just a quick question, my daughter got bit by a neighbors dog the other day in the thigh.?

Question

when i first contacted them, they were trying to place blame on my daughter not on the dog. the dog was chained up, but was able to reach the street while on the leash, my daughter went to get a ball that was close but not on their property and the dog lunged and bit her. now for my questions- the dog is a month behind in rabies shot-can this be a problem? also they took the dog away today to watch it for 10 days.this is costing the owner of the dog money, but shouldnt they also pay my deductables for insurance copays? there was no offer of it,so wondering what you thought, the er will be fairly costly,they have been great neighbors for over 7 years to us and never had a problem with them but on the other hand it was their dog.BTW she has a puncture wound in her thigh from the dogs fang and it did get into the muscle too as it is swollen, they also gave her antibiotics just in case.they are upset that the dog was removed from the home but iam also as my daughter did get bit by the dog

Answer 1

Here's my view, having been bit by dog recently.

I believe it is NEVER the dog's fault, the blame always lies with a person, whether it was the one that got bit or the owner of the dog, but NEVER the dog's fault. When I got bit, I didn't really place the blame on anyone. The dog was scared, and she had never bit anyone before so her owner didn't know she would bite. If the dog could reach the street/sidewalk, then I would blame the owners for allowing the dog off their property (which may also be illegal depending on where you live). However, if the dog was in their yard and your daughter came into the dog's yard, or leaned over so any part of her was in the dog's yard, I blame your daughter. If you didn't see it happen, you have no clue which way is which, because as much as you might want to believe your daughter, she could stretch the truth to a greater or lesser degree. Your daughter honestly should have thought about how far the dog could go before getting the ball, but I don't know how old she is or anything else about her, so I'll leave it at that.

As far as who pays...I would expect the dog owner to pay if it was their fault, and the person bitten/their parents if it was their fault. If the situation is as you say it is, I would expect the owners to pay at least part of the medical bills. If they don't offer, perhaps you could bring it up with them in a non-threatening way, considering you have said they are great neighbors. Maybe with the stress and emotion of their dog leaving, they simply haven't thought of it yet. Perhaps you could each pay half of the doctor bills, as from what I understand you're both at least a little bit at fault. Fortunately my worker's comp payed for my medical bills, as it happened on duty (I work in a vet clinic).

Now for the rabies...whether or not this is a real issue depends on what is considered overdue, and what your vet uses for vaccines. Here, dogs have to be vaccinated every year, but my vet uses 3 year vaccines. The dog that bit me was a year overdue as far as the city was concerned, but it was still vaccinated as far as I was concerned because it had only been 2 years, and the vaccine was good for 3. The 10-day quarantine is standard practice for dog bites in most places. The dog that bit me got to be quarantined at home because she had never bitten before. One of our clients had to quarantine a dog at our clinic for 10 days because the dog had bitten before. The dog was not rabid, but they ended up putting the doh down anyway because of the stupidity of the cable guy (whole other story, don't even get me started...). Anyway, the quarantine has nothing to do with the vaccine being overdue, because even dogs current on their shots will usually be quarantined. If the dog was indeed rabid, then your daughter will need a series of rabies shots to prevent her getting infected. I seriously doubt, however, that the dog was rabid, because I imagine even if the dog was overdue according to the vaccine manufacturer, there is probably some residual effect for a few months later, if not even a few more years. I reall wouldn't worry about it too much. The quarantine is there as a protective measure, just in case. It i also the standard that the owner pays boarding fees or other fees associated with the quarantine simply because the dog is their responsibility, regaress of who was at fault for the bite.

One more thing to put you at ease - most dog bites don't get infected, and of course with antibiotics the risk is even less. I was bit on my lip, my lip was pierced all the way through and torn for about an inch. 30+ stitches and 6 weeks later, I'm healed, there was no infection, and the scar is barely visible (it only took about 5 days, maybe less, for the wound to heal to the point that I could remove the stitches. Without stitches, a would would probably take a little longer to fully heal).

Good luck, I hope you work something out. I would hate for you to lose a longtime good neightbor over one incident.

Answer 2

Devil's advocate here, and not trying to sound like an ***, but did you see the incident or are you just going by what your daughter and the neighbors are telling you? If you are going by what they are telling you, then it is probably a case of both is at fault. Anyway, the neighbors should own up to the responsibilities they took on when they decided to own a dog, get the dog's shots up to date, help pay for the medical care of your daughter, and get the dog some obedience training. You should also teach your daughter how to act around dogs, especially ones that are chained up, and that if something she wants is near a dog she should get an adult(preferably the dog's owner) to get the item for her. Also, this has the potential for making her fear dogs, and that should be worked on too. She shouldn't go through life fearing dogs, especially when it can be taken care of right away.

