Dog bites are extremely common, with an estimated 4.5 million dog-bite injuries treated by US hospital emergency rooms each year. The majority of dog attacks occur when the dog is protecting their home or territory, but dog attacks can happen for any number of reasons and it’s important to know what to do after being attacked by a neighbor’s dog.
Read on to learn 7 things that you should do after being attacked by a neighbor’s dog!
1. Stay calm and don’t panic
Dog attacks are scary and overwhelming. The best thing you can do is to stay calm, assess the situation, and call for help if needed. If your dog has been bitten or hurt in the attack, it’s okay to panic a little bit but try not to let yourself go into full-blown hysterics because this will only make things worse and impede your ability to think clearly and act decisively.
Think of how you would react if you were attacked by another human being—you’d probably be pretty scared at first but then quickly start assessing what happened so that you could figure out how best to defend yourself from further harm.
In all likelihood, dog bites aren’t fatal (although they’re certainly painful), meaning that as long as medical attention isn’t needed in the aftermath, it’s okay to take a deep breath and focus on taking care of your dog.
2. Get to a safe place, like your home or car
Another thing dog owners should do after they have been attacked by a dog is to get out of the situation and head towards a safe place, such as their home or car. This will prevent them from being in harm’s way if the dog continues to attack.
3. Call the police immediately
Calling the police might seem like a no-brainer, but there are dog owners that think they can handle everything themselves. The risk of severe injury is high if you try to tackle the dog yourself or attempt to capture it without training. You should always call for help immediately after an attack by a dog occurs.
– Report the incident as soon as possible so authorities know about it and will take steps towards solving the problem before more people get hurt;
– Call 911 first because this way you’ll be sure your call gets answered right away;
– Be clear with what’s happening when calling for help – tell them who attacked you, where exactly did it happen, how many times have been bitten, etc.;
– Give information about which dog attacked you, the dog’s age and breed;
– Tell them if the dog is off-leash or on a chain;
– If it looks like there are more dogs involved in the attack – tell this to authorities.
The police will come as fast as they can so do not panic when hanging up. Make sure to give all of your information clearly and calmly while making sure that the dog does not get near you again.
You should also avoid talking for too long with anyone who witnessed what happened because this might just upset the dog even further which could result in another vicious attack being launched at someone else from its owner’s property line. This is why calling 911 first would be best since they have everything under control until animal protection officers arrive.
– dog breeds that are more likely to attack people;
– types of injuries dog attacks can cause.
4. Contact your doctor if you are injured beyond first-aid treatment
Although dog bites are not generally fatal, they can cause serious injuries like broken bones or nerve damage. A dog bite may also lead to infection of the wound if it is deep enough for bacteria to enter your bloodstream.
Your doctor will be able to advise you on whether you need antibiotics and stitches (or sutures), which would help prevent infections that could complicate recovery. If necessary, he or she might prescribe pain medication as well.
5. Report the incident to animal control
In order to ensure dog owners are held responsible for their dog’s actions, it is important to contact animal control immediately after an attack. Note: If you do not report the incident yourself, law enforcement will only take action if a witness reports the dog on your property or there was physical evidence left at the scene of the crime.
After contacting authorities and asking them about reporting dogs that have attacked in neighboring areas, be sure they understand exactly what happened during this specific instance so they can best serve you with accurate information.
6. Take pictures of your injuries for documentation purposes
Making sure to take pictures of your dog’s attack injuries is important because it provides evidence that the dog did actually attack you. It also helps to show how serious and/or extensive your injuries are, which can increase the value of any potential dog bite injury claim. Taking photos will help ensure that you have a proper claim for compensation if:
– You need medical treatment after being attacked by a neighbor’s dog.
– The dog was identified but never found so there isn’t proof from animal control officers or police reports about what happened when the dog bit you.
– Your clothes were damaged during the incident.
In addition, taking photographs right after an attack is better than waiting until later since physical signs such as redness or swelling may not be visible hours or days after the dog bite.
7. Keep all evidence that can corroborate your story
Last but not least, it is important to keep all evidence that can corroborate your story. Every good lawyer should tell you this. And, according to the Brown and Crouppen Law Firm, everyone deserves to have good representation.
Furthermore, the evidence that can help you includes dog hair, dog saliva, or anything physical that could link the dog back to the attack. It may be difficult for you to find these items if they are still stuck in wounds on your body but it’s definitely something worth looking into before going forward with a lawsuit against the dog’s owners.
In fact, many would say this would be one of the most crucial things you should do after being attacked by a neighbor’s dog! The last thing anyone wants is someone telling their side of the story and not have any evidence to support what really happened during an altercation between two dogs…or even worse – losing track of both dogs while doing so!
That being said, dog owners should either have a leash on them or know where their dog is at all times.
If you are ever the victim of a crime, it’s important to remain calm and get out of danger first. After that contact, your doctor for any injuries beyond what first-aid can help with, then calls the police immediately. The most important thing is to stay safe! Hopefully, this blog post has helped illuminate some steps in case you find yourself in a dangerous situation.
