Dog bites and animal-related injuries
Learn which ownership, location, witness, medical, animal-control, insurance, and state-law questions may matter.
Situations this guide can help organize
- Bites on private or rental property
- Incidents in parks, sidewalks, or shared spaces
- Injuries involving a loose, handled, or working animal
What to do first
- Seek appropriate medical care and follow public-health instructions.
- Identify the owner or keeper and save animal-control or police report information.
- Photograph injuries and the location, and record witnesses and what happened immediately beforehand.
Evidence that may help explain what happened
Medical and vaccination-related records
Owner, keeper, and witness information
Animal-control, police, property, or insurance records
Photographs and reliable prior-incident information
Who may need to be investigated?
The owner or keeper is often central, while a landlord, property controller, employer, or another custodian may also be investigated. State statutes, local ordinances, prior knowledge, control, and insurance can matter.
Identifying a person or organization does not establish fault. Control, notice, conduct, causation, insurance, defenses, and the applicable jurisdiction require investigation.
Questions to ask Injury Law Firms
- Which current state and local rules apply?
- How will ownership, control, prior knowledge, and insurance be investigated?
- Does the firm handle disputed provocation or identification issues?
- Who would supervise the matter, and who would provide routine updates?
- How are fees and case expenses explained if the matter is unsuccessful?
General information only. This page does not calculate a deadline, determine responsibility, or predict an outcome.