More children are attending school from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which means more time spent in the same living areas as family pets. According to a recent study published in The Journal of Pediatrics, more time with dogs, combined with increased stressors that can also aggravated family pets, has led to an increase in child dog bite incidents during the coronavirus pandemic.
Many families do not want to consider that their pet could attack a small child, seemingly without warning or provocation. Yet animals can respond in ways that we may not expect, and children in particular can suffer life-threatening and deadly injuries in dog attack cases. I want to tell you more about the recent study and to help you understand the risks of dog bite injuries among kids.
Time at Home Leads to More Child Dog Bite Injuries
The primary finding of the recent study is that dog bite cases, especially among younger children, have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors of the study attributed that rise on dog bite cases to two primary intertwining issues — stay-at-home or shelter-in-place orders have meant that more people are working from home and more kids are attending school virtually or remotely, and anxiety and stress are very high due to fears about virus exposure and financial security. Together, the authors of the study point out that scenes may be set for more dog attacks.
Dogs, like other types of domesticated animals, may be able to sense stress in their owners and kids, leading the animals to behave in different ways and to react to that stress. As more dogs respond to the stress occurring in the home, and dogs are around kids for longer periods of time, the possibility of a dog bite incident may increase. The current data suggests that emergency departments have seen a marked rise in child dog bite injuries since April 2020, with some showing as much as a two-fold or three-old increase in pediatric hospital visits due to dog bites.
Seeking Compensation for Dog Bite Injuries
Ohio law does not require you to show that the dog owner was negligent in order to be eligible for compensation. Instead, simply being able to show that the party owned the dog, and that the dog bit and caused an injury, is enough to file a claim.
The only major defenses in these kinds of cases include situations in which the dog was provoked, or situations in which the person bitten was trespassing.
Call My Firm for Assistance with Your Dog Bite Case
If you or your child was bitten by a dog in Ohio, it is critical to seek the financial compensation you need after this devastating injury. While it can be difficult to come to the realization that a family member, or a friend or neighbor, is responsible for a dog bite, it is important to hold the dog owner accountable. As I have mentioned above, owning a dog is enough to be liable if the dog bites—you do not need to prove that the dog owner was negligent or that the dog owner knew the animal could have attacked. Let me help you seek the money you need to cover costly medical bills. I’ll Make Them Pay!® Call 877.614.9524 to learn more about filing a dog bite claim.
