Dog Bites: Information and Statistics

Bite force links from PubMed

2008-01-27T23:24:00.000-08:00

Bite club: comparative bite force in big biting mammals and the prediction of predatory behaviour in fossil taxa. Published in 2005, full article available.

Interactions between jaw-muscle recruitment and jaw-joint forces in Canis familiaris. Published in 1989, full article available.

Interesting stuff, though not sufficiently dog bite-related for a place in the sidebar. These links will continue to be accessible via the "bite force" category.

Virtual housekeeping

2008-01-27T08:04:00.000-08:00

No drastic changes, but I've reorganized the site layout and other features in order to make everything more user-friendly. The new search feature is from Google's Blogger Beta in Draft, and it's terrific. I've removed the SnapShots feature. Categories [labels] have been edited and expanded.

Dog Bites: Information and Statistics was begun in November 2007, and within a month was appearing among the first twenty results for dog bite and dog attack statistics using Google Search -- often in the first ten, and occasionally at the top. I welcome the visits and the responsibility.

The words I wrote in the first post are as heartfelt today as ever:

I'm not interested in cherry-picking studies to make specific breeds look good or bad: in fact, I believe the "safe breed"/"dangerous breed" dichotomy is one of the reasons dog bites are as common as they are. The aim of Dog Bites: Information and Statistics is to counter the ignorance and urban legend surrounding the topic by providing the most factual and up-to-date statistics on dog bites and dog attacks.

The purpose of this site is to provide easy access to solid research on dog bites: to provide links to peer-reviewed studies and reports from the most respected sources. A narrow focus, but an important one, and I look forward to adding more studies from the U.S. and abroad. Thanks for reading!

Canine bite force

2008-01-26T12:25:00.000-08:00

I've added a PubMed study on canine bite force, the only one of its type that I've been able to find: Measurement of bite force in dogs: a pilot study.

The abstract:

A force transducer was developed to measure bite force in dogs. A total of 101 readings was obtained from 22 pet dogs ranging in size from 7 to 55 kg. Bite forces ranged from 13 to 1394 Newtons with a mean for all dogs of 256 Newtons and a median of 163 Newtons. Most measurements fell within the low end of the range, with 55% of the biting episodes less than 200 Newtons and 77% less than 400 Newtons.

1 newton = 0.224808943 pounds force, so 1394 newtons would be 313.38 pounds force, according to OnlineConversion.com. The dogs in the study ranged in weight from 15.4 lb to 121 lb.

From an Animal Planet news story:

Sept. 15, 2003 — Cheetahs chomp hard and even humans can bite through an ear, but one animal reigns supreme when it comes to possessing the strongest bite — the alligator.

American alligators, Alligator mississippiensis, have the most powerful bite force ever measured. According to a recent study published in the Journal of Zoology of London, alligators snap their strong jaws shut with a force of 2,125 pounds, or with about as much force as a mid-size sedan falling on top of someone.
[...]
"Bite force is linked to the size of an animal," explained Kent Vliet, a University of Florida zoologist who headed up the study. "Since the report was published, we measured the bite of a wild gator, even bigger than Hercules at 13 1/2 feet in length missing the end of his tail. He bit down with a force of 2,960 pounds."
[...]
To put the record measurement into perspective, hyenas, which are bone-crushing mammals, have a bite force of 1,000 pounds, slightly more than the 940 recorded for lions. Dusky sharks manage 330 pounds of force, and a common dog, the Labrador, bites with 125 pounds of force. Humans surprisingly beat out the pet dog, and measured in at 170 pounds of force.

When Brady Barr measured the bite force of various animals for a National Geographic program, a hyena again was measured at 1000 ~~psi~~ pounds of force. A lion's bite force measured 691, a shark 669, and a Rottweiler 328 ~~psi~~ pounds of force. A German shepherd came in at 238, and a pit bull's bite was measured at 235 ~~psi~~ pounds of force. As far as I can tell, there are no studies of any kind, peer-reviewed or not, showing canine bite force to measure more than the 328 ~~psi~~ pounds of force recorded by Brady Barr. If you know of any, please share.

Other dog bite / dog attack articles

2007-12-06T00:25:00.000-08:00

I often run across dog bite articles and related sites on the internet that may be entirely factual, but lack references.

From time to time I'll post links to some of those sites on the other blog. The stats may be accurate, but without documentation of sources and clear information on the nature of the studies that produced the statistics, you might want to take their numbers with a grain [or more] of salt.

Caveat lector. Just because it's on the internet doesn't make it gospel.

Honored, humbled, inspired [treating self to Starbucks]

2007-12-05T23:47:00.000-08:00

This site is now listed on the blogroll at Pet Connection:

the online home of the weekly pet-care feature syndicated to newspapers, magazines and Web sites throughout the United States and Canada by Universal Press Syndicate.

But we're more than a pet column, as we hope you'll find out exploring our Web site. We're best-selling books on pet care, and we're a popular pet-related Web log. You can search our archives for answers to your pet questions, and check out some helpful links we've collected.

Thanks to Gina Spadafori and the Pet Connection crew for this recognition.
______________________________

I've added the year of publication, in brackets, to all of the PubMed studies listed here.
______________________________

A search for "dog bite" on PubMed will bring up a number of abstracts which deal with individual cases and their treatment by surgeons [for example]. Breed of dog is rarely mentioned in these abstracts, and since the articles do not constitute studies of multiple dog bites within a specific population, they are not included on this site. This abstract is an example.

Dog Bite Prevention

2007-11-25T16:19:00.000-08:00

The single most important action to prevent dog bites is the most obvious, though not always the easiest one: parental supervision of young children around all dogs, including the family dog.