Answer 3

Rabies shots just dont end on such and such date, the effectiveness wears off after some time, but generally since the dog was vaccinated its not likely its sick at all, Im sure that its ok. The rabies shot can and will protect the dog long after the experation date. Thats probably why the doc just gave her Antibiotics.
As far as the dog could reach public property, on its chain, then they are in the wrong, they should be paying your insurance bills and any kind of Co-pays, if this wasnt established before you took her to the doctor then you may need to take it to a court if needs be. If the dog reached the sidewalk then there Home Owner Insurance should be able to pay, I think I would speak with law enforcement on that first, then bring it to there attention. They should not have a potentially dangerous dog on a chain that can reach the sidewalk or street. They were neglegent in confining the animal, I am sure a this dog has shown some kind of aggressive behaviour before, but people were just lucky to get out of his way. I am sure they are upset, and not just with the dog being removed, but they are probably worried that your sue them. I can imagine that its very tramatizing for your daughter and you. Just bring into perspective you have to respect any animal even if chained. She wasnt out to get bit but it happens, Thank goodness that she ok, and that the owners were responsible enough to have the dog vaccinated. If you try to treat this with some dignity and cool you can get around a bad relationship with them. Just take it a few days at a time, and go law enforcement first get all the facts and laws behind you before you confront the owners, so that you can do it legally and with calmness.

Answer 4

Did you ask your neighbors about the paying for your medical costs? I have three dogs that are kept in my yard by an electric fence. Basically, no one comes in the yard. But if my dog bit someone, I would feel obligated to cover (or at least split) the costs. Part of being a pet owner is responsibility to the pet and the people who come in contact with it.

I would suggest discussing this with your doctor, the vet (about the rabies vaccine--although I don't think a month behind should make a difference) and maybe an attorney if your neighbors will not cooperate to your satisfaction.

Good luck and I hope your daughter is doing better.

Answer 5

I think they should have to pay..it was their dog..and if thier dog's chain can reach out of the yard thats just dumb on their part...u could ask them nicely to pay for the Dr bills. if they won't u may have to take to small claims.

oh and i don't think the dog will have rabies. a month shouldn't hurt...and that is why the dog is being kenneled.

i would be sure to take pics of the dog and if when he gets home they still let him on such a long chain that he could bite any passer-by.
I sorry for ur daughter and the dog...its not the dogs fault..i always look to the owner...

Answer 6

In most localities it does not matter who is at fault. The owner of the dog is responsible for the damages done by a dog bite. Unfortunately the only way to recover your expenses would be to bring a lawsuit against them. As far as all is concerned, the dog is considered vicious if it bite your daughter. The local law enforcement agency should be contacted and the incident reported to them as well. The next child might not be so lucky and may be more seriously injured than your daughter was.

Answer 7

Something like that happened to a friend of mine. However, he and the owner agreed that he [the owner of the dog] should shoulder all of his [my friend's] medical expenses. After all, it WAS his dog even if it WAS purely incidental (rather unfortunate). In your case, however - maybe you can work something out with your neighbor (do 50-50 whatever). Talk things out with him (your neighbor).

Hope your daughter gets well soon. And shouldn't she get antirabies and tetanus shots? If my brother who was *scratched* by a rabbit needed tons of shots, wouldn't your daughter need it too? Ask a doctor about it, I guess.

Answer 8

if they were good friend/neightbor they shoudnt have aproblem with paying. they are liable regardless if the dog was chained up or not. My parents went thru the same thing when i was a child. i was bit thru the fix of a neighbors dog. my mom had to actually get nasty with the people to pay for my tetnaus shot. to this day i still have a scar on my forearm. i think its there homeoweners insurance that should pay for it. place a claim against them.

Answer 9

They should absolutely pay any of your daughter's medical expenses that insurance didn't cover. You may have to take them to small claims court to get the money, but as long as you bring all your bills and provide proof of what you had to paid for, you should win. Sorry your daughter had to go through this.

Answer 10

If she wasn't on their property, it's their fault the dog was able to bite her on the side walk.

If that wasn't the case, I could put a vicious dog on a 10 mile chain and let it bite everyone in town.