Two weeks ago while working at a customers residence I was bit in the #!@#!#! by his Pit Bull. Had to go to the emergency room for treatment. At the follow up visit with the doctor he said it was healing ok. But it is still rather painful! Anyone know how long this will last? I don't believe in lawsuits but am considering it if i am going to be permantnently suffering.

Actually, Tank has had a similar experience. When he was reading meters for a local utility, a dog bit him in the arm, requiring stitches. This was several years ago, and every now and again, I think it still bothers him (numbness in his hand)

I got bit pretty good a couple years back... was my fault sorta... a good friends German Shepard in his own (Territory)back yard behind his own fence, my buddy went in the house to open the Garage Door and I was talking to the dog, showing nothing but teeth and protecting his own.. I held my hand out so he could smell me, keeping it far enough back and thinking he was extended as far as he could have been on the fence... DOH.. when the garage door went up I looked to see WTH and taking my eye's off the dog, he nailed me in the "V" between thumb and pointing finger and he wasn't going to let go.. So I reached underneath his Jawbone with my other hand, extended him across the fence as far as I could and reached down and bit his left ear until he let up, holding him by his lower jawbone still I gave him a toss on backinto his yard and he went to yalping like crazy and fell to the ground rubbing his ear with his paw.. I felt bad for him LOL... When my buddy came out he was screaming what did I do to his dog? then he looked and seen what the Dog had done to me LOL... I was bleeding all over the place with every heartbeat.. his Fang was about 3/4" and there was only MAYBE 1/8" sticking up above my skin... I boiled it out, drank a couple beers until the bleeding slowed down...then we went on to put his newly painted Tank and Fenders on his Harley.. I probably should have gotten stiches?? but ooopso!

It took about 2 weeks before the puss and swelling to go down... then it finally scabbed over and held.. I would butterfly tape it and HP boil it out every night and kept it bandaged everyday with Neosporn.. today if I touch the area or bump it I can still feel a sharp pain feeling shoot through my hand.. other then that there's just a scar.. missed a main vein by about 1/4" maybe?

I wasn't going to go through the Rabbies shot thing...and didn't want no ill will for my buddy or his dog to have to go through either.. he showed me he'd had all his shots and that was good enough for me.. even if he would have just told me I was fine with that also.. but I think he was more upset about the ordeal then I was?

Your situation is a bit different, with medical costs I would have the customer pic up anything that wasn't covered... and they should have at least offered that?

Hog

Well...The problem with a lawsuit is that unless you are really, really hurt, or emotionally scarred, suing people has little value. Unless your damages are great...no big payoff. In alot of states there is strict liability for a dog bite, meaning that your client is automatically liable for any damages you sustained as a result of the bite.

However, if you don't care about losing a client, you could sue for damages, for your medical expenses, inconvenince, and pain and suffering and before trial negotiate a settlement where your client agrees take his ill-behaved dog to obedience school.

I have a pit bull mix. He is taught that biting humans is completely unacceptable.

sorry about your arse. hope it gets better. I must have fallen down, because mine is cracked.

I am not an advocate of FRIVOLOUS lawsuits myself. However, this customer was disregarding your safety with respect to his/her dog even being near you.

I have had a couple bad experiences with dogs, riding my bike as a kid and as an adult. Luckily, neither of them got to bite me and I was able to kick them both in the head. But had I been a bit slower, or slipped off the pedals...

A lawsuit would have been in the works. Irresponsible owners, especially of dogs prone to violence, deserve to be sued.

Thats my $.02

How's the dog?

LOL

Did the owner even offer to pay medical expenses or appologize?

Talk to an attorney. The owner should have put the dog in another room.

This owner was not being responsible, as a dog owner, we keep our dogs away from workmen, repair guys, etc...unless they know them and are the kind that loves dogs!

I am not a fan of pit Bulls, akidas, and other dogs that can be used as guard/attack, etc dogs! The least this person should do is pay your medical expenses and pray you do not sue them!

Charlie

It is imperative that you receive proof, (from the Vet that gave the dog the shots), that the dog has had it rabies shots. There are too many ways a dog, even in a fence can contract rabies. It can take up to 6 months to manifest in a human and once you have it, you are dead. The shots are not 100% safe either, they can cause death; you can get encephalitis and possibly become a vegetable. You need to contact you local public health department right away. I hate going to the doctor, but this one time to shelve that.

