Dog Bites Peak in Summer Months

Huntsville, ALAs we head into the most prolific season for potential dog bite injury, there are a number of issues to be aware of with regard not only to dog bite law, but also of health issues that are becoming an increasing concern as the result of (CASE PAGE LINK dog_bites). It's also a sad fact that with the onset of warm weather, the phone for the dog bite lawyer may be soon ringing off the hook.

According to the Star-Ledger of Newark, New Jersey it is a harsh reality that dog bites hit a peak in the summer months when people and their dogs are out and about.

It's also a sad reality, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, that 3.5 million children are bitten by dogs each year. Of those, children under 15 make up 70 percent of dog bite victims.

By age 12, the CDC forecasts that half of all children in the US will have been bitten by a dog.

Beyond the obvious psychological and physical trauma associated with a dog bite, is an emerging health issue. According to a June 21st article in the Los Angeles Times, a deepening concern involves the potential for transmission of as many as 30 different infectious diseases by way of bites from cats and dogs.

One of the most serious, according to a summary of a review originally published in the July, 2009 issue of The Lancet, is methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

The author of the study, Dr. Richard Oehler of the University of South Florida College of Medicine, notes that MRSA can spread easily through skin wounds and can be difficult to treat. As for the source of those potential MRSA infections, household pets are considered a virtual reservoir for MRSA.

"Pet owners are often unaware of the potential for transmission of life-threatening pathogens from their canine and feline companions," Oehler said, in comments appearing in the LA Times. "Bite injuries are a major cause of injury in the USA and Europe each year, particularly in children."

It was revealed in the study that severe infections from MRSA together with other germs occur in about 20 percent of all bite injuries. Dog bites, as well as bites from cats account for approximately 1 percent of all emergency room visits each year—with bites to the hands, forearms, neck and head identified as carrying the most potential for serious infection.

A dog bite wound can become infected not only through the germs that may be harbored in the mouth and on the teeth of the animal, but also from germs already piggy-backing on the now-punctured skin.

And while dog bites can be especially traumatic for a child, they can be equally devastating for dog bite victims of all ages.

Take the case of Judy Holland. The then-61 year old Huntsville, Alabama woman was simply out in her backyard in July of 2007 when two pit bulls in an adjacent yard reportedly dug under the fence separating the two properties and attacked Holland without provocation.

According to a June 18th 2009 report in the Huntsville, Alabama Times the two pit bulls severely mauled the woman, who survived only with the aid of neighbors who heard the ensuing commotion and came out to beat the dogs back. Among the injuries suffered by the woman was the loss of use of one of her arms.

With the help of a dog bite attorney, Holland won a $1 million judgment against the owner of the two pit bulls, who is reported by the Huntsville Times not to have contested the claim.

Holland also won a $100,000 insurance settlement with the insurer representing the landlord of the property housing the two pit bulls and their owner. According to the plaintiff's legal counsel, both state and municipal laws provide that landlords must maintain their premises in a neat and safe manner, in such a way that health and safety is not adversely affected.

"I am lucky and thankful that I survived," Holland said in comments appearing in the Huntsville Times. "I am convinced that I would have died that day had the dogs not been beaten off me."

A dog bite injury is serious business, and dog bite law is there to protect the innocent from harm. Owners of dogs need to be responsible for their pets in an effort to minimize and mitigate bites and other injuries to innocent people. Sadly, given the statistics the dog bite lawyer can expect to be busy.