Occasionally, a pet dog or a stray will wander through a park and attack. In unprovoked attacks, a mixture of genetics and lack of training can quickly lead to a bad situation. If you suffer an attack in an Alabama park, knowing what to do afterwards can help you understand your and protect your right to legal compensation.
What to Do Immediately After an Attack
In public spaces, dogs may run away as soon as they finish the attack, making identification difficult. The owner may or may not witness the attack. Take these steps immediately after the bite:
- Get to safety and dress the wound. Clean all dog bites thoroughly with an antiseptic solution and use an antibiotic ointment until you can visit a medical facility.
- Seek medical attention. You may need stitches or surgery after a serious dog bite. Call 911 for serious injuries. Go to the doctor even if you only see a few superficial marks on your arm. Let the physician know about the bite, and follow all clinical recommendations for aftercare. Dog bites can lead to tetanus, a dangerous bacterial disease. You may also need a rabies vaccination if you cannot determine the dog’s medical history.
- Call animal control. If the dog or dogs ran away after the attack, reach out to animal control to alert local authorities about the aggressive dog.
- Write down everything you remember about the attack. Dog attacks happen quickly. Take some time to write down the animal’s coloring, relative size, possible breeds, and what happened. Note the presence of pet owners or witnesses. If you can safely do so, take pictures of the area where the attack occurred and write down the names of any witnesses to the attack.
- Contact an attorney. If you experienced a serious bite or suffered harm as the result of the attack, consider speaking to a personal injury attorney about your options. Under Alabama laws, you may recover compensation for your losses in certain cases.
Understanding Alabama Dog Bite Laws
Under Alabama’s dog bite laws, plaintiffs may only pursue dog bite claims if the injured individual can prove he or she did not provoke the dog, was not trespassing, and that the bite occurred on the owner’s property or as the result of a chase from the owner’s property. In parks other public spaces, this law would not apply. Instead, an injured individual may file a negligence based claim against the dog’s owner.
In negligence based claims, a plaintiff must prove more than ownership and location to recover damages. These cases rely on an owner’s act of negligence. Possible acts of negligence might include failure to follow local animal laws or failure to reasonably control a dog with a history of aggression. Many areas in Alabama enforce breed specific statutes. Simply owning a “known aggressive” dog under the laws may constitute negligence.
Alabama uses a mixture of strict liability and one bite law approaches to further determine liability. If the dog’s owner had reasonable knowledge of the dog’s aggressive tendencies, the courts may find him or her strictly liable for both associated injury costs and punitive damages. If the dog’s owner did not know about the dog’s tendencies, the courts will only hold the owner liable for injury costs associated with the act of negligence.
Seeking Legal Support After a Dog Bite Claim
The laws surrounding public dog attacks can be confusing, particularly in the wake of a serious dog attack. Talk to an experienced dog bite attorney to understand the laws that may apply in your case. A park should never feel like an unsafe place to visit. Taking civil action against reckless owners will not only support your ability to recover, it may also prevent future incidents from occurring.
