Dog owners love their pets. Still, if that pet bites someone, the pet owner should demonstrate genuine concern for that particular victim.

Actions that the canine’s owner should take soon after the biting incident:

Get the name and contact information for the victim. If the victim was a child, get the contact information for the child’s parents. Using the acquired contact information, provide the victim with your name and your contact information. Also provide the victim with the dog’s license number. Injury lawyer in Ottawa will ask you to get the names and contact information for any witnesses. It is best to call your insurance company, the one that sold you a homeowner’s policy.

Understand what actions the local government will take.

Expect your dog to be quarantined for 10 days. This costs the government money. You will get billed for the cost of the quarantine procedure. Your pet canine could be declared dangerous. If that proves to be the case, then the government must take action, in order to protect members of the public.

What else could happen?

You might be sued by the victim. This could happen, if you had not chosen to negotiate with the victim, in an effort to reach a settlement. If you have sent the victim your contact information, then you have tried to initiate.

If the victim won that lawsuit, you would need to compensate the victim for any medical expenses. Still, the victim’s chances for winning would depend on his or her ability to prove that you had been negligent. If you had done a reasonable job of tying up or fencing in your canine, then the victim would have a weak case.

At this point, you should find and speak with a lawyer. Can you show that you were not negligent? Can you show that the victim provoked your dog, before it decided to behave so aggressively? Those arguments could be used as a defense. By working with a lawyer, you should be able to offer a strong defense.

Did the victim make any demands, regarding compensation for lost income? Did the victim offer proof of the amount of income lost? That could be an important question, if the victim was self-employed. In that case, your lawyer should demand proof of the amount of money that the victim normally makes in a week, or in a month.

Were you attacked in any way by the victim, after your pet bit that same individual? If you took immediate action to force your canine to release the bitten body part, the victim should have had no reason to attack you. Evidence of such behavior could force the court to lower, or even deny the compensation that would otherwise be owed to the victim.