Dog bite

Dog bite
Dog biting a training sleeve
Specialty

A dog bite is a bite upon a person or other animal by a dog. More than one successive bite is often called a dog attack, although dog attacks can include knock-downs and scratches. Though some dog bites do not result in injury, they can result in infection, disfigurement, temporary or permanent disability, or death. Another type of dog bite is the "soft bite" displayed by well-trained dogs, by puppies, and in non-aggressive play.[1] Dog bites can occur during dog fighting, as a response to mistreatment, by trained dogs working as guard, police or military animals, or during a random encounter.[2][3]

There is debate on whether or not certain breeds of dogs are inherently more prone to commit attacks causing serious injury (i.e., so driven by instinct and breeding that, under certain circumstances, they are exceedingly likely to attempt or commit dangerous attacks).[4] It is recognized that the risk of dog bites can be increased by human actions such as abuse or bite training, or through inaction such as neglect, carelessness in confinement or lack of control.

Significant dog bites affect tens of millions of people globally each year.[5] It is estimated that 2% of the U.S. population, 4.5–4.7 million people, are bitten by dogs each year.[6] Most bites occur in children,[7] with nearly half of all children in the U.S. being bitten by a dog at least once by the age of 12.[8] In the 1980s and 1990s, the U.S. averaged 17 deaths per year.[9] Between 2011 and 2021 approximately 468 people were killed by dog bites in the United States, averaging 43 deaths per year.[10] Between 2018 and 2021, deaths were more than doubled for both males (age 15 to 37) and females (age 20 to 44).[11] Animal bites, most of which are from dogs, are the reason for 1% of visits to emergency departments in the United States.[7]

  1. ^ "Reinforce Your Dog's Bite Inhibition". www.whole-dog-journal.com. 12 May 2010. Archived from the original on 26 June 2018. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
  2. ^ Weiss, Linda S. (2001). "Breed-Specific Legislation in the United States". Animal Legal & Historical Center. Michigan State University. Archived from the original on 24 January 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  3. ^ Tulloch, John S. P.; Owczarczak-Garstecka, Sara C.; Fleming, Kate M.; Vivancos, Roberto; Westgarth, Carri (19 January 2021). "English hospital episode data analysis (1998–2018) reveal that the rise in dog bite hospital admissions is driven by adult cases". Scientific Reports. 11 (1): 1767. Bibcode:2021NatSR..11.1767T. doi:10.1038/s41598-021-81527-7. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 7815787. PMID 33469116.
  4. ^ "The dangerous dog debate | American Veterinary Medical Association". American Veterinary Medical Association. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  5. ^ "Animal bites Fact sheet N°373". World Health Organization. February 2013. Archived from the original on 4 May 2015. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  6. ^ "Dog Bite Prevention". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Archived from the original on 1 May 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  7. ^ a b Ellis, R; Ellis, C (2014). "Dog and cat bites". American Family Physician. 90 (4): 239–43. PMID 25250997. Archived from the original on 6 September 2019. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  8. ^ Anderson, Brian C. (Spring 1999). "Scared of Pit Bulls? You'd Better Be!". City-Journal. New York City, New York: Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. Archived from the original on 11 May 2023. Incredibly, nearly half of all American kids have been bitten by the age of 12.
  9. ^ Sacks, Jeffrey J; Sinclair, Leslie; Gilchrist, Julie; Golab, Gail C; Lockwood, Randall (2000). "Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998" (PDF). Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. 217 (6): 836–840. doi:10.2460/javma.2000.217.836. PMID 10997153. S2CID 10817039. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 April 2015.
  10. ^ "Dog Bite Prevention". Center for Disease Control. 8 September 2023. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  11. ^ CDCMMWR (2023). "QuickStats: Number of Deaths Resulting from Being Bitten or Struck by a Dog, by Sex — National Vital Statistics System, United States, 2011–2021". MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. 72 (36): 999. doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm7236a6. ISSN 0149-2195. PMC 10495186. PMID 37676834.