Dogs make excellent companions and can even perform emotional or physical support for people with disabilities. Unfortunately, without proper training and restraint, a dog can be as dangerous as it might be beneficial.
Taking your pet to a dog park can be a fun summertime experience for the whole family. There are some people who even go to dog parks when they don’t own an animal themselves because they want to interact with other people’s pets. Unfortunately, not every dog that visits the dog park or other public spaces in Ohio will know how to behave around people. Some of them could become violent.
Aggressive dogs can leave physical and emotional scars
What starts out as a fun excursion can become deeply traumatizing if an unleashed dog at the park attacks a member of your family or even your pet. When a dog attacks a person, it can cause disfiguring or even fatal wounds. A person trying to intervene in an altercation between canines could also suffer serious injuries.
The physical wounds will likely require expensive medical care. Victims may also require therapy or counseling due to trauma after a dog bite attack. The cost of getting the care you need when a dog turns vicious could be thousands of dollars — and that’s a huge burden on almost any family.
Owners are responsible for their animals
Ohio has a strict liability statute for dog bites. Unless the person attacked was in the process of committing a crime or trespassing on someone’s property at the time of the attack, the owner is responsible for any injuries and property damage their animal causes.
Most people won’t just write you a check if their dog hurts you. Filing an insurance claim or a civil lawsuit may be necessary for those affected by a dog bite attack.
