Each year in the United States there are about 1 million dog bites. Children suffer between 60 and 70% of these bites.
In 2007, three researchers attempted to find out why so many children are bit.
The top three reasons?
- Guarding items like food, toys and territory.
- In response to discipline.
- Medical problems.
I wrote more about this over at my blog on Dog Star Daily.
One Comment
Great post at dog star daily, Eric.
Something I read recently (I forget where) described how kids are much worse that adults at reading dog body language. And adults can be horrible at it! But the article indicated that kids are much more likely to stare at or approach dogs that are very clearly saying “I might bite you.”
I think this accounts for many of the cases of people getting bitten by dogs (or other animals). The animal has given all the warning signs and the human has completely missed them.
Mary H.
http://stalecheerios.com/blog