Dog bite

iwannanicerlife

My daughter was bitten by a dog in a local park at the weekend. The dog owner did not give her any of his details (nor check to see if she was ok:mad:).

It was a minor bite, but we had her checked at minor injuries as the skin had been broken. It was cleaned and we were given a prescription for antibiotics if needed in case of any infection.

I've since been told that dog bites should be reported to the police - does anyone know if this is correct? We don't have any details regarding the owner ......

elsien

On a practical level there's little the police can do if you don't have the owner's details, however I would still report it because if it's a dog that's regularly out of control it may be something that they're already aware of and monitoring.

Guest101

The council is best placed to deal with this in the first instance. As the dog wardens and CEOs are much more visible in these areas.


There is no 'should' or 'should not' be reported. It's a crime, whether you report it or not is upto you (or your daughter), I would, as next time the victim may not be so lucky.

Detroit

There's nothing on the gov website to say you should report it to the police. If it was a legal requirement it would be on there.

The advice that you should inform the police usually comes from PI firms as they see it as strengthening the case.

Agree that without knowing the owners details it won't get far with the police.
However, you could make your local council aware, they have dog wardens and may check there's not a stray loose in the park.

Edit: cross posted with Guest.

ka7e

I would report to the local Dog Warden and the police. They may both be aware of other incidents involving the dog and might already have had dealings with the owner. It is possible the dog is known for dog-on-dog attacks and it has now escalated. If the dog/owner is already known to them, a description will be helpful.

Sicard

It's a good idea to also have a tetanus jab if not up to date.

Nicki

I'd report it because the fact the owner didn't give their details and didn't check how your daughter was would make me suspect the dog has bitten before and he is trying to avoid having action taken about it.

Even if it hasn't, if the animal bites again the two reports could be matched up. The worst that can happen is that nothing can be done, but the best is that you help stop some other child or vulnerable person suffering a nasty injury. I am afraid I have no tolerance at all with dogs who make unprovoked attacks and irresponsible owners who don't muzzle their dogs when they know they have unpredictable temperaments. There is a woman who lives near us who has told my kids not to play in the park when she is exercising her dog because he may bite them but takes no steps to either muzzle it or train it :mad:

sheramber

How many times , when a dog injures a person, or worse, do we read that the neighbours have had concerns about the dog.

For the sake of who it might bite next please report it.

sooty&sweep

Hi

There is a section on the .gov website titled Controlling your dog in public. It says on there you can report to the police or dog warden.

It also says that's it's against the law under the dangerous dogs act to allow your dog to be dangerously out of control in a public place. If found guilty you can be fined or 6 month prison sentence & or the dog destroyed.

Personally I would report to both

Jen

iwannanicerlife

Thanks for all the advice. I popped into our local police station and had a chat with the lady on the desk. She said without a name or details there wasn't much they could do, but she was concerned at the man's reaction afterwards - not checking if my daughter was ok or putting the dog onto a lead.

chesky

At the very least your daughter could describe both the dog and its owner which might well assist with any future incidents of a similar nature.