Dog Bite Claims Statistics

The increase in large dog ownership has resulted in an increased amount of dog bite claims. German shepherds were identified as the breed involved in 44% of all dog bite claims, but account for only 22% of license registrations. Small pure-bred dogs accounted for less than 20% of bites but more than 40% of registrations. The Pit Bull Terrier is a common cause of dog bite injuries in minors. The major problem is that they are frequently (94%) unprovoked. These dogs are also typically freely roaming animals (67%).

Dog Bite Tendencies

The tendency for dogs to bite results from a variety of factors. Some dogs are genetically predisposed towards aggressive behavior. If your dog is trained early, the tendency to bite is decreased. This means early socialization to people and other animals, proper training, and quality of care and supervision.

Factors that tend to increase the tendency to bite include mistreatment, malnourishment, behavior of the personal injury dog bite victim, as well as other factors, as described below.

Dangerous Dog Situations

(i) invading dog’s territory

(ii) threat to dog’s family

(iii) threat to dog

(iv) jealous dog

Be careful to avoid these actions around dogs that bite:

(i) approaching or bending over dogs especially if they are lying quietly

(ii) approaching dogs immediately after entering their territory

(iii) teasing or waking a dog

(iv) playing with a dog until they become overexcited

DO NOT:

(i) hold your face close to a dog

(ii) allow dogs to roam unleashed

(iii) approach a strange dog

(iv) tease a dog

(v) startle a dog

(vi) disturb a dog that is sleeping, eating, or caring for puppies

(vii) leave a small child and dog alone

(vii) omit vaccination of a dog

(viii) leave a dog alone with strangers

(ix) ignore the warning signals of aggressive dog behavior

If you have been bitten by a dog contact Philadelphia dog bite lawyer Jeffrey Harlan Penneys to see about dog bite compensation.