There is no excuse for having a dog that aggressive, period. Even attack dogs are trained to attack ONLY on command. Pit Bull or miniature poodle, it all boils down to the owner. They are responsible for controlling their dog. There are far too many a**holes that try to feed their ego by getting a badass dog and haven’t a clue about controlling them.

Our family dog had to be put down more than 20 years ago and I still think about him. He was a lab/coyote/ rottweiler mix that weighed over 120 pounds and never bit anyone; we would not allow that by maintaining control of him. I might add that no one ever bothered our family when he was present.

I'd kindly ask them to pay for your medical bills and maybe $100 gift cert at your local B&M. Tobaca-therapy can do wonders.

If they get lippy, then maybe fill out some paperwork legally.

Just an opinion.

The other thing to consider is whether it was reported to the proper authorities.

If a dog has a history of biting, the penalties are higher, including put it down (usually after several incidents or rather bad incident)

If you contact a lawyer, they will probably file a claim against his homeowners insurance. This could lead to the homeowner having to pay higher premiums, or having to find a new home for puppy.

I love dogs, and Tank loves dogs. He would not want them to be put down, but if the next person this dog bites is a child, how would you feel to know you could have done something that could have prevented it by persuing it?

My dog bites someone, I should have to pay up. Part of being a responsible dog owner.

My .02

Deb

My .02 centavos...

I bought an american bulldog female when she was 8 weeks old. I bought a male american bulldog which I bought from another person when he was 10 months old and 110 lbs. They played great together. The female was such a doll and the male was well behaved.

Many months went by and my wife was constantly calling me at work or when TDY saying the neighbor lady and her daughter were teasing the dogs. I even heard a conversation or two while she was speaking to the neighbor asking her to stop while on the cell. She would give my wife crap and go inside. I would tell my wife to just put the dogs in their kennels until later when no one was out. This ruckus goes on for months with the neighbor. I even asked her to stop throwing rocks and spraying my dogs with the hose. She said she would, but when I was not home she would do it again. I think a lot of her crap stemmed over my wife and me not paying for part of the fence they put up which violated the homeowners covenanted (which I think is a bunch of crap).

Anyway I was at the court house dealing with my ex on custody issues when my calls and says I need to come home because my dogs got out and bit the neighbor and her daughter. Now what make you go hummmmm is that there was a party going on over at the neighbor’s house and only the mother and the daughter were bit out of all the people over there.

The police and animal control arrived. I knew the cop, and the dog pound cop was very cool too. I surrender the dogs to do rabies tests, misdemeanor charges filed against me for owning dangerous animals.

Hind sight being 20-20…I should have filed charges every time she was teasing my dogs. But I didn’t because I didn’t want to be the Bad Guy.

I had the dogs put down, which literally broke my heart. I could not take a chance on them attacking my now 8 year old daughter one day in the back yard even though I truly believe it was the male who did all the damage, but did not want to take a chance. This became a high publicity case on the news and the front page of the paper for a couple of days. Until a virus broke out in China shifting the attention else where.

I visited the little girl in the hospital the day of the incident and the next day. I was confronted by the father the next day to stay away from his family. Which I found very ironic since he was never home. During the year we were neighbors he was home maybe once a month. But I did what he asked to keep peace.

A lawsuit was filed against my home owners insurance which was just settled two weeks ago almost two years later I might add. I have a misdemeanor charge on my record. I paid a $500 fine, plus restitution to the humane society for putting them down, and court costs. My homeowners insurance dropped me but set me up with the high risk version they have and made me sign an animal liability waiver. My premiums went from $550 a year to $950 a year and will stay that way for about three years.

For awhile my daughter was teased and some kids would not play with her. Neighbors would stare at us when we were out in the front yard. I got so fed up with their crap that one day when a lot of people were out in their front yards and would stare. I snapped. I said I don’t give a F**k what you mother f**&^^& think I am not moving. So you can get used to it or you can move. Needless to say the neighbor hood is back to normal. My daughter has too many friends now. LOL! My wife and I put up a basketball goal and the kids come over and play. We have since bought two Chihuahuas and rescued a female Rottie who is the biggest baby from a shelter in New Mexico. Life is back to normal! LOL!

Jack….do what you think you need to do to protect your ARSE-sets….LOL!

But I would at least get reimbursed for the doctor bills which HOI usually does with not to many questions.

Gary