Every 75 seconds, someone in the United States is bitten by a dog. Over 1,000 Americans seek treatment for dog bites and various other animal inflicted injuries. Studies have shown that approximately 4.7 million dog bites occur every year. These bites end in bodily harm to individuals of all ages and 70% result in death in cases that involve pit bulls, rottweilers and wolf hybrids.
According to research over a period of 20 years from 1979 to 1998, at least 25 dog breeds were involved in 238 human dog bite related deaths. More than half of the deaths associated with dog bites were tied to Rottweilers and pit bulls.
Dogs can bite for a number of reasons including anything from fear, to agitation, to the possibility that the animal has a history or abuse or neglect. It is because of the unpredictable behavior of dogs that people should be cautious when around unfamiliar animals and not allow small children around a dog that you do not have a history with. There are breeds that have even a history of attacking member of the family they reside with. Often in today’s society dogs are treated as another member of the family, but in some unfortunate cases man’s best friend can turn out to be anything but.