Dog bite attacks are more common than people realize and often leave the victim with severe injuries that may become infected and lead to their death.
To prevent possible future dog bites and attacks, Henness & Haight’s dedicated Las Vegas dog bite attorneys have provided these safety tips to help keep you and your loved ones safe.
If you have a violent interaction with a dog that results in it biting or injuring you, our experienced personal injury attorneys in Las Vegas will help you file a claim against the at-fault party.
Tips to Safely Interact With Dogs
You should always be careful around each dog you interact with. Each year in the U.S., more than 4.5 million people are bitten by a dog and nearly one in five of these victims requires medical attention.
There are certain actions and behaviors you can do that could help keep you safe and prevent you from being bitten when approached by an unfamiliar or aggressive dog, such as:
- Remaining motionless
- Immediately letting others know when you see a stray or a familiar dog acting strangely or aggressively
- Acting dominant and using a deep, firm voice when speaking to the dog
- Remaining calm
- Standing at an angle so you are not directly facing the dog
- Avoiding making eye contact with the dog
- Waiting until the dog is at a safe distance to slowly back away, if you are able
While these actions may help keep you safe from an aggressive dog, you should also refrain from:
- Approaching an unfamiliar dog
- Running from a hostile dog
- Panicking or making loud noises
- Disturbing a dog that is sleeping or eating
- Placing yourself between a female dog and her puppies
- Attempting to pet a dog before you allow it to sniff you first
- Encouraging your dog to play or behave aggressively
What to Do if You are Attacked or Bitten by a Dog
If these preventative actions fail and you are attacked by a dog, you should:
- Use your bag, purse or jacket as protection and to block the dog from making contact with your skin.
- Curl into a ball with your head, ears and neck covered by your arms and hands, if you are knocked down during the attack.
- Seek a safe place and immediately wash out your wounds with soap and water once the attack is over.
- Seek medical attention as soon as you are able.
- Contact your local animal control center or police department to report the dog attack.
- Find out the dog’s owner’s name, phone number and address, and, if possible, find out if the animal has received its rabies vaccination.
- Collect the dog’s rabies vaccine license number and the name of the veterinarian who administered the vaccine.
Unfortunately, small children between the ages of five and nine are highly susceptible to dog attacks and account for nearly half of the victims treated for dog bite injuries. You should never allow a child to be around a dog unsupervised, even if you believe you are familiar with the animal.
Nevada Dog Bite Laws
From Jan. 1 to May 15, 2017, Clark County Animal Control responded to 330 dog bites, compared to 412 dog bites reported within the same period in 2016.
Nevada is one of few states that do not have state-wide laws regarding dog bites. Instead, dog bite incidences are left up to local county and government ordinances, which depend on the state’s negligence law to hold the dog’s owner accountable.
This means that to prove the owner is liable for your dog bite injury, you must be able to show he or she failed to use reasonable care to prevent the dog from attacking you.
According to Clark County’s animal ordinances, dog owners are required to keep their animals restrained at all times, such as by keeping the dog in a fenced-in yard or controlled by a leash.
If you are bitten by a dog because its owner failed to follow this ordinance, the owner can be found liable on the basis of “negligence per se.” This means the dog’s owner directly violated the county’s statute and is considered inherently negligent.
Contact an Experienced Dog Bite Attorney after a Dog Attack
If you or someone you love is attacked and bitten by a dog, immediately contact our accomplished dog bite attorneys.
Our experienced Las Vegas personal injury attorneys will provide you with a free, no-obligation consultation to determine if the dog’s owner is liable for your injury and the resulting damages.
We will aggressively pursue your claim on a contingency fee basis, which means you only have to pay us if we recover compensation for your case.