Can you be sued if your dog scratches your own child by the other parent?

Question

My fiances daughter was here Thursday and our puppy is a very happy and excited puppy and greets everyone by jumping on them (he is a boxer mixed) we have been working with him alot but on this particular day my fiances daughter came over and the dog was playing with her as she plays with him and jumped on her and scratched under her eye like a small dot and a small line then it also caught the inside of her lip which swelled a little the next day. Well now the mother is demanding a copy of the dogs vet records which we have no problem providing but dont want it to be used against us so told her she can see them but she cant have them and she was very irrate and threatening to sue us and have the dog taken away from us. Now I am really confused is this something that can really happen is there anything we can do to prevent her from doing anything.. Please help a very stressed family...

she saying she needs them for her dr's and the school. We live in NY.

Answer 1

The folks that have said that you can't be sued for this haven't got a clue about our so called justice system. The reality is that you can be sued by anybody, for anything at anytime. All it takes is a money grubbing lawyer and a trip to the courthouse to file the paperwork. This does not mean you will lose but you CAN be sued. I would recommend that you don't respond in any way until this witch starts proceedings and then turn it over to your lawyer and insurance company. And DON'T allow your insurance company to settle the case ..... that is what her lawyer is counting on because even he knows that he doesn't have a case but that the insurance co. would rather settle than go to court because it is cheaper. You could also threaten to sue her for harassment. That is clearly what it is. Good luck.
PS: although the doctor may care about whether the dog was up to date on it's shots (unlikely since it was just a scratch), the school would not care at all. All it is is harassment by a vindictive *itch..

Answer 2

Where there's a will there's a way. However, if the dog scratched the child you should probably keep it away from the child until you know it's trained. Also, if your fiance is threatening to sue you over that, that just not cool. If I were you I'd offer pay for the medical bills if there are any and call it a day. The person above me is an ***..no puppy should ever be put to sleep for scratching someone. They like to play and eventually they'll learn how to act around people.

Answer 3

As always, it is best to consult your lawyer with any questions. That being said I am a law student and this is the type of scenario we get all the time in class and on exams. The short answer is yes, she can bring a lawsuit. She would be alleging a tort occurred and that her child was injured as a result of your negligent control of the animal. She would be seeking to recover actual damages that resulted from the injury, which sound negligible, and any punitive damages (pain and suffering) resulting from the incident. In many states (if not all) dog-caused injuries trigger absolute liability for their owner, meaning that if your dog causes an injury the surrounding facts are pretty insignificant to the court's analysis. Therefore, the fact that your dog is a puppy and you have been rigorously working with it to prevent it from jumping does not matter; you are still liable for any damages the animal causes. That being said, I feel there is very little for you to worry about given the extremely limited extent of the injuries as you described them. The legal fees to bring the case would most likely eclipse any potential award or settlement recovery.

Where the concern needs to be is on any divorce proceedings. Although the mother is unlikely to recover any damages from a tort suit, she can use the incident as evidence that your fiance is unfit to watch the child. She can show the child's injury as proof that your fiance cannot provide a safe atmosphere for her child and can ask for custody as a result. Again, though, given the circumstance as you describe it, it is not overwhelmingly evident that the child's welfare or safety was in jeopardy.

Answer 4

She wants to sue over a scratch? How stupid is that? Vet records aren't going to do squat for a scratch. I can understand a bite, but not a scratch. She has nothing that can hold up in court. The dog's still a pup, so of course it's going to be hyper, and he was playing. Plus, you've been working with him, so he's not a little hooligan. It's not like he was aggressive towards anyone, much less your fiance's child.

I'm willing to bet that any lawyer the child's mother went to with this would laugh her out of their office. She has absolutely nothing to stand on in court. And no, she can't take away your dog.

Answer 5

Just give her a copy of the pups records. It has had all of it's shots' etc. hasn't it? If she sees that the pup is young and safe, she should settle down. The only way she could sue (I would think) is if the child had to go to the hospital.You do need to work on teaching your pup not to jump on people though. This could have hit the child in the eye and blinded her. Don't be upset at the mother. She is just concerned about the child. At least, I hope that is her problem. When I had my Pyrenees, I got right down on the floor, Eye to eye, with the dog. This way he never had to jump up on me. The boxer is a great dog too but, they do have a bit of a different way of people looking at them. Get him trained as soon as you can This is a priority.I don't think she can do anything. It is a pup after all and the child was in your house. It's not like the pup got loose and went to her house and did this.

Answer 6

Sounds like a over reactive mother to me, no she cannot sue you for a dog jumping up in greeting and leaving a little scratch! What a nut, I could see if the dog attacked and physically harmed the little girl but a dog just jumping up is not a uncommon thing and it did not cause any lasting damage just a little scratch. She can rant and rave all she wants, tell her it's a puppy and he is being trained to stay down but still gets a little over excited, in no way was his jumping up a aggressive act just a playful puppy. She wouldn't stand a chance in court trying to sue you with something so minor.

Answer 7

Well, you really do not have to give her anything. You should reassure her that the dog has been kept up on its shots and such. Small injuries do happen in life to kids. She needs to be aware of that. Let her sue you. Anyone can sue anybody for anything. Make sure that you take care of the boo boos when they happen and you have the child with you. I bet a judge would see this as a frivolty if you took, care of things correctly. Tell her to subpeona the records and you will gladly turn them over to the court. Don't bow to her being an ***.

Answer 8

just give her a copy of the vet records. SCRATCHING is totally harmless. Rabies can't spread that way if that is what she is worried about.

The whole purpose of suing someone is to put you back into the position you were before. If she did not spend any money at the hospital and just let it go she will have a hard time getting any money from suing you because no damage was done. Don't worry about it. If this stupid woman really does sue you it will cost her a lot more time and money than what it is worth.

Answer 9

I don't know about legalities...but I would look into some puppy training classes, so that if she does something crazy you have proof that you are not neglecting your responsibility as a dog owner.

Is this mother usually temperamental? or is she just upset over this one incident? You might want to offer to pay the co-pay or doctor bill just to have his daughter looked at by a doctor and then there's record that there is no permanent damage and to prove no intent.

Best of luck to you. I hope the mother doesn't lash out for no good reason. Accidents are going to happen, and this does not appear to be serious.

Answer 10

Unfortunately in this world today we have taught everyone that if you don't like something, you should sue someone. I'm not sure where you live but legal laws everywhere are different, and when it comes to pets, their impossible, this dog definitely doesn't sound aggressive, but it sounds like the mom isn't playing around with this lawsuit threat either. I would talk to a lawyer just to see how to approach this, But I would not be afraid to show your dogs records, if she wants them that bad, all she has to do is report this situation to the authorities and they will retrieve the records from your vet anyway. It only proves that your dog is up to date on its vaccines. Do your homework and Good Luck!