dog bit neighbor who reached over fence to pet him

[Anonymous]

We have a neighbor who is in her 80s. She reached over our fence to pet our dog (25 pound doodle) and he bit her hand.
She is not upset with me and I'm helping her clean it with peroxide and a bandaid. It's not a deep wound and doesn't need stitches.
Do I need to do anything else?
I'm really upset about this. I was 10 feet away but I didn't expect her to reach over the fence.

[Anonymous]

Get an apology gift and check on her to make sure she's ok.

[Anonymous]

Op here. Thx! I'll do that.
He was acting aggressive--barking, etc at her. She was like "it's ok, he likes me"
Wham--bite. I was standing right there. 🙁

[Anonymous]

is your dog up to date on shots?

[Anonymous]

Next time pick up the dog or keep the dog away when they are aggressive. Don't leave it to others to decide.

[Anonymous]

Any puncture wound caused by an animal, dog, cat whatever should be seen by a medical professional - ESPECIALLY in an immune compromised elderly person. Yes this means there will be a record that your dog bit the neighbor and you will have to provide his current rabies vaccination certificate - if he doesn’t have that, it is even more critical that she seek medical attention for the bite ASAP.

Believe me it’s better that you deal with the minor inconvenience of the health department asking for some paperwork than for you to face the lawsuit from grandma’s family when she loses her hand or arm to blood poisoning or dies of sepsis in a few weeks and no, I’m not kidding. ~healthcare professional who specializes in geriatric care

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any puncture wound caused by an animal, dog, cat whatever should be seen by a medical professional - ESPECIALLY in an immune compromised elderly person. Yes this means there will be a record that your dog bit the neighbor and you will have to provide his current rabies vaccination certificate - if he doesn’t have that, it is even more critical that she seek medical attention for the bite ASAP.

Believe me it’s better that you deal with the minor inconvenience of the health department asking for some paperwork than for you to face the lawsuit from grandma’s family when she loses her hand or arm to blood poisoning or dies of sepsis in a few weeks and no, I’m not kidding. ~healthcare professional who specializes in geriatric care

This is good advice. OP, your dog is aggressive and dangerous. You need to hear that

[Anonymous]

Experienced owner and rescuer here. I do not agree that your dog is aggressive. He was doing his job on your property.

[Anonymous]

OP your dog is not aggressive. The neighbor encroached on your dog’s territory. I have never understood why people think they have a right to walk up to strange dogs and stick their hand out to let them. How would you feel if a stranger walked up to you and began petting you. Also, do not buy an apology gift. You are tacitly admitting that you ADOS something wrong and are guilty. Yes, you should simply check to see if neighbor is okay.

[Anonymous]

^admitting you did something wrong and are guilty. I have no idea how autocorrect changed that wording.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any puncture wound caused by an animal, dog, cat whatever should be seen by a medical professional - ESPECIALLY in an immune compromised elderly person. Yes this means there will be a record that your dog bit the neighbor and you will have to provide his current rabies vaccination certificate - if he doesn’t have that, it is even more critical that she seek medical attention for the bite ASAP.

Believe me it’s better that you deal with the minor inconvenience of the health department asking for some paperwork than for you to face the lawsuit from grandma’s family when she loses her hand or arm to blood poisoning or dies of sepsis in a few weeks and no, I’m not kidding. ~healthcare professional who specializes in geriatric care

Agree on all this. My teenager was bit by a dog a few months ago and the pediatrician said that they insist on seeing all dog bites, even really minor ones, precisely because of the potential for infection. Dog's mouths are apparently breeding grounds for bacteria. Make sure that your elderly neighbor sees a medical professional!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Thx! I'll do that.
He was acting aggressive--barking, etc at her. She was like "it's ok, he likes me"
Wham--bite. I was standing right there. 🙁

Why didn't you stop your dog's aggressive behavior since you were right there?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any puncture wound caused by an animal, dog, cat whatever should be seen by a medical professional - ESPECIALLY in an immune compromised elderly person. Yes this means there will be a record that your dog bit the neighbor and you will have to provide his current rabies vaccination certificate - if he doesn’t have that, it is even more critical that she seek medical attention for the bite ASAP.

Believe me it’s better that you deal with the minor inconvenience of the health department asking for some paperwork than for you to face the lawsuit from grandma’s family when she loses her hand or arm to blood poisoning or dies of sepsis in a few weeks and no, I’m not kidding. ~healthcare professional who specializes in geriatric care

Agree on all this. My teenager was bit by a dog a few months ago and the pediatrician said that they insist on seeing all dog bites, even really minor ones, precisely because of the potential for infection. Dog's mouths are apparently breeding grounds for bacteria. Make sure that your elderly neighbor sees a medical professional!

In all fairness, human mouths are also as full of nasty bacteria as dog mouths or cat mouths. If you experience a puncturing human bite, even a minor one, it should also be medically monitored.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any puncture wound caused by an animal, dog, cat whatever should be seen by a medical professional - ESPECIALLY in an immune compromised elderly person. Yes this means there will be a record that your dog bit the neighbor and you will have to provide his current rabies vaccination certificate - if he doesn’t have that, it is even more critical that she seek medical attention for the bite ASAP.

Believe me it’s better that you deal with the minor inconvenience of the health department asking for some paperwork than for you to face the lawsuit from grandma’s family when she loses her hand or arm to blood poisoning or dies of sepsis in a few weeks and no, I’m not kidding. ~healthcare professional who specializes in geriatric care

This is good advice. OP, your dog is aggressive and dangerous. You need to hear that

I agree that she should probably be checked out but she was not an invited guest on your property. I don’t see how it is any way your fault or the dogs fault.

[Anonymous]

Fault has nothing to do with it. If OP has a shred of decency, it's not going to be much consolation that she's not at fault if her elderly neighbor loses her arm. Make sure she sees a medical professional; take her yourself.