Dog Bites:
It’s estimated that there are 55 million dogs in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control reports that there are more than 4.7 million people bitten by dogs each year. The most likely place to be bitten is on the dog’s turf, more than one half of these dog bites occur on the dog owner’s property. Many of the dog bites result in injury and 800,000 of these bites require medical attention.
What to do:
Here are some things you should do to take care of a wound caused by a cat or dog bite:
- If necessary, call your doctor.
- Wash the wound gently with soap and water.
- Apply pressure with a clean towel to the injured area to stop any bleeding.
- Apply a sterile bandage to the wound.
- Keep the injury elevated above the level of the heart to slow swelling and prevent infection.
- Report the incident to the proper authority in your community (for example, the animal control office or the police).
- Apply antibiotic ointment to the area 2 times every day until it heals.
- See a medical professional immediately! Any/all animal bites leave the victim susceptible to rabies or any of a litany of viruses or infections.
After the initial drama of the dog bite event has passed, there are some basic steps you need to take. The victim should obtain the dog owner’s insurance information and insist that the dog owner contact their insurance company immediately. Gather as much background information as you can concerning the incident. Facts are always more clear in the immediate hours and days after an accident especially if you intend to take legal action.
Know your rights:
While attacks from all types of animals – birds, cats, snakes etc. – happen every day, dog attacks dominate the reported and unfortunately unreported cases. Also a sad fact of the dog bite story is the number of small children who are harmed by dogs in a wide variety of fact patterns. Whether it a Pit Bull, a Rottweiler or a timid Poodle, dogs can and do cause significant harm, disfigurement and in some cases, death. Whether you are a dog lover, dog owner or adverse to the four legged creatures, it is critical; that you understand your rights when it comes to dog bites.
A published Personal Injury Verdict Review reported a number of dog bite cases in which settlement amounts vary: $1,500 for dog bite with puncture wounds to the upper thigh, $30,000 for dog bite causing laceration of the lip causing scaring, and $100,000 for an attack by two pit bulls who bit a 10 year-old male causing facial scarring. However, the law has the difficult problem of deciding when to hold the owners of dogs liable for what is usually totally unintended by the owner but is nevertheless an expensive and painful injury to an individual who has done nothing wrong. The only way to know your legal rights is to contact the experienced dog bite attorneys at the law offices of Ledger & Associates. Please call toll-free 1-800-300-0001 or visit us at www.ledgerlaw.com.
