRNA, Tenn. (WSMV) - After being attacked by his neighbor’s dog, Tommy Dabbs decided to find out if the animal that bit him had a history of problems with the county.
He wasn’t expecting to receive more than 90 pages documenting prior attacks.
“Shocked. Angry. Trying to figure out how it got from one bite to five bites,” Dabbs said.
On October 22, 2023, the Rutherford County realtor saw his neighbor’s dog had wandered into his yard.
Surveillance video shows the dog was friendly, wagging his tail and letting Dabbs pet it, so he considered even allowing some of his five young children to accompany him to return the dog.
“Some of them wanted to go with me. Let’s go on a little adventure,” Dabbs said.
Taking the dog to the home of his neighbor Rebecca Garbler, Dabbs said he approached with the lost dog when the door opened, and another dog, named Hydro, ran out.
Within seconds, Dabbs said Hydro had clamped down on his leg.
“Completely intense. Never felt pain - I’ve been hurt a lot - never felt pain that intense,” Dabbs said. “He just latched on. I never felt a force as tight as that.”
911 records show Dabbs called to report his injury, saying he needed medical attention.
Dabbs said after the bite, he racked up $50,000 in medical bills.
While in recovery, Dabbs filed a records request with Rutherford County Pet Adoption and Welfare Services (PAWS) to see if Hydro had a history of attacks.
He received documentation of four prior attacks by Hydro on four different people in 2017, 2018 and twice in 2020.
Below are reports of the bites:
- https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24780753-tommy-bit-10-22-2023?responsive=1&title=1
- https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24780754-therapist-bit-in-8-2020?responsive=1&title=1
- https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24780755-runner-bit-in-5-2020?responsive=1&title=1
- https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24780756-2017-neighbor-bit-20170410-incident?responsive=1&title=1
- https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24780757-grandfather-bit-in-2018?responsive=1&title=1
Dabbs was Hydro’s fifth victim documented by the county and is currently not designated a dangerous animal.
“It blows my mind,” said William Hicky, Dabbs attorney. “On the surface, it seems like a fundamental breakdown at the government level on this.”
WSMV4 Investigates requested an interview with Michael Gregory, the director of PAWS, but a spokeswoman for the county said he wasn’t available and sent a statement reading that following Hydro’s attacks, all county policies were followed.
WSMV4 Investigates then contacted Rutherford County Mayor Joe Carr, who asked his legal team to review why Hydro is not currently designated as a dangerous animal.
“How can the county already have knowledge that the dog had bit four people and it still be allowed to bite a 5th person?” asked WSMV4 Investigates.
“My particular understanding of this case is that it goes back to 2017,” Carr said.
Carr went on to say that his legal team found that following the four bites, Hydro was deemed a potentially dangerous dog and was required to undergo training, which records show it did.
All of the attacks were found to be unprovoked except for the 2017 incident, but the county’s legal team found that it is unclear if that 2017 incident was unprovoked or provoked.
In late 2020, the county’s dangerous dog policy was then updated.
The new policy reads that a dog is only deemed dangerous if it bites three people unprovoked, on its owner’s property, within the last 18 months.
Because Dabbs’ attack occurred in October 2023, the past 18-month rule was not applicable, therefore not designating the dog as dangerous.
“If we need to revise and update our policies and procedures at PAWS, we will absolutely do so,” Carr said.
The reality that his children play in a neighborhood where the dog that bit him and four other people is not deemed dangerous, leaves Dabbs with scars that are both physical and mental.
”I don’t look at any dog the same. Especially when my kids are around,” Dabbs said.
Dabbs is now suing Hydro’s owner, Rebecca Garbler.
WSMV4 Investigates reached out to her and her attorney, who said they had no comment because of the pending litigation.
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