Two victims of dog attacks have recently received compensation for their injuries.

 

In the first incident, a ten-year-old girl was bitten on the arm by a dog when her father stopped to talk to its owner. The injury required surgery at the time and a further skin graft may be needed in the future. The dog’s owner, an off-duty policeman, was ordered to pay £2,000 in compensation. The dog was not, however, destroyed as a vet discovered that it was suffering from an irritating wound and also had a tumour in its ear. Magistrates did, however, order that the dog should be kept on a lead and muzzled when in public.

 

In the second incident, an American bulldog jumped up and bit a woman on the breast. The injury required emergency surgery. The dog’s owner was ordered to pay the victim £500 in compensation. The court heard evidence that the dog’s behaviour on this occasion was out of character and the judge decided that it was likely to have been an accident so did not order that the animal be destroyed.