DOG BITE LAWYERS FOR CHILDREN
More children are bitten by dogs in the Spring and Summer months, according to researchers at Nemours Children’s Health. But a dog bite isn’t inevitable: It’s possible to keep both dogs and children safer, and to provide proper care if the unfortunate does happen, researchers say. Our top dog bite lawyers MN recently saw this article in U.S. News.
In the study, the researchers used the U.S. National Electronic Injury Surveillance System. They collected data on a decade’s worth of patient records, from 2010 to 2020. The study concluded that a significant increase in dog bites among children in spring and summer. Hopefully this should provide public health agencies, as well as caregivers, the information they need to reduce these injuries.
While sometimes minor dog bites may be treated at home, children are often seen in the emergency room. That may or may not include stitches, but would include cleaning the wound.
In older children and teens, who may be more able to fend off a dog, that can mean more bites on extremities. For example, our lawyers often see cases of a leg bitten while running away or wounds on the hands or arms. Younger children, however, are more likely to be bitten on the face or torso. Toddlers tend to have more head and scalp wounds because they’ll be crawling along the ground. They’re at the dog’s level as far as face to face, and that’s where the greater insult can happen.
NEIGHBOR DOG BIT CHILD
It isn’t just stray or strange dogs encountered in a neighborhood that can present a risk. Even a typically amiable dog at home can injure a child if they’re territorial over food. They snap really quickly and can cause significant damage with tearing and crushing. While cat bites are like little hypodermic needles injecting bacteria deep under the surface, dogs’ larger mouths and teeth tend to cause more of a tearing and crushing injury.
Often in the ER, doctors will not suture the dog bite wounds closed so as not to entrap any bacteria that can cause an infection. Of course, if the wound is gaping, they may do a couple of loose stitches to bring the wound together but still allow for drainage. Also, it’s different if the wound is someplace disfiguring such as on the face. In those cases, the wound will be stitched and then monitored carefully.
AVOID BEING BITTEN BY A DOG – LAWYERS
For starters, it’s important for dog owners to maintain control of their dogs. That means keeping them behind fences or on leashes, and being clear with passersby about not touching. Parents should also be clear with their children that they shouldn’t trespass or take shortcuts through someone’s yard, he said. They should teach their children about how to approach strange dogs, and that can include not approaching them. Just because you have a friendly dog at home, you do not go up to dogs that you don’t know. Even if it’s on somebody’s leash, you don’t go up to them unless mom or dad, a parent or adult, asks if it’s OK for you to pet the dog.
If a child is bitten and the bite breaks the skin, it’s important to take them to a doctor. These wounds can easily become infected with the bacteria from the animal’s mouth. A doctor can provide antibiotics, as well as assess whether the child needs a tetanus shot or, potentially, rabies shots.
LAWYERS FOR CHILD BITTEN BY DOG
If your child was bitten by a dog, call us for a free consultation. Pam Rochlin and David Rochlin have handled hundreds of cases over the past 25 years. Our dog bite lawyers MN are experienced and get results. Your child is entitled to have their medical bills paid and additional compensation for pain and suffering. This is particularly true if there is a permanent scar.