Tennessee state law sets baseline dog-at-large and dangerous dog standards, but enforcement and leash specifics are largely delegated to counties and municipalities under T.C.A. Title 44.
T.C.A. 44-8-408 establishes statewide owner liability for dogs that run at large and the well-known one-bite and dangerous dog framework. Cities and counties can enact stricter leash ordinances and they routinely do; Nashville and Knoxville require dogs to be leashed in public. State law does not mandate a uniform leash length, but it makes owners civilly liable when an unleashed dog injures a person on public property or lawfully on private property.
Civil liability for injuries caused by dogs running at large; local leash citations typically range from $25 to $500.
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