Dog bite incidents happen more often than we may imagine and still, many dog owners don’t do what it takes to avoid them.
While we here at Seattle have helped countless victims of dog attacks, we are often moved by stories of similar incidents that happen nationwide. Sometimes, these stories are worth sharing precisely because our readers and clients may learn how to avoid similar incidents if they read about it here.
The latest case of dog bite incident we have learned recently happened in Utah. Unfortunately, the victim was a little girl.
According to news reports, a 7-year-old is now recovering after a dog attacked her and bit the end of her nose. The dog involved in the incident was in a friend’s house where she was at the time.
Officials were called to the scene to learn that the girl was outside her friend’s house when the Labrador retriever dog was called over. Instead of being playful, the animal growled and then knocked her over and bit her.
While her mother says that the girl is not letting this incident bring her down, she has to go under another surgery to have her nose rebuilt.
The little girl’s family had to launch a GoFundMe page to obtain the funds to have the surgeries and the rest of the procedures completed.
As personal injury attorneys, we know that the medical expenses associated with dog bite incidents are serious and extensive. Depending on the injuries and what part of the body they occurred, victims sometimes even require physical therapy to get their movement back. As such, these incidents aren’t harmless and they are definitely not easy to handle, especially if the victim is alone.
The dog involved in this particular attack is now in quarantine. Officials said they are keeping the dog there to make sure it doesn’t have rabies or other issues. Depending on how things go, the animal can be returned to its owner.
It’s unfortunate that this horrific dog bite incident happened but it’s even more unfortunate that there are countless of similar cases happening regularly across the country.
We urge pet owners to keep it in mind that many of the dog bite incidents that happen out there take place in familiar settings, with familiar dogs.
Many families ignore that dogs can be sometimes triggered by a certain behavior or environment and it’s up to the animal’s owner to be able to handle the situation and prevent an attack.
To those who are visiting families or friends with pets, remember that if a loved one owns one, learn to identify the signs of distress or ask your family member to put the animal away while you’re around if you’re afraid for your safety or the safety of your children.
For more on this incident, follow this link.
