If I give a dog away and it bites its new owner, can the new owner sue me?

Question

This dog has displayed some aggression toward small children (nipping, one time biting a hand, but not breaking the skin). If I let the new owner know about this and give full disclosure, can the owner come back and sue me if anything happens once they take the dog? I'm in the process of giving the dog away and I am concerned that if anything happens in the future with this dog, I'll get sued.

Answer 1

If you have the new owner sign a paper stating that he knew about these issues than I dont think he'd have any reason to sue you. Sound to me that the pup needs training.

You need to be very honest with the new owner and if they have kids than I would not place this dog with them at all.

Answer 2

If it's possible, get your dog into training prior to rehoming.

If possible, consult with an attorney regarding the wording of the rehoming contract.

Place the dog with a contract that clearly indicates you are relinquishing ownership, and gives ownership to the new person.

Also include in the contract a clause that stipulates the new owner continue with the training.

In addition to fully disclosing the previously displayed aggression, add a clause that once the contract is signed and dated by both parties, the new owner is fully responsible for the dog's actions.

To answer your question, yes -- anybody can sue anybody else for anything, but it doesn't mean they are going to win. These people *could* sue you but if you take all precautions and put everything in writing, even if they *do* sue you chances are they probably won't succeed.
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ADD: Spay or neuter your dog PRIOR to rehoming.

ADD #2: Of course, you must not place this dog with children nor with anyone who might consider having children in the future.

ADD #3: What thesnovels5 wrote (below) -- ensure the new owners only return the dog to YOU if they are unable to keep him, for whatever reason at any time. Put this in the contract also.

Answer 3

Local case in Illinois a couple of years ago.

A Golden that had bitten a couple of people. Owners placed the dog with new owners and did NOT tell them about this dog's issues.

Dog bit the child of the new owners.

When the bite was reported the new owners found out the dog's history and sued the previous owners. They won a LARGE settlement.

Answer 4

yes, I believe they can because you know you are giving away a dangerous dog, after all you are getting rid of the problem and pawning it off on someone else, instead of doing the right thing which, in my opinion would be to put the dog to sleep. Many many dogs in shelters have aggression issues and that is why they are there, but they act sooo nice when they are, until they get to their new homes, get settled and then the demons come out. The reason the shelter has them is because there wasn't full disclosure to begin with, afte all, would you knowingly take a biter into your family? especially one with small children? I would put the dog to nighty night.
if you have the chance or inclination to read, check out Fatal Dog Attacks by Karen Delise, you will see that a good portion of dogs who killed were not "family" pets gone bad as stated by the media, but some were rescue dogs that had only been in the new home for a short period.
If the dog "bites some child" in the face next time, how will you feel?

Answer 5

If the dog is aggressive and has biten someone why would you give it away. It should be put to sleep. Why pass this problem to someone else, whether they would sue you or not. I would not have a dog that is aggressive toward children. Most kids will go right up to a dog. Then it's too late. If a child is injured or killed would you feel any better knowing you can't be sued..

Answer 6

Get it all in writing what you have informed the owner of.
And that you are not responsible for the dogs actions after the dog leaves your home and they take ownership.
Its like a contract. Have two copies. Original for you and copy for the new owner. Both of you should sign and date. And if you can have somebody there as a witness to also sign would be helpful. This will protect you from any problems in the future.
Another thing to put in the paper is the dogs health at time of transfer of ownership.

Answer 7

Get them to sign something saying that you have told them about the dog's aggression and that they agree they are taking the dog knowing this and are signing up for classes in order to work with the dog and take care of the problem.. Promising not to trust the dog around other dogs, people, or kids until they have worked with the dog and taken care of the problem. If they can't fix the dog, then they promise to keep the dog under control to make sure that nothing is going to happen.. Also that signing this paper, they are acknowledging that you told them everything and you assume no responsibility for the dog..

Answer 8

Let me guess....it's a min pin....had the same exact problem....hateful little dogs...even showed aggression towards me....had 2 DIFFERENT dogs from 2 DIFFERENT litters...one male, one female....had to give both away and informed new owner of problem...also gave them an out...if they had any problems with them I would take them back with no questions and try to find another home...better than them dropping it off at the pound or something.

Answer 9

If you do give the owner full disclosure, I don't think he can sue you, because he was aware, that the dog is aggressive when he took the dog in.

Answer 10

YES, you are def. able to be sued which is why rescues and reputable shelters never adopt out any dogs with a history of biting/nipping/growling esp. kids. Obviously if the dog bit a robber that is different. If your dog is aggressive with people or has ever bitten anyone, you can't, in good conscience, give him to anyone else. Could you live with yourself if that dog hurt another person, especially a child? Can you deal with the lawsuit that could result from it? You stand to lose your home and everything else you own. Lawsuits from dog bites are settling for millions of dollars in damages.
Our society today has zero tolerance for a dog with a bite history, no matter how minor. A dog that has bitten -- whether or not it was his fault -- is considered by law to be a dangerous dog. In some states, it's illegal to sell or give away a biting dog. No insurance company will cover a family with a biting dog. And to be perfectly honest, no responsible person in his right mind would want to adopt a biting dog.

No matter how much you love your dog, if he has ever bitten anyone, you only have one responsible choice -- take him to your veterinarian and have him humanely put to sleep. Don't leave him at a shelter where he might be frightened and confused and put other people at risk. Don’t pass your problem off to a breed rescue or another family who will be forced to make the same decision you should have reached.

As hard as it is to face, putting a potentially dangerous, biting dog to sleep is the only safe and responsible thing to do. It's the right thing to do The first link has a state by state dog bite laws BTW, the dog rescue group I have worked with HAS a contract written by lawyers where the person realizes the dog is adopted as is and no guarentee of health or temperament is given and basically the adopter knows he takes his chances. BUT our group has been successfully sued(more than once) when the dog did bite and that is one of the reasons we carefully screen dogs coming into our program.