An animal bite is serious and may leave a victim with injuries and questions.
A dog in a neighboring state recently attacked and mauled a 12-year old boy. The young boy was practicing with his baseball team when the dog came out of nowhere and began to bite and attack him. The dog first bit his leg and after the boy fell to the ground, began biting his arm-removing a portion of flesh. The aggressive dog was somehow able to get through the gate opening to attack the boy. The boy’s coach was able to get the dog off of him but the dog’s owner took off. Animal control and the boy’s family would like to find the owner and the dog so that it can be tested for rabies.
For anyone injured by a dog bite it is important to first seek immediate medical attention. Dog bite victims may face medical expenses and pain and suffering damages following an injury. Because of this, a victim may wish to pursue a dog bite claim against the owner of the animal. It is, therefore, important that an animal attack victim gather information from any witnesses to the attack should the victim need to seek compensation through a dog bite claim.
There are two types of dog-bite liability depending on the laws of the state where the attack took place. One type of liability is known as strict liability which holds that, even if the owner did not do anything wrong in failing to protect the public from the animal attack, the pet owner is strictly liable for injuries caused. Another type of liability requires that the pet owner knew of the animal’s “dangerous propensities” to bite in order to be liable. In Massachusetts, pet owners are strictly liable for the injuries their pets cause.
Dog bite victims may find that they suffer physical and emotional pain as a result of the dog bite injury they suffered. Because of medical expenses and pains and suffering damages, victims may need to seek an animal bite claim to recover compensation for their serious injuries.
Source: ABC6.com, “Dog Mauls12-Year-Old,” Dana Griffin, July 2, 2013
