[Anonymous]

Hi everyone,

Completely unrelated to house buying but maybe someone can help.
Our little boy was attacked and badly bitten by a dog yesterday, which will result in a scar on the front of his head and his ear. Our son seems remarkably undamaged emotionally by the experience or is just not remembering what happened as he keeps saying he was not bitten by anything! Not so sure I can say the same for myself or my 7 yr old…

We were told by the hospital that as it is counted as an act of aggression, it will be reported to the courts and police…but does anyone know what happens next…can we ask that the dog is put down or is the owner just fined?

Any thoughts..

Thanks

Heather

[Anonymous]

A friend was denounced in 2006 when her dog knocked somebody over (no aggression, just a big dog and an accident!). About 9 months later it got to court: there was a prosecution and a defence, statements etc and they were fined about 600€ (to supposedly cover loss of earnings and damage to clothing).
With regards to a dog bite I guess it would be more seriously looked at but will probably take into account any previous, type of dog, whether the dog was on a lead and should have been muzzled etc. Hope your son is ok.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, looking at the new law, I guess at least the dog will now have to be registered as a “dangerous” dog..it may already fall in that catergory as was almost as tall as my son, who is just over a metre and so should be chipped. I know the dog is not. It happened in the owners garden, the dog had showed no previous aggression and they obviously felt it was Ok loose with small kids around before the attack.

Joseph is OK, quite happily told his granddad that a big dog made a hole in his head, he will be scarred and is completely terrified of Drs, hospitals etc so it will be fun getting the staples removed!!

As it gets automatically reported, do we still need to make a denuncia or what..and how do we..its difficult as its my friends family dog but as it attacked unprovoked (I was standing next to my son watching him closely and know he stroked it gently just before it attacked) we have no choice but to take it further incase it attacks again and the victim is not so lucky…

[Anonymous]

I would guess that you will need to make a denuncia as well but don’t know for sure I’m afraid…I think the Spanish would! It would be done at the Guardia Civil.
It’s a difficult situation for you/them – one out-of-character bite doesn’t necessarily make a dog “dangerous” esp. if the dog is on its “own territory”. IMHO NO dog is 100% trustworthy with non-family members esp. children. My own dog has bitten (mostly me!) and so is always muzzled when we have visitors and locked outside if the visitors are children. I guess you need to ask yourself, would you be able to live with the possible consequence that a family pet is destroyed (as well as the friendship, no doubt)? What do your friends have to say about it all?
ps I believe it is the law that ALL dogs are chipped anyway.

[Anonymous]

..or did you mean that your son should be chipped? 😉

[Anonymous]

According to the new laws, any attack on another dog or human automatically classes a dog as potentially dangerous and you have to follow certain procedures such as the dog can only be walked on a 1m lead. has to be muzzled etc etc.

Sorry but my 4 yr old is left scarred for life / facing plastic surgery and my daughter traumatised by the whole thing so its not a hard choice…

In the UK the dog would be automatically put down, I think it is more likely that they will just be fined and the dog classified as potentially dangerous..

[Anonymous]

Hi..Sorry Heather about your son..I hope your neighbour sees sense and puts the dog down…I love dogs but if I had “that” dog i definately would put it down…I was talking tonight about our pool man (jobs worth)…….. tonight ..he brings his german shepherd dog with him to lock the pool gates but first terrorises the children to get them out the pool…he left his dog tied up anattended while he locked the gates at the other end of the pool…a small girl was annoying the dog…if that dog had got loose she surely would have been bitten or even killed she was so tiny…ok the parents should not let their kids in the pool alone at 10 oclock or any other time..but the pool man shouldnt leave his dog tied up alone…..an accident waiting to happen.. my son spoke to the “eejit” but he believes he has the right to do this…

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