Lucy bit a kid- Lawsuit pending?!

[Larka]

We're not allowed to put up fences. So we have the dogs on the leads, and we're out there with them. Like I could have stepped 2 feet and grabbed the leash the dog was on. They're not just running loose. When the father of the kid came over, he seemed content that it was his kid's fault when he found out the leads only go to the end of my yard. The mom was the one who was in hysterics and called the cops and then drug the kid to the hospital. I'm willing to pay the hospital bill (even though I feel that the kid didn't need to go to the hospital), but I don't want it to go any further. If they try to sue me for my dog, I'll get them for not having their kids supervised. I have neighbors willing to testify that these kids run around without a parent in sight, and I have video of it. These kids come in my yard, on my deck, they've even come in my house. And the oldest is like 11. I don't want to be penalized for them not paying attention to their kids, but I'm willing to apologize and meet half way. They haven't even spoken to me since this happened, even though I've made attempts to talk to them. I'm praying that it just all blows over.

[JazzysMom]

Well, that's a stupid rule, IMO. You know the old adage, "Good fences make good neighbors" is really appropriate here. Sooooooooo many problems can be avoided by simply allowing a fence, kwim?

I suppose you have the father's original reaction to use in your defense, although he'll most likely deny it.
You said it was a minor bite – was there even any blood drawn?

I feel your pain, though. It's an awful feeling. Jazzy's bitten a kid twice -- once the girl I babysit, and one a friend's son. Both parents were VERY cool and understood that, in both cases, the kids were REALLY annoying the dog even though she'd given clear signals and the kids had been warned by adults.
We were very lucky -- very lucky. I've never before owned a dog that was "THAT dog", and it's very unnerving to me.

Of course, I'm sure your initial feeling of "Oh crap, my dog just bit a kid" was quickly cured by the crazy Mama and left you wishing she'd bitten the Mama instead.

Prayin' with you that it blows over and that the parents get a clue.

[tanza]

The breeder (and my first mentors) had some kids over to play (with the parents approval) with puppies… and you know how sharp those little baby teeth are... well one of the pups jump up and put a tooth through this kids ear lobe... (instant piercing..NOT).... animal control was called... mother had a fit... said would sue... Almost they took the pup until they were told the age and that he/she was still nursing and produced the rabies proof for the Mom... it was really a mess... and had the parents decided to go through with the suit, they most likely would have won.....

[Larka]

It was very minor, no blood. But it's one of those that swell up and will still probably scab even though it's not bleeding.

The other kids that were around tried to say the dogs were running loose, and had come into THEIR yard. They even said that story with the parents standing there when they came to yell at me. I was outside the whole time! They were not running loose, and I showed the dad the tie-out and he seemed content with that.

The kids couldn't keep the story straight of which dog nipped the kid.

The dad first excused us of not looking after his child when it happened. When it happened, I grabbed the dogs leads, wrapped them around another stake we have out there so they could barely move and went over to the kid. I repeatedly asked him if he was okay, the only response I got was muttered Spanish and screaming. Then the kid ran over to the house. I went to put the dogs inside, then I was going to go over there when the parents came to my house and started pounding on my door and yelling at me.

When the cops showed up. (The mom called them.) The cops wanted to know if Lucy was vicious. They wanted to see her outside of her kennel without a leash on. She sat, she laid down, she shook each of the officers hands and then she sat in their laps and hugged them, then gave them kisses. They were like- this is NOT a vicious dog. I explained to them that Lucy is a rescue, and that dogs from shelters usually WILL nip if spooked. They lived in a world where the thing scaring you was either going to kill you or take your food, so they react instinctively. The cops seemed okay with that. They loved Lucy. But they still said that the people could sue if they wanted to, and they might since there was no way to talk sense into the mom.

