Meandering comment about a dog bite

[Richard]

I dont know what nice title to put there .... so I put what I put.

With the current dog thread going on, it had me thinking of something that happened and I thought I'd repeat it here and simply see what anyone had to say, if anything.

A couple years ago we added onto the house. We have 5 indoor dogs. Sometimes, when you have a puppy or adult dog of your OWN, you might "stutter step" towards it in a playful way...and sometimes it might get into a playful pose and you can wrestle around with it.

I do this with most of our dogs and then when playtime is over, I call them to me and have them sit and I pat their head....

Ok, builder was here working on house. Both my wife & I at different times, noticed him outside, facing the full glass front door "stuttering" towards one of our dogs which happened to be on the other side of the glass. The dog started getting into the red zone and barking/growling at him and he walked away giggling.

Once my wife & I compared notes, we each only saw this happen once. Did it happen more often?? Don't know, but I don't doubt it.

Ok, fast forward several months later and I come home from work. I gather all 5 dogs on their leashes and walk them to the field so they can do their biz.

The builder seems to have a question for me. Side note.... the dogs are on retractable leashes, 16' in length.

When they see him they start barking, ALL of them. I didn't think much of it.

They "jumped" in a playful way towards him, NOT in an aggressive way (just look at my avatar... she's not a killer)

Anyways, the leashes are now extended 16' out and he's 25' away, well outside this circle.

He continues to walk towards me, entering the 16' circle, all the dogs are barking at him and jumping up.

Suddenly, the specific dog that he had been taunting through the glass door, circled around behind him and sank her powerful teeth right into his calf.

He was wearing blue jeans AND insulated denim coveralls. She still broke the skin EVER so barely and you could see a good "U" shape imprint of her teeth on his calf. He ended up with a bruise on his calf the size of a good grapefruit. She's a Cairne Terrier (sp?) and although she's not a big dog, she looks to have a powerful set of jaws.

So he entered this 16' circle, gets bitten on the calf... He never said much about it other than his daughter yelled at him, saying it was his fault that he should never have crossed that line (I agree)

He never mentioned lawsuit and it's been 2 years... he simply manned up to doing something stupid both times (taunting dogs and then entering their circle while I was trying to reel them in)

Fast forward another month or so... some of his workers were here and several of them were holding several of our dogs. One of them was holding Hattie in his arms and she was as quiet & peaceful as a churchmouse. As he was holding her, rubbing her head... he asked "which one of your dogs is the one that bit the Boss?"

My wife looked at him and said.... you're holding her

We finally concluded that his taunting through the window got her to really dislike/distrust him... or perhaps she is just a good judge of character.

 

[rekees4300]

You are lucky you didn't get sued. Although state laws vary, pet owners are usually considered legally responsible for their dog's behavior, and in most bite cases are required to pay all medical bills as well as lost wages resulting from the attack. They can also be ordered to pay for the bite victim's pain and suffering. If the dog owner is particularly negligent -- such as letting a dog known to be dangerous run loose -- there might be multiple or punitive damages, as well as separate criminal charges.

 

[Richard]

This is Hattie, the one that bit him on the leg

 

[CompactTractorFan]

when you have a puppy or adult dog of your OWN, you might "stutter step" towards it in a playful way.

Yep, do it all the time...

 

[Richard]

Yes, the first concern I had was some liability....

I felt a little more assured though (perhaps erroneously) given that the dogs were NOT running loose, but rather, all were on a leash and he entered THEIR circle.

Sort of like having a dog chained to a tree with a 10' lead....and you walking up to it and putting your hand near it's mouth, 9' away from the tree.

The choice to enter that circle was yours (his) and doing so while all dogs are going ballistic isn't the smartest thing to do.

I did count myself a bit fortunate in that his daughter totally agreed with my line of thinking (not that I ever discussed it with her... it just happened that what he told me she said, dovetailed with my thoughts)

Although in hindsight, I don't think he ever really thought about pursuing anything, I think if he HAD, his daughter rolling her eyes at his stupidity made him think twice.

What was so funny is, when the other guys were holding Hattie & petting her.....she was as calm as can be (like normal) and they were wondering where that 'bezerk' dog was.... imagine their surprise when he was told "you're holding her" lol

 

[NorTracNY]

Richard,
It's probably best just to live your life and hope others can do the same. Luckily it appears that the worker is doing that. Remember that ANYONE can sue ANYONE for ANYTHING. That doesn't mean they're in the right to do it or that they will win. Only the lawyers win.
Recently around here a local elected state official filed a lawsuit (actually claims his lawyer filed it and not him) against a contractor and a homeowner. He was tresspassing on property that had a house was being built on. The front door was locked so he went around back and found a basement door opened. He tried climbing a latter and fell hurting his knee. The homeowners didn't want to embarrass him, so they didn't press charges. The day after the statuite of limitations for tresspass were up, he filed the lawsuit. Anyone want to vote for this trash of a "human" being?

 

[bigtiller]

If a dog bites once, you can bet it will bite again. Unless it is my dog. I can't afford that kind of lialibility so it will be taking a long dirt nap just as soon as I can make it happen.

 

[beppington]

Fast forward another month or so... some of his workers were here and several of them were holding several of our dogs. One of them was holding Hattie in his arms and she was as quiet & peaceful as a churchmouse. As he was holding her, rubbing her head... he asked "which one of your dogs is the one that bit the Boss?"

My wife looked at him and said.... you're holding her

Alternate answer: Huh? What?

 

[nybirdman]

I think that most people that get bitten by a dog(that is normally docile) have and innate fear of dogs...and the dogs pick up on this.This fellow was showing his bravery while behind a glass door.Almost any dog is going to protect his home and owner..may not bite but be defensive.I had almost the same circumstance happen..a contractor(very good friend) entered our house while we were not home,the dog is an 80lb.German Short-hair..very protective
my friend didn't get bite but learned a lesson.

 

[beppington]

I felt a little more assured though (perhaps erroneously) given that the dogs were NOT running loose, but rather, all were on a leash and he entered THEIR circle.

I do see what you're saying, but I'm not sure how well the logic of an imaginary "no-fly-zone" circle holds up. First, if your dog is on a 10' leash you're holding, & he's behind you or off in some other direction, if I approach you from the front, how could I tell where the 10' circle is? Second, don't people generally assume dogs are safe & pleasant, such as you describe yours, unless actual signs, or the owner, or the dog's obvious barking/ growling indicate otherwise? So, how would they know to stay out of the circle, even if the circle's location was very obvious, unless you tell them? If you're standing there smiling, talking to me, but you're dog's barking, how do I know for sure whether or not I should come within the circle to talk to you at a reasonable say 5' distance?

I'm not sure a dog on a leash that bites somebody is really any different than a dog running free that bites somebody. In fact, if there was a difference, a**holes who actually want their dog to bite somebody would just put a leash on them & take them over by that person, & after say, "My dog's on a leash, nothing you can do about it."

Edit: I guess what I'm saying is that it's probably less risky to just assume people will do the wrong or dumb thing. Also to assume that you're dog will bite someone, even though you don't really wanna believe it.