HELP! I got bit by a dog, now what?

See a doctor.
Terminate the dog.

obviously a doctor is the best case scenario, but If you want I can burn another question and ask if it’s necessary to constantly get new Tetanus shots..every 10 years.

Get the shot. It’s only good for 10 years
Its worth it, not to get lock jaw.

@pandora, I’d totally be willing to get it. Do you think I need other shots too?

@Ltryptophan I don’t know. Do you know if the dog had rabies
shots?

@Ltryptophan is the dog current on its vaccinations? If not, they may have to start you on a rabies treatment.

Get the dog checked for rabies. Or else you could get 13 needles in the stomach

Get the Tetanus shot and Rabies is fatal in 99.9% of cases where there was Rabies exposure and PEP was NOT use after exposure..

@RedDeerGuy1 It’s not 13 shots in the gut anymore, it is in large muscle like Deltoid or Thigh over a 7 day period.

Does the owner know? The dog is going to be toast if the city figures out who it is.

@Tropical_Willie Yeah! Thanks for the update.

This dog has chased me for a year so… she knew better than to let the dog roam. Called the city.

Talk to a lawyer if the dog bit you off it’s property you will have a very strong case.

Very strong case for what, @SQUEEKY2? Even if there is nothing in it for you, you need to report it so it has a history.

How bad did it bite you?

Tetanus. Check for rabies.

I don’t think they can check for rabies. Remember when Lucky Guy (I think it was Lucky Guy) got bitten by that bat, and all the hell he went through for rabies treatment? They didn’t know if he had rabies or not.

@Dutchess_III: That was Adriondackwannabe.

The owner should pay your ER bill or copay or whatever. You should file a police report so it’s on record. They can talk to the dog’s owner so that they may be more compliant about the payment.

Did you talk to the dog’s owner yet? DId you call the police?

Was it Addie? Sorry.

Report filed, no shot. Decided against it, we’ll see how it goes.

The cops should be able to ascertain whether or not the dog was up to date on its rabies shots.

Look @Ltryptophan…I’d go the doctors. Do you have insurance?

How bad was the bite?

The dog was not up to date. In quarantine. The bite barely broke the skin. I could have done the same scrape against a tree, or grocery store shelf, etc.

Rolling the dice.

Rabies is a death sentence.

You wouldn’t get rabies from a tree. @Ltryptophan Go. To. The. Doctor. Rabies is an agonizing, painful, horrible death sentence. It can be prevented.

In my state CA. all dog bites are to be reported, even if it’s your own dog biting you. The dog needs to be quarantined for 14 or 21 days, I forget, and up to date on it’s vaccines, especially rabies. You really should contact animal control and report the bite and seek medical attention. The owners may have to pay your medical bills if you are uninsured.

Don’t mess around with a dog bite from a dog you know nothing about. Obviously a tiny little nick of the skin is not the same thing as a full blown bite with deep puncture wounds but still….you could, at the least get an infection and at worst rabies if the dog has it, which is doubtful but..you would still need the rabies series just in case if the dog is not current on its rabies vaccine.
I’d report it. Was the dog running loose as well?

Double damned for the owners because you cannot have a biting/vicious dog running loose. The bite you got could have been a small childs face. Animal Control needs to warn these people that they are number one of 3 strikes you’re out.

@Coloma, reported. The dog was running loose as always.

@Ltryptophan Good! “as always” bad. Be sure to tell AC that too.

Strong case for a law suite @Dutchess_III if the dog bit him on public property he can sue if he wants, people have to control their animals or pay the price what if it was a small child the dog bit what then?

@SQUEEKY2 so what’s the damages, potential loss of limb? Loss of work? Fear damages? What are we talking $25k?

You need to talk to a Lawyer to find out, initial time is usually free to find out if you have a case but if they do take it they will take half of whatever you get.

@SQUEEKY2: An attorney will take ⅓, not ½ in the US.

If the dog barely grazed the skin, and the victim doesn’t contract rabies, miss work, suffer in any awful manner, I don’t think anybody is going to be granting huge payouts in this case.

The rate is 33% for representing in court. Non court is 25%. Pain and suffering can be triple the damage moneys, $10,000 plus $30,000 for instance is $40,000.

Depends on how much trauma he suffered during the attack,and thanks for always correcting me @jca I would be lost without you.

@jca obviously! I have no interest in suing. The only good that could come of that is impressing on the owner the seriousness of the matter. But they were fined so I think that’s covered.

@Ltryptophan: I knew you had no interest in suing. I think @SQUEEKY2 thought it was something you might pursue. I understood that the dog barely grazed you, from your description.

He got me pretty good, he he…. It’s bruised. and there’s a couple tooth scrapes. No red ring. No tingling. No swelling. So far so good…. we shall see… >yikes<