What You Should Know About Dog Bites

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What You Should Know About

Dog Bites

Information compiled by:

Alex & Gaxiola, P.C.

www.alexandgaxiola.com

602-971-1775

2/17/2011 1



American Pet Products Association2009/2010 National Pet Owners Survey

62% of U.S. households own a pet, which equates to71.4 millions homes

In 1988, the first year the survey was conducted, 56%

of U.S. households owned a pet as compared to 62%in 2008

6

38.245.6

3.913.3

0.74.7 5.3

0

1020

30

40

50

Bird Cat Dog Equine Fresh

water

fish

Salt

water

fish

Reptile Small

Animal

Number of Households Owning Pets

(in millions)

2/17/2011 2



CDC Statistics

4.5 million Americans are bitten by dogs each

year

Almost one in five of those who are bitten: atotal of 885,000: require medical attention for

dog bite-related injuries.

In 2006, more than 31,000 people underwent

reconstructive surgery as a result of being

bitten by dogs.

2/17/2011 3



Fatal Dog Attacks in the US from 1965- 2001by Karen Delise

47

32

26

2219 18 18 17 16

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

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California Texas Alaska Florida New York Michigan Illinois North

Carolina

Georgia

States with the Most Dog Bite Fatalities - 1965-2001

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79%

9%

12%

Hig st isk f i g itty ar lis

Children

Ages 0-11

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Elderly, Ages 65-94

Others, Ages 13-64



National Canine Research Council

Website

2/17/2011 6



National Canine Research Council

Website

2/17/2011 7



Study by Dogbite.org

April 22, 2009, they released their first multi-year report on U.S. dog bite fatalities

The report covered a 3-year period (January1, 2006 to December 31, 2008)

Report analyzed data collected from 88 dogbite incidences that caused death to a U.S.

citizen Report documents dog breed, where the

attack occurred and dog bite victim age.

2/17/2011 8



Results of Study by Dogbite.org

88 fatal dog attacks Pit bull type dogs were responsible for 59% (52 of 88)

this is equivalent to a pit bull killing a U.S. citizen every21 days during this 3-year period

The data also shows that pit bulls commit the vast

majority of off-property attacks that result in death Only 18% (16) of the attacks occurred off owner

property, yet pit bulls were responsible for 81% (13)

Pit bulls are also more likely to kill an adult than a child.

In the 3-year period, pit bulls killed more adults (ages21 and over), 54%, than they did children (ages 11 andyounger), 46%.

2/17/2011 9




88 fatal dog attacks

DogsBite.org founder Colleen Lynn adds, "The

off-property statistical data about pit bulls

shows just how dangerous they are." She

noted that six senior citizens were killed under

these circumstances: "Two were killed while

standing in their own backyard," she said.

"Four others were killed while taking amorning walk or getting the mail."

2/17/2011 10




88 fatal dog attacks In the 21-54 age group, pit bulls were responsible for 82%

(14) of the deaths.

The data indicates that pit bulls do not only kill children andsenior citizens; they kill men and women in their prime

years as well. The report also shows that of the six victim age groups

documented, the 55 and older group suffered the mostfatalities 26% (23), followed by the 2-4 age group 22% (19).

Between the ages of 0-4, the study reveals that 14% (12) of

the fatal attacks involved a "watcher," a person such as agrandparent or babysitter watching the child. Of theseattacks, 75% (9) involved a grandparent type.

2/17/2011 11



Insurance Information Institute

reports:

16,586 dog bites were reported to III throughoutthe US in 2009

Dog bite claims are up 30% from 2003 to 2009

2009 dog bite claims totaled more than $412million

± Higher than 2008s 387.2 million in claims

The cost per claim is up due to increased medicalcare costs and larger court settlements

The 2009 average cost per claim is$24,840, up1.5% from 2008

2/17/2011 12



Chicago TribuneFido puts bite on homeowners claims/August 17, 2010

Dog bite accounted for more than 1/3 of

insurance claims in 2009

Homeowners and renters insurance typicallycovers dog bites providing $100,000 to

$300,000 in coverage

But for people really who want to protect

their assets, the first $1 million of personal

excess liability insurance costs about $150 to

$300 a year2/17/2011 13



Merritt Clifton, Editor of Animal

People compiled these statistics:

Dog attack deaths and maimings, U.S. and

Canada (Sept. 1982 to Dec. 2009)

Combination of pit bulls, rottweilers, presacanarios and their mixes:

± 80% of attacks that induce bodily harm

± 69% of attacks to children

± 83% of attack to adults

± 68% of attacks that result in fatalities

± 74% that result in maiming

2/17/2011 14





Even if the pit bull category was split 3 ways

attacks by pit bulls and their closest relatives

would still outnumber attacks by any other

breed

Pit bulls attack adults nearly as often as they

attack children ± A characteristic not shared by any other breed

2/17/2011 15





1982-2009 chart:Breed Bodily harm Child Victims Adult Victims Deaths Maimings

Pit bull terrier 1451 628 499 153 777

Rottweiler 447 257 115 67 244

Wolf hybrid 81 67 4 19 45

Husky 49 32 4 17 13

German Shepherd 79 52 20 9 50

Bullmastiff (presa

canario)

48 17 20 8 26

Chow 52 35 14 7 34

Akita 50 34 14 1 41

*Chart ordered by number of deaths.

