Dog attacks on children are making more and more of an impact in the news. Yesterday, the Daily Mail reported on a story in Wales, where a 16-month-old girl was viciously attacked by a family dog. Medics said that the girl was lucky not to have lost as eye as the dog ripped into her face missing her eye socket by half an inch.
The family pet is believed to have attacked the child when she accidentally stepped onto its tail. The toddler needed 50 stitches to her face and had to under-go her first bout of facial surgery. Doctors said they think the scars on her face will heal because she is so young, but she will need to make regular visits to the hospital for checkups.
The dog that attacked her was a Cairn Terrier and the club that breeds the animal dubs it as ‘the best little pal in the world’. After the attack, the family pet was put down to prevent it attacking anyone else in the future.
Any dog attack that takes occur on anyone, whether it is an adult or a child, can be a traumatic time for any family. Children are especially vulnerable to dog attacks, because when stroking the animal they are unable to sense whether or not they are in danger. Adults can usually tell when an animal is becoming annoyed and will leave it alone; children may have little or no understanding of this.
Dogs can be extremely powerful animals, especially when they attack somebody. Their teeth are extremely sharp, so they can cause severe injury to their victims. A lot of people assume that it is the more dangerous breeds that attack, such as Pit-Bull and Rottweiler’s, however this isn’t the case. Any animal can turn on somebody, that’s why it is important that children are never left unsupervised when playing with them.
If you have been a victim to a dog attack you may be able to make a compensation claim. Children have up until their 21st birthday to make an injury compensation claim; however you can make a claim on their behalf before this.
