Welcome back to Scary Animal Attacks!
Today’s episode takes us to the gritty middle American town of Ardmore, Oklahoma, just about
90 miles south of Oklahoma City.
Ardmore is a small town in which 2 of the 3 top employers are dollar stores.
Approximately 12.5% of the labor force are underemployed, meaning they do not have a
job that utilizes their full skill set or abilities.
There are some large oil companies in the area as well as agricultural employment opportunities,
but most residents of Ardmore are in the poor range of income.
It is this economic background that our episode today is set.
Single mother and widow, Tracy Garcia was doing her best to raise her children after
the death of her husband in 2006.
She was 52 years old and lived off of Banyon Road southeast of town.
She had found work over the past several years as a homemaker until her husband died, then
a housekeeper and then a healthcare worker.
She worked hard to provide for her son and her daughter.
In her neighborhood, people were pretty relaxed about things, some of them even let their
dogs run free in the neighborhood.
Her sister would even feed some of the neighborhood dogs from time to time.
One of her neighbors basically fed their dogs and that was about it.
Many would call it neglect, but there are many animal rights folks around this part
of the state, so it just went ignored by authorities.
That pack of dogs was a motley looking crew to behold.
They were half Dachshund, part Pit Bull and some were part Australian Shepherd.
They are very short and stockey giving them a near circus appearance as they run the neighborhood
streets.
On the evening of May 10, 2018, Tracy was visiting her sister's house nearby imbibing
in some relaxing alcoholic beverages as the day was finishing up.
She had a bit much to drink but wasn’t driving, as her house was nearby so after festivities
wound down, she began walking home.
As she approached Banyon Road a ways down her sister's driveway, she could see that
strange pack of dogs running toward her.
There were four males and three females in this pack of 7 dogs, and they were all under
three years old.
These dogs had never attacked nor bit anyone in the neighborhood before so Tracy had no
real reason to be alarmed.
As the pack approached her, she began to hear the growling and barking, and it didn’t
sound soothing.
The pack quickly surrounded her and began barking at her.
Confused by the flashing teeth, she wasn’t sure what she should do.
Each time the dogs would move in toward the only thing their short legs could allow them
to bite, she would move her feet in an attempt to protect them.
Given she had some alcohol that night, you may well be able to predict, she lost her
balance and fell to the ground.
The frenzy of tiny legs moving stocky bodies to bite and tear her flesh was beyond a Hollywood
movie script.
None of these dogs weighed more than 40 pounds and many weighed much less, but all were powerfully
built with thick musculature.
The attack did not take long, as there were 7 dogs attacking her, and police arrived soon
after being called, around 10 PM.
Upon arriving one of the dogs immediately charged police officers and was shot and killed.
Police officers had to secure the attack scene and eventually corralled the remaining six
dogs.
The rest of the pack was taken to the Ardmore Animal Shelter.
The condition of the dogs raised some questions with authorities and neighbors.
The dogs were not starving but were said to be very healthy.
They lived in the woods and were covered with ticks and fleas.
They had no human centered discipline, the way an owner would instill and may have apparently
honed their hunting skills on local animals, as they bit Tracy in very vital areas, causing
her death that evening.
The so-called owner of the dogs granted permission to euthanize the remaining members of the
pack and authorities declined to complete a rabies test on them as they were all dead
and so is the victim.
Dinwiddie said the dogs did not have any apparent health concerns, apart from all of them being
covered in fleas and ticks.
Criminal charges will not be filed according to sources and the coroner labeled Tracy’s
death an accident.
Due to the fact that the dogs were not labeled as having attacked people before the owners
were found to be criminally negligent.
In the analysis of 256 fatal dog attacks, 87% occured when the owner was not present,
84% involved an un-neutered dog, and 76% involved non socialized or wild dogs.
To avoid being attacked by an aggressive dog it is advisable to command a strong voice,
fight back, focus strikes on the nose, throat and back of the head of the dog, keep the
dog's teeth away from you as much as possible and yell for help while protecting your neck
and face.
Also, using your size to pin the dog to the ground or put something between you and the
dog may help stop an attack.
Thank you for watching this episode of Scary Animal Attacks and if you have an idea for
an episode please post it in the comments and I will research it and shout you out in
the resulting video.
Also, tell me what you think should be done with packs of wild dogs who have become feral.
Should be euthanize them, neuter them and leave them on the land, or let them be as
they may help keep vermin down?
Have a great day and be careful out there, because you do not want to end up on an episode
of Scary Animal Attacks!
https://time.com/5280769/dog-attack-dachshund-woman-oklahoma-death/ https://kfor.com/news/no-charges-to-be-filed-after-oklahoma-woman-killed-by-pack-of-dogs/
https://www.kxii.com/content/news/-Woman-attacked-and-killed-by-pack-of-dogs-identified--482607221.html https://www.kxii.com/content/news/No-charges-filed-in-dog-attack-that-killed-a-Carter-County-woman-487174631.html
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5734883/Woman-dies-mauled-pack-seven-flea-infested-dachshunds-Oklahoma.html https://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/the-true-story-behind-the-woman-who-was-mauled-by-a-pack-of-dachshund-dogs.html/
https://abc11.com/tracy-garcia-woman-killed-by-dachshunds-dog-attack/3486323/