Liability is extended to anyone who is a “keeper” of the dog, not just the owner. For example, if a hired dogwalker is walking a dog and the dog bites someone, the dogwalker can be held liable. We have one case where a client was injured by a dog that someone was supposedly taking care of for a few weeks while the owner was out of town. That made no difference – the person who is in control of the dog at the time of the injury is the person who will be held liable, even if that person does not technically own the dog. Also, there is no such thing as “one free bite”. A dog owner can be held liable even if the dog has never bitten anyone before.

Sometimes people blame themselves for getting bitten by a dog. These feelings are perfectly natural and understandable, but you should not give up on seeking compensation just because you tried to pet a dog you did not know, for example. If the dog bites someone, the owner is liable unless the person who was bitten was teasing or abusing the dog or was trespassing or committing some other violation of the law.

Most homeowners will have insurance for dog bite claims under their homeowners insurance policy. However, some insurance companies will put an exclusion in the policy to exclude coverage for dogs which tend to be more aggressive, such as pit bulls or rottweilers.

A dog owner can be held liable for injuries other than dog bites, such as when a dog knocks someone over and injures a person, or someone is injured while attempting to get away from an aggressive dog.
Our dog bite attorneys handle cases involving all type of injuries, including scarring and post-traumatic stress disorder, that are caused by dog bites or other injuries related to dogs

Our law firm has helped our clients recover the compensation they deserve for the following losses:

• Medical bills
• Loss of income, including loss of overtime pay
• Other 0ut of pocket expenses
• Pain and suffering
• Physical disability
• Permanent scars
• Emotional distress
• Mental anguish
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Loss of love and affection
• Embarrassment and humiliation
• Mental disability

Our dog bite lawyers have handled cases involving dog bites from Cape Cod to the Berkshires, and every place in between.

Being injured in a dog bite is a frightening and confusing experience. Your body may be flooded with a surge of adrenaline during and immediately after a dog bite, which can make it difficult to fully understand what happened. You might make irrational decisions or statements that could affect your legal rights.

To prevent this, here are some things you should do if you are ever bitten by a dog.

Assess your medical condition. If there is any question in your mind as to whether you need stitches or other medical attention, you probably do, so go to your local emergency room as soon as possible.

Be sure to get the name and address of whoever is responsible for the dog. You will want to contact the owner of the dog to make sure the dog has had all appropriate shots, including rabies shots. If you are able, take photographs of the dog, the location where the incident occurred, and of any injuries you sustained.

Contact an experienced dog bite lawyer as soon as possible. Many, many locations now have security cameras which may have recorded the incident. If you contact a lawyer quickly, we can immediately write to the property owner to require them to save any security camera videos before the video gets lost or recorded over.

All lawsuits for injuries caused by dog bites must be filed in court within three years of the date of the incident with the dog. However, it is always best to get an experienced dog bite lawyer involved in your case as soon as possible after a dog bite. Important evidence can be lost if an investigation of the accident is delayed.

You can find additional information on the laws relating to dogs , and a few recent examples of cases we have resolved for clients of ours that were bitten by dogs, here.