Every year, thousands of individuals visit emergency rooms in Texas because of serious dog bites. While virtually any breed of dog can inflict injury, certain breeds are statistically involved in catastrophic and fatal dog bite incidents more often than others. Knowing what to do if you get bitten by a dangerous dog breed can help ensure your health and financial recovery and a dog bite injury lawyer in Dallas can help.
Pit Bulls
While dog attacks are not necessarily a breed-specific problem, the majority of deadly attacks can be traced back to a handful of major culprits. Statistically, pit bulls are behind the highest number of fatal dog attacks in the United States. This can be attributed to multiple factors, including their lethal bite style, strategic manner of attack and tendency to attack without warning.
Data collected from 2005 to 2019 found that pit bulls contributed to 66 percent of dog-bite-related deaths. Within this timeframe, pit bull terriers killed 346 people. The majority of deadly dog attacks in Texas each year are inflicted by pit bulls. View the state map for locations where fatal pit bull attacks are most frequent.
Rottweilers
Rottweilers were responsible for the second-highest number of deaths (51 fatalities) from 2005 to 2019. Combined, pit bulls and rottweilers accounted for 76 percent of dog-related deaths in the U.S. Rottweilers are more dangerous than many other breeds due to the force of their bite. Like pit bulls, rottweilers have extremely strong jaws that can cause a severe amount of damage in an attack.
Mixed Breeds
The most dangerous dogs in Texas are not always purebreds. Many mixed-breed dogs are also behind serious dog attacks. In 2019, mixed-breed dogs had the second-highest death rate (6 deaths) in the U.S. Pitbull mixes accounted for 50 percent of these deadly attacks, followed by rottweiler mixes.
German Shepherds
German shepherds, which are often used in police and military work, can be aggressive and dangerous if not trained properly. This is due to factors such as their strong protective instincts and bite force. Their bite holds 238 pounds of pressure, making them one of the top four dogs in terms of strongest bite.
American Bulldogs
The American bulldog is a key fighting breed, meaning a type of dog that has historically been bred or trained to fight dogs, other animals or people. While this does not mean that all American Bulldogs are vicious, it does result in a higher number of fatal dog bite incidents involving this breed.
Definition of “Dangerous Dog” Under Texas Law
Texas law does not allow cities to enact laws that specifically ban certain dog breeds. Instead, cities regulate dogs on a case-by-case basis by deeming them “dangerous” based on their behaviors. According to Section 822.041 of the Texas Health and Safety Code, a “dangerous dog” is one that commits unprovoked attacks that cause bodily injury in a place other than an enclosure in which the dog was being kept.
If you or a loved one was bitten by any breed of dog in Texas, an injury lawyer in San Antonio can help you hold one or more parties responsible. Under the state’s dog bite laws, pet owners can be held financially accountable for injuries caused by their dogs if they knew or had reason to know of the dog’s potential for viciousness. An attorney can help you gather evidence to support your dog bite claim.