NATIONAL DOG BITE PREVENTION
WEEK IS MAY 21-27
An estimated 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs
each year, with 800,000 individuals—half of them children—requiring
medical treatment. Most of these injuries can be prevented with
responsible pet ownership and appropriate behavior around dogs, say
the American Veterinary Medical Association, the United States
Postal Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
which have joined up again to sponsor National Dog Bite Prevention
Week this May 21-27. In an effort to help parents educate their
children about basic safety around dogs during this annual
awareness-raising event, the ASPCA offers the following tips:
* Children should not approach, touch or play with any dog who is
sleeping, eating or caring for puppies.
* Children should not pet unfamiliar dogs without asking permission
from the dog’s guardian first. If the guardian says it is okay, the
child should first let the dog sniff his closed hand.
* If a child sees a dog off-leash outside, he should tell an adult
immediately.
* If a loose dog comes near a child, she should not run or scream.
Instead, she should avoid eye contact with the animal and stand very
still, like a tree, until the animal moves away.
National Dog Bite Prevention Week
CDC is committed to reducing this public health problem by working
with state health departments to establish dog bite prevention
programs and by tracking and reporting trends on U.S. dog bite
injuries. Dog bites are a largely preventable public health problem,
and adults and children can learn to reduce their chances of being
bitten.
Things to Consider Before You Get a Dog
* Consult with a professional (e.g., veterinarian, animal
behaviorist, or responsible breeder) to learn about suitable breeds
of dogs for your household.
* Dogs with histories of aggression are inappropriate
in households with children.
* Be sensitive to cues that a child is fearful or
apprehensive about a dog and, if so, delay acquiring a dog.
* Spend time with a dog before buying or adopting it.
Use caution when bringing a dog into the home of an infant or
toddler.
* Spay/neuter virtually all dogs (this frequently
reduces aggressive tendencies).
Never leave infants or young children alone with any dog.
* Do not play aggressive games with your dog (e.g.,
wrestling).
* Properly socialize and train any dog entering the
household. Teach the dog submissive behaviors (e.g., rolling over to
expose abdomen and relinquishing food without growling).
* Immediately seek professional advice (e.g., from
veterinarians, animal behaviorists, or responsible breeders) if the
dog develops aggressive or undesirable behaviors.
Preventing Dog Bites
Teach children basic safety around dogs and review regularly:
* Do not approach an unfamiliar dog.
* Do not run from a dog and scream.
* Remain motionless (e.g., "be still like a tree")
when approached by an unfamiliar dog.
* If knocked over by a dog, roll into a ball and lie
still (e.g., "be still like a log").
* Do not play with a dog unless supervised by an
adult.
* Immediately report stray dogs or dogs displaying
unusual behavior to an adult.
* Avoid direct eye contact with a dog.
* Do not disturb a dog who is sleeping, eating, or
caring for puppies.
* Do not pet a dog without allowing it to see and
sniff you first.
* If bitten, immediately report the bite to an adult.
A CDC study on fatal dog bites lists the breeds
involved in fatal attacks over 20 years (Breeds of dogs involved in
fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998). It
does not identify specific breeds that are most likely to bite or
kill, and thus is not appropriate for policy-making decisions
related to the topic. Each year, 4.7 million Americans are bitten by
dogs. These bites result in approximately 12 fatalities; about
0.0002 percent of the total number of people bitten. These
relatively few fatalities offer the only available information about
breeds involved in dog bites. There is currently no accurate way to
identify the number of dogs of a particular breed, and consequently
no measure to determine which breeds are more likely to bite or
kill.
www.cdc.gov