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Over 4 Million Dog Attacks Occur Annually in the U.S. 33 were fatal in 2008.
Over any two year period we can expect 30 or so fatal dog attacks in the U.S.A. twenty year study found 25 breeds of dogs have been involved in 238 human fatalities. Pit bull-terrier type dogs and Rottweilers were involved in more than fifty percent of these deaths. Of well over 200 reports with relevant data, one in four of the human deaths involved unrestrained dogs off their owners’ property, three in five of the fatal dog bite attacks involved unrestrained dogs on their owners’ property, 17% involved restrained (fenced or collared) dogs on their owners’ property, and only 1% involved a restrained dog off its owner’s property.
A dog bite is the second most frequent cause of visits to emergency rooms. (Weiss HB, Friedman DI, Coben JH. "Incidence of dog bite injuries treated in emergency departments," JAMA 1998;279:53, citing US Consumer Product Safety Commission, "Injuries associated with selected sports and recreational equipment treated in hospital emergency departments, 1994."
Dogs Bites Rank #2 Reason We Visit Emergency Room
What constitutes aggressive dog behavior?

Dr. Harvey Braaf, VMD (now deceased) listed the following symptoms of dog aggression. None of these symptoms should be ignored, he warned, as each can be a predictor of serious aggressive behavior. Dr. Braaf recommended that a professional trainer should be contacted if the owner cannot deal with the aggressive dog behavioral problem. And, he cautioned, in no case should the dog be abandoned, given to a shelter or rescue organization to be put up for adoption to an unsuspecting new owner.

Aggressive Warning Signs

   * Excessive barking
   * Tendency to snarl, growl, or snap to protect food
   * Overprotective of things
   * Fearfulness in new situations or around strangers
   * Severe attacks on other animals, such as cats, or livestock
   * Attempts to mount people's legs
   * Snapping and snarling when petted, lifted, or groomed
   * Frequent attempts to chase moving objects such as bicycles, skateboards, cars and trucks
   * Repeated escapes from home
Non-Fatal Dog Bite Cases in Hospital Emergency Departments

Estimates vary but there are over four million dog bite related accidents annually in the United States, and close to 800,000 of those people (one in five) will seek professional medical care this year. About 6,000 people, or 1.8%, will be hospitalized. Those that do require a hospital stay are usually quite serious cases and the mean stay period is 4 to 5 days for older victims and 3 to 4 days for young adults and small children.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission collects data about initial visits for all types and causes of injuries treated in Emergency Departments. In 2001, their data estimated 368,245 persons were treated for dog bite-related injuries. The injury rate was highest for children aged 0 to 4 and 5 to 9 years (5% and 4.9%, respectively) and decreased with increasing age. Roughly 42% of dog bites occurred among children under 14 years of age.

Across most all age groups males get bit more than females-various studies show about a 9-7 ratio boys getting bitten more, another seventeen state study showed 55% boys vs. 45% girls made hospital emergency visits due to a dog bite or attack.

Injuries were most commonly to the arm-hand (45%), leg-foot (25%), and head-neck (23%). But most disturbing is that 2 of 3 injuries among young children aged under four years were to the head-neck region. Facial dog attacks, usually irregardless of age, have been known to get significant settlements in California courts. Strict liability applies in California Dog Bites cases. Recently, Farmers Insurance, Allstate, and TransAmerica insurance companies paid out $400,000, $400,000 and $350,000, respectively, to three victims of facial dog bites.

Notes and comments in the medical records note common circumstances in which children and adults were involved in dog bite-related injuries. For example, an 18 month old girl was attacked by the family dog in her own backyard and sustained an open depressed skull fracture, mandible fractures, and avulsion of an ear and part of a cheek; a four year old boy was bitten on the lip by a dog while attempting to guard her pups from the child; a three year old girl was bitten on the face when attempting to take food away from the family dog. Adult examples include a 34 year old man who sustained an avulsion laceration to his left thumb while trying to break up a fight between his own dogs; a 27 woman age 27 sustained multiple puncture wounds to her forearm, thumb, and chest while attempting to rescue her dog which had been hit by a car; an elderly woman who was bitten while she was trying to prevent her dog from attacking emergency personnel who were attempting to move her from her home to the outside ambulance.