Jacksonville Injury Lawyer Blog

As a Jacksonville dog bite attorney I have represented many victims of Jacksonville dog attacks. The following story illustrates why dogs and infants don’t mix.

A pit bull mix that fatally mauled a 7-day-old baby in Pasco County has been euthanized.

Officials say the animal was put down Thursday afternoon. The 50-pound dog reportedly left more than 50 puncture wounds in Thomas Carter Jr. during Wednesday’s attack. The baby’s mother, 16-year-old Nicole Koezeno, woke up when a friend stopped by the family’s home and found the bloody infant. She had been sleeping in the same bedroom with the baby but reportedly did not hear the attack.

When animal control officers responded to the home, the pit bull mix was fighting with another dog.

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating the attack.

Pasco Animal Services officials say they are not planning to cite the infant’s parents. Many in the media are calling for the arrest of the parents. I imagine that the loss of a child would be enough punishment. If you or a loved is the victim of a Jacksonville dog bite make sure to call an experience Jacksonville dog bite attorney.

If you are a victim of a Jacksonville dog bite or Jacksonville dog attack the first thing you may ask yourself is do I need a rabies shot. The answer is probably not. Rabies is uncommon in dogs and cats in the United States. If a dog or cat that bit you appeared to be healthy at the time of the bite, it’s unlikely that the animal had rabies. However, it’s a good idea to take some precautions if you’re bitten by a dog or cat.

If you know the owner of the dog or cat that bit you, ask for the pet’s vaccination record (record of shots). An animal that appears healthy and has been vaccinated should still be quarantined (kept away from people and other animals) for 10 days to make sure it doesn’t start showing signs of rabies. If the animal gets sick during the 10-day period, a veterinarian will test it for rabies. If the animal does have rabies, you will need to get a series of rabies shots (see below).

If the animal is a stray or you can’t find the owner of the dog or cat that bit you, call the animal control agency or health department in your area. They will try to find the animal so it can be tested for rabies.

If the animal control agency or health department can’t find the animal that bit you, if the animal shows signs of rabies after the bite or if a test shows that the animal has rabies, your doctor will probably want you to get a series of rabies shots (also called post-exposure prophylaxis). You need to get the first shot as soon as possible after the bite occurs. After you receive the first shot, your doctor will give you 5 more shots over a 28-day period. If you or your child has been the victim of a Jacksonville dog bite or Jacksonville animal attack please call the Law Offices of Henry E. Gare at (904) 387-6101.

Jacksonville dog bite answers: Who Is Liable: Owners and Keepers
The informative website doglaw.hugpug.com has the following helpful information-
Usually, a dog’s owner is legally responsible for damage or injury the dog causes. But someone else may also be liable, if any of the following is true:

Someone besides the owner was taking care of and had control over the dog.
The dog’s owner is less than 18 years old.
The owner’s landlord knew the dog was dangerous but didn’t do anything about it.
The dog was on someone else’s property, and that person was negligent in not removing the dog.
Under the common law (discussed above), someone who harbors or keeps a dog is just as liable as the legal owner of a dog if the dog causes injury. Many state dog-bite laws also make the “owner or keeper” of a dog liable for damage or injury the dog causes.

Keepers and Harborers
A “keeper” is someone with care, custody, and control of a dog.46 A Minnesota court put it this way:

Harboring or keeping a dog means something more than a meal of mercy to a stray dog or the casual presence of a dog on someone’s premises. Harboring means to afford lodging, to shelter or to give refuge to a dog. Keeping a dog … implies more than the mere harboring of the dog for a limited purpose or time. One becomes the keeper of a dog only when he either with or without the owner’s permission undertakes to manage, control or care for it as dog owners in general are accustomed to do.47 If or a loved one has been the victim of a Jacksonville dog bite and you need answers call the Law Office of Henry Gare at (904) 387-6101 seven days a week.

Jacksonville dog bite answers: In Florida dog owners are strictly liable to the victim for dog bite injuries, regardless of the former viciousness of such dog or the owner’s knowledge of such viciousness . In addition, dog owners are strictly liable for any damage or injuries caused by the actions of their dogs - bites are not required. This type of law is known as “strict liability”, or liability without fault.

In most Jacksonville dog bite cases, the animal’s owner will be required to pay of the damages caused by the dog attack. Sometimes, however, the dog’s “keeper,” or the person who was taking care of the animal at the time of the attack, may also be held liable. Also in limited circumstances, a landlord may be held liable for the damages caused by his tenants’ dog.

If a dog causes injury, the owner (or in some cases, the keeper or landlord) may be liable for the following damages:
all past and future medical expenses
all past lost wages and any future loss of earning capacity
all past and future pain and mental suffering
damages for all scarring
property damage
The medical expenses associated with a dog bite can be extremely costly, especially in the event of a scarring injury. Scars can be a serious, life-long result of a dog bite. Children, because of their size, are particularly susceptible to bites around the head and face. Scarring injuries not only cause physical problems, but can also cause long term emotional trauma, requiring a significant amount of psychological counseling. If you or a loved one has been the victim of a Jacksonville dog bite be sure to call an experienced Jacksonville dog bite lawyer.

Young children are at the greatest risk for Jacksonville dog bites in the summer and are especially vulnerable to severe bites in the head and neck areas, say researchers who analyzed 84 cases of dog bites in children.

It’s not clear why children are more likely to suffer dog bite injuries in the summer, but it may be because children spend more time outdoors playing with dogs in warmer months, the researchers suggested. Or it may be that dogs are generally more irritable in hot weather.

The study found that 27 percent of dog bite injuries were caused by family pets. The most common sites of bites to the head and neck were the cheeks (34 percent), lips (21 percent), and nose and ears (both 8 percent). Sixty-four percent of the children suffered dog bite wounds in more than one location, and the average wound size was 7.15 centimeters.  Parents should teach children to not scream and run around strange dogs.  If a child is confronted by an aggressive dog they should stand like a tree.  Children should also be taught to never bother a dog while it is eating, sleeping or tending to it’s puppies.  If you or a loved one has been the victim of a Jacksonville dog attack contact the Law Offices of Henry Gare at (904) 387-6101.