Dog bite expert witness and animal behavior specialist, Richard Polsky, PhD, provides expert witness services to attorneys in Utah and Montana litigating personal injury resulting from canine aggression and related canine behaviors.
This page serves to let attorneys in Utah know about Dr. Polsky’s availability to serve as an animal behavior expert witness. Dr. Polsky is familiar with the law for dog bites as it applies in Montana and Utah. And he uses his expertise in animal behavior to proffer opinions consistent with Montans and Utah law, particularly with regard to the issue of provocation.
More information about Dr. Polsky’s background and qualifications can be found on his curriculum vitae.
Dog expert opinion about the dangers of restraining canines on chains
A case in point happened in February 2014 in Salt Lake City. A pitbull-type dog who was chained in the backyard broke free and severely attacked a six-year-old boy playing soccer in the same yard. Fortunately, the dog’s owner was present and was able to pull the dog off, but not before the child’s lip was torn off, parts of his arm were missing, and his cheek was left hanging. The boy was hospitalized and underwent emergency reconstructive surgery. Prior to the attack, people in the neighborhood expressed concerns about this pit bull.
Humane societies strongly oppose chaining, and it is illegal to chain a dog for an extended period of time in Utah. Anecdotal accounts reported in the news media and on the Internet support this belief: Namely, severe dog bites inflicted on people by dogs who are chained or who have recently broken free from a chain happen at surprisingly high rates
Nevertheless, owners continue to chain their canines for a variety of reasons and, in certain circumstances, may set the stage for mishap. For example, some dogs who are habitually chained become protectively aggressive, and these tendencies could easily manifest themselves when the person comes within “striking distance” of the dog.
Conclusions
The potential for an attack on a child by a chained dog is particularly concerning. For example, the nature of a child’s play behavior, such as erratic and rapid movements and high-pitched vocalization, are behaviors that could easily arouse aggressive tendencies in some dogs restrained by a chain. Moreover, children often do not appreciate or know the potential danger of approaching a chain dog, which they do not know. [1]Although chaining may increase the likelihood of a dog bite attack, it doesn’t necessarily mean that chaining is a causative factor underlying a dog’s tendency to attack a person. … Continue reading
If an owner needs to restrain a dog, then other options should be considered, like using a moving pulley. When compared to a fixed restraint like a chain, this type of restraint, which gives the dog more freedom to move sideways, may not have as much of an impact on the dog’s aggressive tendencies. Caution is needed even when this technique is used, however.
Footnotes
| ↑1 | Although chaining may increase the likelihood of a dog bite attack, it doesn’t necessarily mean that chaining is a causative factor underlying a dog’s tendency to attack a person. Chaining may contribute to engendering aggressive tendencies in some dogs, but not all dogs. Many dogs can be chained without negative consequences. Some dog bite experts believe that the discomfort a dog receives around the neck when it pulls hard on a chain may promote a negative association with people. Moreover, habitually confining a dog to one area may make some dogs more possessive of that area, and this may be particularly true in dogs with established aggressive tendencies. |
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