Rottweiler Attack of School Children Reminder of Danger of Georgia Dog Attacks
We hear about dog attacks quite often in the news, but it does not make them any less shocking, especially when they involve children.
Last month in southwest Atlanta, a young boy was attacked by two Rottweilers while he waited at a bus stop.
The boy, who is believed to be around 8 or 9 years old, was taken to Scottish Rite Children's Hospital. While a neighbor came along and chased the dogs off with a stick, a second child who was waiting for the same school bus managed to escape. The dogs each belong to separate owners. They have been removed from the neighborhood by Fulton County Animal Control. If you or someone you love has been the victim of a dog attack or dog bite, Montlick and Associates, Attorneys at Law, may be able to help you obtain compensation for your injuries.
When dogs start to travel in numbers in urban or rural areas in Georgia, they start to develop what is called "pack mentality". When dogs form a pack, they can start to exhibit some pretty insane behavior. Two dogs traveling together may be sufficient to have the dogs behave like a pack. Usually, there is one dog that acts like the ringleader for the bunch. This dog will usually lead the other dogs in displaying certain aggressive behavior.
When dogs are in a pack situation, humans can appear threatening to them, according to Bonnie Beaver, a professor of small animal clinical sciences at Texas A&M University and an expert in pack behavior. If a human makes eye contact with a dog in the pack, it can be threatening to the dog. If that dog is put on edge for any reason, this can create a situation in which that dog becomes agitated and causes the rest of the dogs to get edgy. Things can escalate from there.
There was a situation in the rural part of northeastern Georgia a few years ago where a group of 11 dogs that were left to roam free attacked and killed a 65 year old woman. When her 77-year-old husband found her, the pack of dogs attacked and killed him too as he was trying to run the dogs off.
Dogs kill an average of 10 to 20 people each year in the United States. Most of these cases do not involve multiple dogs but involve single dogs attacking small children. Dog bite statistics, on the other hand, are quite a bit higher with 4.7 million people in the U.S. bitten by dogs every year.
The end result of a dog attack or a dog bite can be catastrophic permanent injury or wrongful death. Victims who survive often are left with severe scarring or permanent disfigurement. Georgia dog attack victims also experience psychological scarring as well. Many times the victims of these attacks in the greater Atlanta metro area and throughout Georgia are young children or the elderly. If you or a loved one has been the victim of a dog attack, you or your loved one may be entitled to compensation for your injuries. Our experienced Georgia dog attack attorneys may be able to help.
If a dog has attacked you, it is important that you seek medical attention right away. It is also important to obtain the contact information of the owner of the dog that attacked you. Someone should also take photographs that document your injuries and save the clothing you were wearing at the time of the attack. While it is fresh in your mind, if you are physically able, you should write down exactly what happened. You should also contact the animal control in the county where you were attacked and make a report. If the property owner or dog owner’s insurance company tries to contact you, it is important to obtain legal advice before speaking with anyone from the insurer.
Presenting a strong case for a dog attack or dog bite case requires careful investigation to develop evidence that the dog owner should have known the dog had dangerous or aggressive propensities and/or evidence of the dog owner’s failure to take reasonable care to restrain the dog. This is where a good dog bite attorney can be of assistance.
The animal control also will be your ally because they may impound and quarantine the dog to check and see if it has rabies. They can then determine if a citation should be issued against the dog owner. This can help in building your case and recovering for your injuries.
Other factors that will come into play in your case may include the local leash laws, availability of any witnesses and the seriousness of your injuries. We know that victims of dog bites and dog attacks can suffer serious injuries and major medical expenses, including cosmetic surgery for facial injuries. It is not uncommon for there to be permanent scarring. If you or someone you love has been injured by a dog owner's failure to control their dog, Montlick and Associates, Attorneys at Law, can help you seek compensation for your injuries.
We urge you to call Montlick & Associates today because our Georgia dog attack attorneys have been representing Georgia dog attack victims throughout Georgia for over 39 years. We are available to assist clients throughout all of Georgia, including but not limited to Albany, Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Dalton, Gainesville, Macon, Marietta, Rome, Roswell, Savannah, Smyrna, Valdosta, Warner Robins and all smaller cities and rural areas in the state. Call us today for your free consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333), or visit us on the web at www.montlick.com and use our Free Case Evaluation Form or 24-hour Live Online Chat. No matter where you are, we are just a phone call away and we will even come to you. Montlick & Associates: Caring, Dedication, Experience and Results!