Sorry roommates but I need to vent. My 7 year old son was bitten by my next door neighbor’s dog. This dog runs loose ALL the time. Finally it happened my son and the other kids were playing outside and the stupid animal bit him. I t was not a completely vicious attack and he’s fine…thank god. But it did break the skin and leave a mark. We contacted the authorities regarding the bite since the dog runs loose and have come to find out the dogs rabies vaccination expired in March. I am so pissed now, I don’t believe the dog to be rabid, but now my son has to endure rabies shots because of thier stupidity. Has anyone had to undergo these shots? If so how bad are they really? I know they aren’t done in the stomach anymore, but that’s all I know besides they cost a fortune. We’ve already contacted an attorney and intend to take them court for shots, pain and suffering, and a freaking fence to keep thier demon dog out of our yard and away from us. Sorry to be such a dark cloud but the thought of telling my son he has to have rabies shots sickens me. :mad:
Hell, I’d have the dog put down and checked for rabies. That way you can rest assured that the dog didn’t have rabies and the kid wont have to get the shots. That’ll teach the neighbors.
I’d love too. The animal control officer is actually letting the neighbors quarantine the dog at thier house. Which means they basically let it run loose. I’d have someone shoot it but I’d be afraid they’d shoot my dogs. I can’t wait to get them to court.
Small claims is the way to go. Present the judge with your rabies bill and the police report, and you’ll have your judgment in five minutes. You don’t even need a lawyer.
The shots aren’t bad. The disease is bad. If the dog has ever bitten before, you probably can have it put down to check, that won’t garantee your son won’t have the shots. The dog’s head has to be sent to a state lab, and it may take a couple weeks for the results.
Off to the Pit!
If you see the dog running loose even one time during the 10-day quarantine period, notify your animal control or sheriff department immediately, and demand that the dog be quarantined at the animal shelter or a vet’s office. As I understand it, your son only has to undergo shots if the dogs shows symptoms of rabies during or at the end of the 10-day quarantine period. Quarantine is required in California whether or not a dog had his vaccination, IIRC. A dog running loose is not legally quarantined, and if the dog disappears during that time, there’s no proof that he didn’t show symptoms. In that case your son would have to undergo the shots.
If the dog is fine at the end of the ten days, your son probably does not have to take the shots. You may still opt for him to. Rabies is a horrible, deadly disease. If the dog does show symptoms, it should be euthanized and have its brain sent in for testing.
If the dog passes quarantine, and your son turns out fine, I would still make a big fuss with animal control about an aggressive dog running loose. Call them every time you see it out. That is not acceptable.
Julie (former California Animal Control Officer)
Thanks so much everyone, especially Julie. I just had a fence company come out so we can furnish our attorney with an estimate as part of our claim. I am an animal lover so it’s hard for me to be a heavy in a case like this, honestly if it wasn’t my child I would’ve probably given up. After hearing all of you I feel much better about it all. You can never be too careful with your children and I love mine to pieces. I think people not animals should have to be licensed. Animals aren’t usually a problem it’s the people that let them run loose that should be quarantined. But I am off my soapbox now and off to see my attorney. They will be shaking in thier boots ;).
Help me out here. Are you thinking that a judge will throw in the price of a fence for your property as part of his judgement? If so, can you please explain your logic?
Your neighbor’s responsibility is to keep their dog confined or restrained. Building you a fence, however, is certainly not their problem. If the dog is allowed to run loose in the future, there are ways to handle that.
Care to elaborate on what other things you are including in your claim? I’m curious. Also, what kind of dog was it? Please tell me it was not a pit bull…
We are entitled to claim up to $5,000 in small claims court for medical expenses, pain and suffering etc. The fence theory goes as follows we keep our dogs leashed in our yard because we’re responsible. We also installed an underground pet fence 2 weeks ago at our expense, but that won’t protect our property or family so why should we pay more money simply to keep thier dog off our property? Vermont is a screwed up state when it comes to this sort of thing, there isn’t an animal control office, and our options are limited. I refuse to sink to a lower level and shoot the dog as most people in the area would do as I have dogs and I’d hate to have them retaliate. I really tried to be a good neighbor and be patient with them, we are quiet and mind our own business, but there’s a line when you have to be the bad guy. The dog’s not only a threat to my son, but it’s also bitten my dogs in my own yard and I’ve leashed it and taken it home. The dog was a pomeranian/corgi mix. It is thier problem when they refuse to be responsible and it’s causing us a problem. :smack:
Are you planning to claim all $5000 of your entitlement in addition to the fence, or are you going to use the fence to help justify that amount?
We plan on getting the fence done with it and the rest will be put in my son’s savings account.
I’d be willing to bet my bottom teeth that there is not a judge in his right mind that will follow your very questionable logic pertaining to the fence.
As I said before, your neighbor’s responsibility to you is to keep their dog confined or restrained. Period. Not to build you a freaking fence so that your own yard will be secure. If you wish to have a secure yard, build your own, this is the standard way fences are built when someone wishes a secure property boundary (as opposed to sticking a handy neighbor with the cost). If they fail to confine their dog, then you must take it up with the proper authorities.
