One major concern that many dog owners have is a dog attack. While proper dog training should minimize the risk of this happening, the reality is, it still can.
As a dog owner, there is a responsibility to ensure that others are protected from a potential attack by your dog. If someone is attacked, this can lead to huge consequences for owners.
Today we’re going to talk about the best safety tips to help prevent an attack from happening and your liability of dog attacks as a dog owner.
4 Safety Tips to Avoid a Dog Attack
First, it’s important to incorporate the best safety tips to minimize the chance of an attack happening. For this reason, we’re going to provide owners with 4 safety tips you can begin following today.
GPS Dog Fence
A GPS Dog Fence is a great way to establish boundaries for your dog that can ultimately prevent a dog attack. A GPS Dog Fence creates pre-defined positions that help you determine the size of your dog’s fence, which can be tailored to what you prefer.
Essentially, the fence relies on satellite navigation system technology to create boundaries right from your phone. But how does the GPS Dog Fence actually work?
The fence works with your dog’s collar. When you let your dog out, the collar will alert your dog that he or she is going too close to the barrier set by you. If the dog continues to get close to the barrier, it will warn the dog. The warning might include a loud noise or vibration.
Dog Training
Dog training is a very important step to prevent a dog attack. Many owners believe that dog training should happen when they first get their dog, but it’s actually important to give your dog training throughout their life.
Continuous training will help reinforce what they’ve learned and essentially keep them disciplined. The more training your dog retains, the less likely it will be to attack someone.
Socialize Your Dog
Another great safety tip is to socialize your dog. Veterinarians suggest that owners begin to do this at a young age. In fact, owners should socialize their dogs when they are pups and continue on with this practice throughout their life.
Socializing is a great way to get your dog comfortable with different people and environments, which can help prevent them from acting impulsively and potentially attacking someone.
Through socialization, your dog will meet and interact with different types of people in positive situations. They might interact with children, elderly individuals, and individuals that are disabled.
Along with people, it is important that your dog is introduced to potentially stressful situations that might make them act out of character. For instance, slowly expose your dog to other animals, loud noises, big machines, and any other situation that you believe will cause your dog fear.
Learn Your Dog’s Body Language
One last safety tip that we’d like to discuss is learning your dog’s body language. The better you know your dog, the more likely you will be able to spot and diffuse a potentially dangerous situation.
Your dog will react differently to their settings, and it’s important to pay attention to their response in each new environment they are in.
With that said, if you notice that aggression is building up in your dog when they are around people, it’s important to quickly calm your dog or leave the environment immediately. Essentially, knowing your dog’s body language serves as a great indicator of what’s to come, giving you time to handle the situation appropriately.
Is the Owner Liable for a Dog Attack?
The short answer is mostly yes. As the owner, you are liable for attacks made by your dog. However, dog liability is a little more complex than this and it’s important that owners educate themselves on their responsibility.
A dog owner will be made liable for an injury caused by their dog in certain situations. For instance, if you know that your dog tends to cause injury to others, you are responsible.
On the other hand, some dog owners will be made liable regardless of whether they knew their dog had a tendency to cause injury or not depending on the state statute.
With that said, there are three types of laws that place liability on the owner. It’s essential that owners make themselves aware of these laws to assess their liability. These laws include the dog-bite statute, “one-bite” rule, and negligence laws.
Dog-bite Statute: This law states the dog owner is automatically liable for any injury or property damages caused by their dog, even without incitement.
“One-bite” Rule: This law states that the owner will not be liable in the event it was the dog’s first bite. However, if the dog starts exhibiting vicious behavior, it is possible for the owner to be held liable.
It’s important to note that some states are moving away from this rule and are following the dog-bite statute.
Negligence Laws: This law states that an owner is held liable for any injury inflicted by their dog if it is found that the owner was careless in controlling their pet before the attack happened.
Take a Proactive Approach to Dog Attacks
Dog owners have a lot of responsibility when it comes to dog attacks. But with the proper measures in place, owners can protect others around them by reducing the risk of a dog attack.
With that said, be sure that your dog has received their initial dog training as well as continuous training to reinforce positive behavior. In addition to this, it’s a good idea to invest in a GPS Dog Fence that enables owners to set important boundaries for their dogs.
It’s also important to socialize your dog to get them acclimated to different types of people and settings that can be stressful for them. Lastly, it’s important to learn your dog’s body language to understand when your dog is becoming aggressive, giving you time to diffuse the situation before it occurs.
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