Who is in fault the dog owner of victim of dogbite?

Question

A family friend and my family were in the garage talking and hanging out when the little daughter of our friend who is 4 years old walks in the house unattended and while our dog was eating she grabbed our dog and he bit her in the face. She required 2 stitches and had some scratches left on her face. Would it be our fault in law if she tries to sue us? The dog wasn't familiar with the little girl and her mother clearly wasn't paying attention! Let me know!

Answer 1

The dog owner would be responsible.... my hubby's best friend is facing 90 days in jail for a dog bite plus fines and the dog went bye bye

Answer 2

Pay for her medical bills and don't blame the dog or the child. Responsibility lies in the parents and the dog owner. Usually the dog owner but that can be argued.    You can also teach your dog not to bite when eating it's food.

Answer 3

That is tough. It really could go either way. You are responsible for your dog, as much as they are for their child. A judge would say that you should not have a "vicious" animal around children, but your argument would be that your dog isn't vicious and it was not around this child until the mother neglected to watch her child. Good Luck

Answer 4

The dog's owner is at fault.  In the eyes of the law, an animal is piece of property.  If your car rolled down a hill and ran over someones mailbox, even though you were no where near the car, it's the same thing.  Your property hurt another human being.  In some states, they will require you to put an animal down if it draws blood, ever.  While the attack was provoked by the 4 year old, you are still legally liable, at least for her medical bills.  As far as getting a large settlement in court- with the facts as you presented them, I don't see anyone holding you accountable for anything more than medical bills.

Answer 5

I don't think you can be held responsible for a dog biting under those circumstances.  How could you ever expect to protect yourself if 'trespassers' (technically thats what the child was doing) can't be bitten by your dog in your house.

Answer 6

If, as you say, the girl's mother wasn't around, then you cannot be blamed...especially if the dog was INSIDE the house...if he wasn't, however, you could take part of the blame. But otherwise, you should be fine.

Answer 7

i'm pretty sure your are liable however you homeowners or renters insurnce would pay for----all medical bills plus pain and suffering

Answer 8

If the daughter just walked into your house without her parents being there then you are not at fault.  Her parent wasn't watching closely & you had your dog in your home.  

However, if mom was there & daughter came in then you have basically invited them & you could be liable.  If you have company & your pet hurts someone you can be sued because you didn't protect your guests.

Answer 9

kinda like a car hitting a pedestrian. always the car's fault.

talk to your ins agent right away.

Answer 10

Well, in this situation, it is the parent's fault-but it happened on your real estate and involved your personal property-the dog.  Depending on what kind of dog you have, I am pretty sure that a judge would find you liable.  

Your homeowners insurance should cover part of the legal/medical expenses, but your premiums will increase.

In my opinion, the classiest and least expensive way to keep this matter out of the court and insurance system is to offer to pay the child's medical expenses.  This will be cheaper in the long run AND will preserve your friendship.  

A little goodwill goes a long way.

Unless you don't care whether or not the friendship sours or are concerned with the fallout of the legal battle:

attorney's fees that you may have to borrow for

other lost friendships

negative things once held in confidence aired out in the community....

............................etc.....

It is best to take the high road and offer to pay medical expenses for the child.

Answer 11

Wow, that's a tough one. My opinion is that no one can be assigned fault. A 4 year old does not understand dogs and dogs are not expected to go against thier inner instincts. I hope no litigation ever becomes involved. It looks like everyone has learned thier lesson.

Answer 12

Well I don't know where you live, but in Ontario the dog owner would be liable under The Dog Owner's Liability Act and the property owner would be liable under The Occupiers' Liability Act.  Although you could counterclaim against the other parents if it came down to a suit.

Answer 13

You are at fault. Your house  your dog  no matter what you had company you should have put the dog's food somewhere where he could eat without disturbance. Plus the girl was 4 she didn't know any better . You did. Home owners Ins? I work for a lawyer  you will be responsible  Pay the hospital bill, if she scars  you will be paying for the plastic surgery.Depends on the parents of the child if they sue, but like I said your home, YOU should have taken precaution.

Answer 14

Yes, you would be at fault. Your house, your dog. Obviously you were not paying attention to the child either. Could be covered under Homeowners Insurance.

Answer 15

Hope this helps  (written by a Canadian lawyer quoting case law) ... "For purposes of liability for harm other than trespass, the law distinguishes between domesticated and wild animals. The keeper of domesticated animals, which include dogs, cats, cattle, sheep, and horses, is strictly liable for the harm they cause only if the keeper had actual knowledge that the animal had the particular trait or propensity that caused the harm. The trait must be a potentially harmful one, and the harm must correspond to the knowledge. In the case of dogs, however, some jurisdictions have enacted statutes that impose absolute liability for dog bites without requiring knowledge of the dog's viciousness."

Answer 16

I think that if she tries to sue you that it would be unsuccessful, but it probably depends on who hears the case.  Key factors in this are that the dog was contained inside the house, on your property, not roaming free outside, and that the mother was not paying attention.  If you were not babysitting or something like that, her child is her responsibility.  You had everyone outside and the dog contained away from the crowd.  It was her own negligence that allowed her child to come in harms way.  In order to preserve good relations, if she brings the issue up, you could offer to pay half of the costs not covered by insurance, but I would think that the blame lies on her side.