Let me give you a little analogy to help you out.
Me:
“Oh dear, my new next door neighbor is psycotic and yesterday he bit me on the ear and broke the skin (it even left a mark). The bastard keeps coming on to my yard and growling at me too. I just know this will happen again sooner or later. I know, I’ll sue him for pain and suffering, a new security fence, one of those fancy burglar alarm thingys, a full time bodyguard and whatever else my sleazy attorney can dream up. Then I’ll take the what’s left of my pile of cash and invest it in the stock market. Wheeeeee…”
Sound fair to you? Hmmmmm? Sorry, but I have always used that whole “pain and suffering” bit to gauge the greed quotient of a plaintiff. Sounds like you have got your share…
You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but you don’t have to live here and haven’t had to deal with this nuisance dog for a year and a half. We’ve been nice but anymore tolerance simply makes us doormats and that’s unacceptable.We pay a mortgage just like our neighbors and thier negligence is affecting our enjoyment of the property we work hard to maintain and pay for. Would your position change if you knew the dog sat in our driveway all summer chasing people on bikes and bit someone else? Should we have to wait for it to really hurt someone badly on OUR property and be sued for thier stupidity…I don’t think so. You may feel that we are being greedy, but it’s more about people needing to learn they can’t be lazy or ignorant, they should’ve known thier rights as well as thier obligations. Unfortunately we’ve tried virtually everything else and nothings worked so we have to take this drastic measure. What do you think a proper solution to this is since you disagree with our method of handling it? By the way the authorities (dog constable not to be confused with animal control which doesn’t exist in my county) suggested this since his power to enforce is limited. We paid to have an underground dog fence put in out of our own pockets anything else that’s required due to thier negligence is thier dime why should I pay for thier laziness? I respect your opinion as everyone’s entitled to one, but would like some insight as to why it’s so hard for you to see why we are taking this route I mean you seem a tad bitter have you been in this position before.:dubious:
No, my opinion will not not change. I’m sorry for you that you have had to put up with a dog bothering you (I’ve been through that as well) but there are proper ways to deal with it. If they do not seem to be effective, take it up with your city government.
You say the dog bit someone else. I assume they are enjoying their new fence? Or did they sue the dog’s owners for a new house in another neighborhood?:rolleyes:
Let me say it a third time. YOUR NEIGHBOR’S RESPONSIBILITY TO YOU IS TO KEEP THEIR DOG CONFINED OR RESTRAINED. It is not their responsibility to build you a fence. If your front door falls down, would it also be his responsibility to have it replaced since his dog is roaming the streets and could possibly intrude into your home? If a fence will make you feel safer, then you will have to bear the burden of cost yourself. It will improve the value of your property and you will benefit greatly from it in terms of privacy and security. Not a bad return on your investment if you ask me. You can count on that…
Yes. I’m a tad bitter. Our society has become increasingly litigous and I am sick of it. Sick of people who feel that they are entitled to ridiculous claims such as a new fence for a dogbite.
I’m not expecting to change your mind, but remember this discussion when your lawyer or the judge tell you that you are not entitled to your shiny new fence.
SkyBum is absolutely correct. No judge, especially a small claims judge, would award you anything based on your argument. Sue for the medical expenses, and leave it at that.
Just curious. What makes you think that if the above happened that you would be liable? That would be like saying that if a heinous axe murderer came onto your property and disengaged the foot from one of your guests that you could be held liable and subsequently sued for the axe man’s stupidity, (or his parent’s as the case may be)…I don’t think so.
Again I respect your opinion, but you act as if I am being greedy and I honestly don’t feel that I am. I am going through all the channels, law enforcement, city government, and just trying to talk it out politely with the neighbors. They haven’t been receptive, the fence was also suggested by my insurance company as this is more of a home owner’s issue than money directly out of my neighbor’s pocket. Oh and by the way if the dog had bitten someone while on my property, I am directly liable (I consulted law enforcement and an attorney on that one) and I would have to sue the neighbors after the fact to recoup any loss because of thier negligence. I don’t know what the judge will say I hope it doesn’t go to court as I do not wish to make the neighborhood any tenser than it is, but something has to give. I am sorry that you’ve had experiences that have made you bitter and jaded about this sort of thing, but in my experience the legal system works. If the fence is a fair claim then it will be awarded if not then we will pay for it ourselves. The bottom line is there is a certain sense of liability they are responsible for and we will get. We are also hoping this experience will force them to act more responsibly in the future. This was a last resort, we had to hire the attorney because they refused to accept ANY responsibility for the bite or even meet us half way. I am grateful for all the comments and opinions on this as I love a good conversation even online 
Skybum it’s great that your opinion won’t change it’s rare to find people now that stand behind thier convictions and while we may not agree it’s all good ;).
BTW how’s your son?
Fine, I hope.
He’s healing up nicely, but he’s frustrated that he can’t play outside because the dog runs loose. Thanks for asking. He’s a typical 7 year old and he’s very resilient…thank goodness. I grateful that he’s not scared of dogs now because he’s always loved animals.