The only issue I had with the cops is when the first cop saw her, he was like "That's a PitBull." All the paperwork I have on her, which I showed him, has her listed as a Corgi mix (from the shelter she came from) or a Basenji mix (from all the vets she's been to.) Yeah, a TON of people think she's a Pit mix, but none of my paperwork says anything about PitBull and I'm going to leave it at that. I had to spell "Basenji" like 8 times to him, and had to get on the AKC's site and show him that it WAS a breed, and that's what she was. The funny thing was that when his partner got back from talking to the other people, she looked at Lucy and was like "Oh my god! A Basenji! Do you yodel? My baby yodels." She has a tri and had never seen a red and white in person. It was awesome.

[JazzysMom]

@Larka:

The only issue I had with the cops is when the first cop saw her, he was like "That's a PitBull." All the paperwork I have on her, which I showed him, has her listed as a Corgi mix (from the shelter she came from) or a Basenji mix (from all the vets she's been to.) Yeah, a TON of people think she's a Pit mix, but none of my paperwork says anything about PitBull and I'm going to leave it at that. I had to spell "Basenji" like 8 times to him, and had to get on the AKC's site and show him that it WAS a breed, and that's what she was. The funny thing was that when his partner got back from talking to the other people, she looked at Lucy and was like "Oh my god! A Basenji! Do you yodel? My baby yodels." She has a tri and had never seen a red and white in person. It was awesome.

That's a huge part of the pit bulls' bad reputation. Emergency officials and newspaper reports mis-identify them ALL THE TIME. Imagine if the Mom had called the paper – Lucy would be called a pit-bull mix or something, no matter WHAT you told them.

Cool that Officer 2 had a B! That was really helpful, at least as far as the cops were concerned.

One of my kids got bit by a neigbor dog about 4 yrs ago. DD was 10 at the time. The neighbor lady had cancer and I frequently sent my kids over to check on her throughout the day. DD was running across the yard while the lady's obnoxious little mutt {who knew and loved my kids} was tied out. Little ol' Murphy just jumped up as DD passed and bit her on the butt!
Barely broke the skin, but it did break. We just cleaned her up and told her to stop running by tethered dogs, LOL.

Dogs are unpredictable. Duh.

[Quercus]

@JazzysMom:

That's a huge part of the pit bulls' bad reputation. Emergency officials and newspaper reports mis-identify them ALL THE TIME. Imagine if the Mom had called the paper – Lucy would be called a pit-bull mix or something, no matter WHAT you told them.

Cool that Officer 2 had a B! That was really helpful, at least as far as the cops were concerned.

One of my kids got bit by a neigbor dog about 4 yrs ago. DD was 10 at the time. The neighbor lady had cancer and I frequently sent my kids over to check on her throughout the day. DD was running across the yard while the lady's obnoxious little mutt {who knew and loved my kids} was tied out. Little ol' Murphy just jumped up as DD passed and bit her on the butt!
Barely broke the skin, but it did break. We just cleaned her up and told her to stop running by tethered dogs, LOL.

Dogs are unpredictable. Duh.

Especially dogs that are tied out! A huge percentage of dog attacks come from dogs that are routinely tied out.

[Barklessdog]

A basenji can never kill a person and only bites if feeling threatened.

The most the bites we have received leave bruises (big ones with their powerful jaws)and or puncture wounds.

Just keep their rabbi shots up to date!

sue for what?

A small puncture wound & bruises?

If not on the face I doubt they would get much other than you pay for the Dr. bill.

Has anyone been bitten bad enough to get stitches?

[JazzysMom]

@Barklessdog:

A basenji can never kill a person and only bites if feeling threatened.

The most the bites we have received leave bruises (big ones with their powerful jaws)and or puncture wounds.

Just keep their rabbi shots up to date!

sue for what?

A small puncture wound & bruises?

If not on the face I doubt they would get much other than you pay for the Dr. bill.

Has anyone been bitten bad enough to get stitches?

I have to disagree. I believe fully that a Basenji certainly COULD kill, esp a child. It is not likely going to happen, but it sure could.

And to say that a breed "only bites when it feels threatened" seems naive to me. Any dog could possibly bite at any time for any reason. And an unstable dog of any breed will do just that.

