Children are victims of dog bites due to irresponsible dog ownership, parenthood, and managers of school institutions in Serbia

Abstract

The prevalence and the incidence of dog bite studies are mainly based on hospital records. However, in this study, the information about dog bites to children was obtained by searcing Serbian online newspapers, between January 2008 and May 2018. Sixty-nine articles from Serbian online newspaper reports dog bites to 79 children between January 2008 and June 2018.Children over 6 years old (school class) constituted 65% of the sample and 51% were boys. Most commonly children were bitten by dogs of known owners (59%). Stray dogs were involved in fewer bites to children (41%; P < 0.05). Children sustained the greatest number of dog bites during the spring months (37%) and the lowest in the summer (14%). Mongrels were involved in 37% of all bites followed by terriers in bull type (21%). Head, face and neck (32%) were the most common individual site of injury from dog bites. Most children (68%) sustained bites without previous interaction with dogs. Data collected from newspapers on dog bites to children cannot provide a real insight into the scale and severity of the problem. However, they can be the trigger for further studying of this problem by health workers, veterinarians and scientists and the warning to local authorities to tackle the problem of irresponsible dog ownership.

Epidemiological study on animal bite cases referred to Haji Daii health Center in Kermanshah province, Iran during 2013–2017

“…In the current study, the most common animal bite season was spring, which is consistent with some other studies [23,40,41]. The high prevalence of animal bites in the spring can be due to the presence of more people in recreational areas and outdoors, which makes them more likely to face animals.…”

One Health Approach on Dog Bites: Demographic and Associated Socioeconomic Factors in Southern Brazil

“…Although certain dog breeds have been reported to show a higher attack tendency, such as mixed-breed dogs, sheepdogs, and terriers [1,19,32], data should be analyzed cautiously as some breeds may be more popular in some regions, biasing the dog biting statistics [32]. In addition, the aggressor breed may not be faithfully recorded, and mixed-breed dogs are often described as purebred dogs [1].…”

A Retrospective Analysis of Dog–Dog and Dog–Human Cases of Aggression in Northern Italy

“…These findings have been reported in several studies [ 38 , 39 ] and might be explained by the small size of children, whose faces are at the dog muzzle level and by their limited ability to detect even the clearer signals of an incoming aggression such as a growl. Children can unknowingly provoke dogs with their natural tendencies to be active and loud, and parent supervision is always of paramount importance to prevent bites [ 40 , 41 ]. Dogs can be important in children’s lives in many ways because they provide enjoyment and help children develop responsibilities but, especially for families with young children, parents should have a good understanding of dog communication, behaviour and welfare to minimise any risk of aggression [ 42 , 43 ].…”