As unfortunate as this may sound, not all dogs are the furry and loving friends that you think. Over 500,000 people are bitten by dogs in Canada every year and there is nothing that you could adequately do in order to be prepared for an attack of the kind. Regardless of whether it was an aggressive dog or you incentivized the attack, the mental and emotional trauma as well as the injuries in some cases could have lifelong consequences.
However, you should be well aware of the fact that timely and immediate reaction is particularly important after you have been bitten by a dog. Here are the things that you need to do immediately after the attack:
1. Seek out medical attention.
This is by far the most important thing that you should take into consideration, especially if you are bleeding. Call for emergency assistance and don’t be afraid or shy to go to the emergency room. Dogs carry diseases and you should make sure that your injury has been treated and you have been vaccinated quickly and properly.
2. Seek out the owner.
This isn’t always particularly easy but it’s something that you should do. Under the Dog Owner’s Liability act, he is the person who is going to be deemed liable for the damages you’ve incurred and that’s something you should account for.
3. Report the attack to the authorities.
Animal control is going to create a report for a vicious dog and this is going to help you identify the owner, if you haven’t already. This is particularly important. The local authorities are going to go through the process of thoroughly collecting the dog and they will also file a report against its owner. This is going to help your case significantly.
4. Get witnesses
If there was someone who witnessed the attack, you should ask him to assist you by providing his testimonials. Get his number and contact information and let him know that he will be contacted for further help.
These are the absolutely mandatory steps that you should consider if you have been involved in a dog bite accident. This is something particularly troublesome and you should make sure that everything is handled with the greatest care. If you want to get compensated for everything, you should ensure that protocol is followed properly so that you have all the right merit in court later on. What is more, this is going to help you get better quickly and it’s going to speed up the entire procedure in order not to waste a lot of time on it. That’s something very important and it is going to be overly beneficial. It helps to have a good personal injury lawyer in your corner so whether the settlement is done out of court or after a trial, your rights and interests are protected.