2/17/2011 16



JAMA reports:

By combining data from the National Center

for Health Statistics and a computerized

search of news stories they found:

157 dog bite related fatalities occurred in the

US from 1979 to 1988

70% of the 157 deaths occurred among

children less than 10 years old

Death rates for neonates was almost 370

times that of adults who were 30-49 years old2/17/2011 17



JAMA reports:

Pit bulls were involved in 42 (41.6%) of 101

deaths where dog breed was reported

± Almost 3 times more than German Sheppards (the

next most commonly reported breed)

Deaths attributable to pit bulls increased from

20% in 1979/1980 to 62% in 1987/1988

2/17/2011 18



The 3-year annualized, adjusted, and weighted

estimate of new dog bite-related injury visits

to US EDs was 333,687 ± a rate of 12.9 per 10,000 persons

± this represents approximately 914 new dog bite injuries

requiring Emergency Department (ED) visits per day.

± The median age of patients bitten was 15 years, with children,

especially boys aged 5 to 9 years, having the highest incidence rate

± Children seen in EDs were more likely than older persons to be

bitten on the face, neck, and head (73% vs 30%)

± For each US dog bite fatality it is estimated there are about

670 hospitalizations and 16,000 ED visits.

CONCLUSIONS:

Dog bite injuries are an important source of injury in the US population, especially

among children.

Improved surveillance and prevention of dog bite-related injuries, particularly

among children, are needed.

JAMA Survey:Incidence of dog bite injuries treated in emergency departments

JAMA. 1998 Jan 7;279(1):51-3.

2/17/2011 19



Emergency Department Study 2004ACTA Chir Belg. 2006 Nov-Dec; 106(6); 692-5

34 patients, bitten by cats or dogs, presented in ED in 2004

73.5% of them consulted with 24 hours after bite

In 11 (44.0%) primary closure of wound performed afterthorough rinsing and evaluation

9 patients (26.5%) did not present until a day after beingbitten ± They all consulted because of complications

CONCLUSION:

Cat and dog bites often cause minor lesions that can betreated by thorough wound care if presented early

The importance of possible late complications should not beoverlooked

2/17/2011 20



Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting

and Prevention Program website

Bites from cats and dogs owned as pets is verycommon in U.S. and Canada

Between 1 million and 2 million dog bites are

reported annually in both countries

Dog bite injuries account for 1% of all visits tohospital emergency departments

Dogs are responsible for 85% of all bitewounds

5-9 years old males are most frequent victims

2/17/2011 21





Dog and cat bites occur most often in summerbetween 16:00 and 20:00

Up to 85% of dog and cat bites are caused by

victims family or by a neighbors pet ± About ½ of these bites are considered to be

provoked

455 families with 960 children were surveyed ± 20% of children bitten at least once

± Majority of children receiving bites before age 5

2/17/2011 22





Dog and cat bites are more serious in children

as they are more likely to be bitten in the

face, neck and head

± In about 70% of the cases

Children account for the majority of deaths

from animal bites that occur annually in the

US

2/17/2011 23




Analyzed 431 cases over 35 years with the following results: ± 10% involved leashed dogs or misc. circumstances

± 17% resulted from attacks by dogs roaming off their ownersproperty

±

73% involved dogs within the boundaries of the ownersproperty

± 25% chained dogs

± 25% dogs in yard

± 23% dogs inside the home

Surprisingly, it made no difference whether or not the dogs werechained as 75% involved in fatalities were not chained, and yet thishas been frequently cited by animal rights proponents to causeaggression.

2/17/2011 24




79% of all fatal attacks were on children underthe age of 12

12% of the victims were the elderly, aged 65 94

9% of the victims were 13 - 64 years old

The age group with the highest number of fatalities were children under the age of 1 yearold;

± accounting for 19% of the deaths due to dog attack.

± Over 95% of these fatalities occurred when an infantwas left unsupervised with a dog(s).

2/17/2011 25




The age group with the second-highest

number of fatalities were 2-year-olds;

± accounting for 11% of the fatalities due to dog

attack.

± Over 87% of these fatalities occurred when the 2-

year-old child was left unsupervised with a dog(s)

± or the child wandered off to the location of thedog(s).

2/17/2011 26




Boys aged 1 - 12 years old were 2.5 times more likely tobe the victim of a fatal dog attack than girls of thesame age.

Overwhelmingly, the dogs involved in fatal dog attacks

were unaltered males. From 2000-2001 there were 41 fatal dog attacks. Of

these, 28 were attacks by a single dog and 13 fatalitieswere caused by multiple dogs.

Of the 28 single dogs responsible for a fatal attackbetween 2000-2001;26 were males and 2 were females. Of the 26 males,21 were found to be intact (the reproductive status of the remaining 5 males dogs could not be determined).

2/17/2011 27




21%

16%13%

9%

5% 5% 4% 3% 3% 3% 3%

15%

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Documents

What You Should Know About Dog Bites