Even people who love and own dogs should be able to appreciate Connecticut’s laws protecting victims of an animal attack. The state’s statutes require that dogs known to be aggressive should be properly restrained so as to prevent dog bite injuries to innocent persons. A serious injury can happen in seconds and have a lifelong impact on anyone involved.
Last fall, a West Haven woman became yet another victim of a dog bite when she was in the midst of being a good neighbor. While enjoying a day working in her garden, the 70-plus-year-old woman offered to share some of her tomato crop with her next-door neighbor. While handing the fruit to the neighbor, the neighbor’s dog attacked her hand.
The gardening neighbor has since endured a painful surgery that included a skin graft from her thigh as well as multiple rabies shots to guard against additional problems. Despite the surgery, she experiences some ongoing loss of function and numb sensation in her hand near the surgical site and in her thumb. The animal bite injury was inflicted by a boxer who was approximately two years old at the time. The dog has remained living next door to the woman it bit. A lawsuit in the case did emerge and was recently settled with the order for a $250,000 award.
This case is just one more reminder of how serious a single bite from a dog can really be. Dog owners are tasked with keeping people safe from these incidents. Anyone who has been hurt by someone else’s dog might wish to talk to an attorney to see what compensation may be available for their pain and suffering.
