Deputies armed with dog repellent after Ashland City dog shot, killed

2021-12-30 06:34:34 By : Ms. Reann Cheung

After a Cheatham County Sheriff’s Office deputy shot and killed their dog, Travis Binkley and Lori Pardue felt driven to take action in her honor, and the law enforcement agency agreed to make a change.

Working with Cheatham County Sheriff Mike Breedlove and others, the agency has now equipped all deputies with the “Good Life Animal Repeller,” which Breedlove described in a news release as “an ultrasonic device designed to scare off animals of all kind.”

Deputy Mike Havens and Chief Tim Binkley demonstrated how to use the device outside the Cheatham County Sheriff’s Office on Friday morning with retired K9 officer Aries. Havens pointed out how he noticed a change in Aries’ behavior when Binkley activated the device.

The device can be effective up to 20 to 50 feet away from the animal, they reported. Though it might not deter a dog from barking, it has deterred them from coming closer to the officer.

“The repeller may not be able to be used in all aggressive animal situations but will be an important tool to help deputies from getting bit while performing their duties,” the release states.

Breedlove explained that the program launched to “help aid deputies when they come upon an aggressive animal,” noting the June 13 incident in which a deputy shot and killed an Ashland City couple’s dog in their front yard.

On that day, Deputy Darrel Hooper arrived at the Temple Road home to serve a subpoena to one of the residents, who was the victim in an assault case. When he stepped out of his patrol car, the dog, Sadie, approached him wagging her tail.

More:Breedlove: Deputy who shot, killed Ashland City dog ‘didn’t do anything wrong’

But “in an instant,” she appeared to try to bite the deputy, according to the incident report.

Travis Binkley and Pardue wanted to do something to honor their 5-year-old dog, who was half Saint Bernard and half Bluetick hound.

They both believe that having law enforcement officers equipped with the ultrasonic devices will help prevent harm to other Cheatham County residents’ pets in the future.

“I have no doubt they work,” Travis Binkley said after the demonstration Friday. He noted an occasion last summer in which an officer arrived at his residence with a similar device, and it was effective on Sadie. “Hopefully they’ll actually use these devices” moving forward.

He pointed out that the public must look at K9 officers as officers, so he hopes law enforcement will see pets as part of the community.

Travis Binkley also said that though nothing can bring their dog back, he and Pardue think it’s a step in the right direction “in honor for Sadie.”

Pardue pointed out that moving forward, they hope to equip other law enforcement agencies with devices as a way to fulfill Sadie’s “purpose.”

They launched a Go Fund Me campaign Friday, Project Sadie’s Buttons, to raise funds to purchase ultrasonic devices — Dazers, specifically — at $26.95 apiece to any law enforcement agency that does not already have them available.

It was not clear at press time how much each “Good Life Animal Repeller” cost the Cheatham County Sheriff’s Office.

Friday afternoon, the campaign raised $65 of the $10,000 goal.

“Our county sheriffs department did not have any non lethal protection for when encountering animals/pets to provide their officers to prevent this from happening,” the Go Fund Me page states. “In our meeting with the sheriff, we came to an agreement that they would try to make things right by purchasing ultra sonic dog deterrents to prevent this from happening in the future.

“My fiancé and I believe that Sadie’s purpose is to save a countless number of dogs lives in the future.”

Kelly Fisher, reporter for the Ashland City Times, can be reached at KPFisher@gannett.com, 615-801-3866 or on Twitter at @KellyPFisher.