Atlanta Dog Bite Lawyers - Children May Be at Risk from Dog Bites from Pets

A new study out off the Colorado University School of Medicine has few surprises for Atlanta dog bite attorneys. The results of the study were presented at a conference of the American Academy of Otolaryngology in September.  According to the study, most dog bite attacks involving children can be linked to unsupervised children and pet dogs.

The researchers looked at more than 537 dog bite instances involving children. In approximately 90% of these bites, they found that the dog was not a stray dog, but a pet dog. In more than half of the cases, the dog was a family pet, while in 15% of the cases the child belonged to a neighbor.

More than 50% of the attacks involved children who petted the dogs too aggressively, or stepped on the dogs by mistake. Besides, researchers found that dogs that had bitten once were more likely to bite again. What's worse, the second attack was likely to be much more vicious and severe than the first.

That's the reason why lawyers advise dog owners to be vigilant for signs of viciousness, and aggressiveness. If your dog is involved in a bite, you need to take it seriously, and not treat it as a one-time occurrence. Many dog bites that Atlanta dog bite lawyers  handle involve an animal that has been involved in prior attacks that were ignored, or went unreported.

Other findings from the study:

Close to a quarter of the patients required inpatient treatment for their injuries.

Surprisingly enough, adolescents were much more likely than younger kids to be bitten by strange dogs.

The chances of a child being bitten by a dog during his or her lifetime are about 50%.