Sadly, There have been a Lot of Dog Bite Attacks Lately

If you’ve turned on the news or checked online for news lately, you may have noticed a disturbing trend—more and more dog attacks seem to be happening. And many of them aren’t “just bites,” they’re full on mauling of innocent people.

Boston Man is Attacked by Stray Dog

A report out of Boston said that a woman was brutally mauled by pit bulls; the dogs were so ferocious, and so determined, that officers had no choice but to shoot the dogs to get them off of the woman. Even paramedics, arriving on scene, couldn’t approach the woman because of the dogs.

Although advanced notice of a dog’s dangerous propensities doesn’t have to be proven in a typical dog bite case, here, neighbors reported that they had actually been confronted by the dog in the past, and knew the dog had aggressive tendencies.

The dog’s owner is not known—this can be a problem in dog bite cases, especially when the dog is a stray, or is kept outside, or when it is shared amongst numerous people who may house, feed or care for a dog. Suing an “owner” isn’t as clear cut as you would think it should be.

The victim in the case did manage to survive the attack.

Attacks in South Florida

In Florida, there were two separate brutal dog attacks within days of one another.

A man was attacked while taking his trash out, and used the trash bin to try to keep the dogs at bay. Another man within a few days, was also attacked by a separate dog in a close but separate location.

There, the man had to climb a nearby tree, but was unable to do so, and fell, where the dogs attacked him. The man was bitten and responders reported that his legs were bloodied.

Wild Stray Dogs Can be Dangerous

When we think of dog bites, we think of walking up to a dog, trying to be nice to it, and it suddenly snaps. But far too many dog attacks are stray dogs or those who have escaped their homes, and roam the streets.

Victims often encounter dogs out of the blue—before they know what is going on, the dog is on top of them.

This can require a thorough investigation of who owns the dog. Victims may have to follow the dog to animal control or other government offices, to see if the dog is microchipped, thus providing a responsible owner.

These kinds of “street attacks” can be the most brutal. The dogs may be wild and undomesticated. Owners who let dogs run free, may not spend much time socializing dogs. These are not dogs that run away when confronted, and they often are larger dogs that can do a lot of damage to dog attack victims.

Attacked by a dog, whether owned by someone, or running wild on public streets? We can help. Call the Boston personal injury lawyers at The Law Office of Joseph Linnehan, Jr. today at 617-275-4200.

Sources:

wcvb.com/article/dog-fatally-shot-by-boston-officers-after-mauling-woman-police-say/65892730

nbcmiami.com/news/local/surveillance-videos-show-frightening-dog-attacks-in-west-park-neighborhood/3682857/