Sue for medical costs – ER visits are very pricey, and in some places you can get pain and suffering costs added on to that. They could be talking a very hefty sum of money.

Jazzy bit my friend's 6 yo old son the face, and it did require a couple of stitches. She tore the area above his lip right down to the lip. That obvious scar will be there for life.

[nomrbddgs]

There is a judge out there that used to have basenji's. Her one had a tumor (unbeknownst to her) and attacked her one day. She has very vivid scars. If her husband wasn't there the dog would probably have killed her. All animals have the capacity to kill. She decided it wasn't going to affect her life and is still a judge for group 2.

[Quercus]

@JazzysMom:

I have to disagree. I believe fully that a Basenji certainly COULD kill, esp a child. It is not likely going to happen, but it sure could.

And to say that a breed "only bites when it feels threatened" seems naive to me. Any dog could possibly bite at any time for any reason. And an unstable dog of any breed will do just that.

Sue for medical costs – ER visits are very pricey, and in some places you can get pain and suffering costs added on to that. They could be talking a very hefty sum of money.

Jazzy bit my friend's 6 yo old son the face, and it did require a couple of stitches. She tore the area above his lip right down to the lip. That obvious scar will be there for life.

I agree with everything posted above. And as far as suing…sometimes the vicitim doesn't have an option. We found that out when Tim broke his ankle slipping on ice. Our medical insurance sued the owner of the parking lot, we didn't have any say in it at all.

[senji]

When I was a kid we had a B. My parents showed him. He was from a good Kennel…(Walkers and Works). He got loose one day and stuck his head in a ground hog hole. My dad grabbed him. He didn't realize it was my dad and bit his wrist. He should have had stitches. He also had my dad trapped on top of their chest freezer after a hunting trip until he realized it was him. I know I feel safe because Deke wouldn't let anyone in we didn't want in. that is one reason why it takes a certain type of person to own Bs. We say it on here all the time.

[JazzysMom]

@Quercus:

I agree with everything posted above. And as far as suing…sometimes the vicitim doesn't have an option. We found that out when Tim broke his ankle slipping on ice. Our medical insurance sued the owner of the parking lot, we didn't have any say in it at all.

Good point. Any time our kids have had any kind of visit to the ER, the insurance won't pay out a dime until we've filed an accident report stating the where/when/how/who's property info.
Fortunately, it's always been situations where we can indicate the fault lies with the child.

In a dog bite case, I'm sure there is NO option for that. Their insurance company WILL probably sue for at least the cost of the visit to the ER {which could be hundreds even if they don't do anything}, and then there goes your home-owners or renters insurance rates

the whole situation just sucks.

[Larka]

My neighborhood is VERY prone to break-ins and robberies. When I first moved in, the neighbors had someone break in and assault the wife, she ended up with her arm broken in 2 places. In my opinion, in this neighborhood, a dog who bites a stranger that is coming into it's area should be given a medal.

The problem with homeowners insurance is that we didn't have it when this happened. We had just moved into the trailer, were still new to the city, so it was taking us awhile to get it. We were going to get it Monday, this happened Saturday.

I'm still willing to come out of pocket for the hospital bill. I figured like $500, I'm fine with that. I'm just worried about them doing anything else. We just found out that the people who lived here before us moved out because someone in the neighborhood killed their dog because it was running loose.

[JazzysMom]

@Larka:

My neighborhood is VERY prone to break-ins and robberies. When I first moved in, the neighbors had someone break in and assault the wife, she ended up with her arm broken in 2 places. In my opinion, in this neighborhood, a dog who bites a stranger that is coming into it's area should be given a medal.

The problem with homeowners insurance is that we didn't have it when this happened. We had just moved into the trailer, were still new to the city, so it was taking us awhile to get it. We were going to get it Monday, this happened Saturday.

I'm still willing to come out of pocket for the hospital bill. I figured like $500, I'm fine with that. I'm just worried about them doing anything else. We just found out that the people who lived here before us moved out because someone in the neighborhood killed their dog because it was running loose.

Oh, geez. Something else to have to worry about.

You haven't heard anything else yet? I think the waiting would kill me.

[Larka]

I just got a visit from Animal Control… I had just let the dogs in and then they go back to the door, pointing, going "Mom, someone's here." I threw them both in one of the extra rooms and then answered the door and totally thought my heart stopped when I saw it was Animal Control.

But the guy was totally awesome. He had looked at the tie-outs and seen how far they went and how strong they were before he knocked on my door. He said that the "bite" was actually just a scratch. He asked to see Lucy's tags and all her paperwork, then asked to see Lucy. She's on house arrest until November 7th, but I can live with that. He said that the people have no leg to stand on, and the case through the County and Animal Control will be dropped on the 7th after they come see Lucy again and say she's free from house arrest. And if they want to still take it to civil court, I have all my paperwork for Lucy and all the paperwork for this case, and the Animal Control guy said that the judge will laugh in these people's faces.

AND- This Animal Control guy has been to my neighborhood THREE times for these people's chihuahua because they let it run loose! AHHAHAHAHAHA. He said that if the dog gets in my yard again, to pick it up, put it in my house and call Animal Control and they'll come get it since they already have all that on file.

[dash]

good news. I feel bad for the chihuahua though.

[Quercus]

@Larka:

I just got a visit from Animal Control… I had just let the dogs in and then they go back to the door, pointing, going "Mom, someone's here." I threw them both in one of the extra rooms and then answered the door and totally thought my heart stopped when I saw it was Animal Control.

But the guy was totally awesome. He had looked at the tie-outs and seen how far they went and how strong they were before he knocked on my door. He said that the "bite" was actually just a scratch. He asked to see Lucy's tags and all her paperwork, then asked to see Lucy. She's on house arrest until November 7th, but I can live with that. He said that the people have no leg to stand on, and the case through the County and Animal Control will be dropped on the 7th after they come see Lucy again and say she's free from house arrest. And if they want to still take it to civil court, I have all my paperwork for Lucy and all the paperwork for this case, and the Animal Control guy said that the judge will laugh in these people's faces.

AND- This Animal Control guy has been to my neighborhood THREE times for these people's chihuahua because they let it run loose! AHHAHAHAHAHA. He said that if the dog gets in my yard again, to pick it up, put it in my house and call Animal Control and they'll come get it since they already have all that on file.

Well…good that AC is on your side....but I don't know if I would get involved with the situation with the neighbor's dog. Personally, I wouldn't want to give them any reason to be angry with me, particularly with the concern you mentioned about the prior residents having their dog killed!

I hope things get better in the neighborhood for you!

[felakuti]

lets have some common sense here, you had full knowledge that the kids had a tendency to run into your yard and yet you tied the dogs out there without supervision anyway, and you also knew what kind of temperament your basenji has. I am sorry but YOU are the one responsible. Never in a million years would I tie up a basenji in my yard when i knew there were kids running around and playing. what are you nuts or something? geesh

[dash]

@felakuti:

lets have some common sense here, you had full knowledge that the kids had a tendency to run into your yard and yet you tied the dogs out there without supervision anyway, and you also knew what kind of temperament your basenji has. I am sorry but YOU are the one responsible. Never in a million years would I tie up a basenji in my yard when i knew there were kids running around and playing. what are you nuts or something? geesh

The dogs were supervised. I really think stuff happens. You should be able to tie your dogs in your yard and not have people running in it. She agreed that she was responsible and would pay for the hospital bill. I think you are being a little harsh and basically an ass. I am not sure if you are on here as a joke or you are really this rude.

[senji]

No one has the right to enter your property!!!! The kids were told to stay away from the dog. Children should be able to respect animals and property. I have children..the problem is too many parents have stopped parenting and let kids do whatever. If my child got scratched by someone elses dog in their yard I'd tell them it's a good lesson to learn and you're lucky it was only a scratch. My own cat has scratched my kids because they didn't leave her alone when they should of. RESPECT..children need to learn that again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!