The single most important thing to read -- and I wish every dog owner would read it -- is Chapter 3 [Socialization, Fear and Aggression] of Jean Donaldson's classic book on dog training, The Culture Clash. This chapter could save a child's life. I can't emphasize enough how important the information in this chapter is for parents and dog owners.

This site is meant to be a collection of the most factual and authoritative studies on dog bites. Of course all the studies posted here were carried out in an effort to learn more about dog bites in order to prevent them --- see the PubMed article on child swings, for example.

So while dog bite prevention is a paramount concern, a collection of links to the internet's many dog bite prevention articles is, as they say, beyond the scope of this site. The primary exception is the definitive report by the Task Force on Canine Aggression and Human-Canine Interactions, listed in the AVMA section of the sidebar.

Both the AVMA and the CDC have pages on dog safety. The SFSPCA has excellent pages on dog aggression and dogs and kids, as well as information [and on-site classes] designed to help introduce the family dog to a new baby. Dog Bite Law, a huge site I plan to link to and discuss, has material on dog bite prevention as well. For a community approach to dog bite prevention, the AVMA report is unsurpassed. I hope visitors to this site will take advantage of all the links in this post.

[There is a permanent link to this post in the sidebar.]

"The dogs most likely to bite"

2007-11-24T05:04:00.000-08:00

The CDC has never issued a report or press release naming "the types of dogs most likely to bite," nor has the CDC ever released a list of dogs they consider "highest risk."

From the CDC:

"There is currently no accurate way to identify the number of dogs of a particular breed, and consequently no measure to determine which breeds are more likely to bite or kill."

"There are several reasons why it is not possible to calculate a bite rate for a breed or to compare rates between breeds. First, the breed of the biting dog may not be accurately recorded, and mixed-breed dogs are commonly described as if they were purebreds. Second, the actual number of bites that occur in a community is not known, especially if they did not result in serious injury. Third, the number of dogs of a particular breed or combination of breeds in a community is not known, because it is rare for all dogs in a community to be licensed, and existing licensing data is then incomplete. [Source: AVMA Task Force on Canine Aggression]

When in doubt, call the CDC or the AVMA and ask.

Where's the Clifton Report?

2007-11-24T00:40:00.000-08:00

Not here. This site presents factual information about dog bites and dog attacks.

Merritt Clifton’s tabulation of dog bite articles is incomplete, inaccurate and badly edited. Readers have no way to access the original news stories and follow-up articles; breeds of dogs aren’t accurately recorded; and there is a significant discrepancy between press accounts of dog attacks and actual hospital data.

In a single year [1994], for example, at least 6,000 people were hospitalized in the U.S. as a result of dog attacks, according to the CDC. Clifton, by contrast, claims that during the 24-year period covered by his study there were a total of 2,209 “[dog] attacks doing bodily harm” in the U.S. and Canada.

The "chox mix," "Dauschund," "East Highland terrier," "Weimaeaner" and "Buff Mastiff" are a few of the breeds identified by people of "evident expertise" in this report. Blue heelers, Queensland heelers, Australian cattle dogs and Australian blue heelers are listed as separate breeds. And Clifton's unique analysis of German shepherd behavior has little, if anything in common with the GSD bred for companionship, show and protection sports for the past hundred years.

Attorney Kenneth Phillips includes the anomalous Clifton report among the more factual information on his Dog Bite Law website. I've written more about the Clifton list here.

About the American Veterinary Medical Association

2007-11-24T00:38:00.000-08:00

The AVMA, established in 1863, "is a not-for-profit association representing more than 75,000 veterinarians working in private and corporate practice, government, industry, academia, and uniformed services."

The objective of the Association is to advance the science and art of veterinary medicine, including its relationship to public health, biological science, and agriculture. The Association provides a forum for the discussion of issues of importance to the veterinary profession, and for the development of official positions. The Association is the authorized voice for the profession in presenting its views to government, academia, agriculture, pet owners, the media, and other concerned publics.

About the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

2007-11-23T23:47:00.000-08:00

CDC home page.

The CDC is one of the major operating components of the Department of Health and Human Services.

CDC´s top organizational components include the Office of the Director, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and six Coordinating Centers/Offices:

Coordinating Center for Environmental Health and Injury Prevention (CCEHIP)
Coordinating Center for Health Information Service (CCHIS)
Coordinating Center for Health Promotion (CoCHP)
Coordinating Center for Infectious Diseases (CCID)
Coordinating Office for Global Health (COGH)
Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response (COTPER)

CDC mission: To promote health and quality of life by preventing and controlling disease, injury, and disability.

CDC seeks to accomplish its mission by working with partners throughout the nation and the world to
monitor health,
detect and investigate health problems,
conduct research to enhance prevention,
develop and advocate sound public health policies,
implement prevention strategies,
promote healthy behaviors,
foster safe and healthful environments,
provide leadership and training.
Those functions are the backbone of CDC’s mission. Each of CDC’s component organizations undertakes these activities in conducting its specific programs. The steps needed to accomplish this mission are also based on scientific excellence, requiring well-trained public health practitioners and leaders dedicated to high standards of quality and ethical practice.

About PubMed

2007-11-23T22:53:00.000-08:00

From the home page:

PubMed is a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine that includes over 17 million citations from MEDLINE and other life science journals for biomedical articles back to the 1950s. PubMed includes links to full text articles and other related resources.

No registration is necessary to access PubMed, and searches can be based on topics, authors or journals. The list of results will show whether an abstact is available for each article. Complete articles, if not available online, can be read in university and public libraries. Sign up for an account and you'll receive email updates and alerts for new content.

RE: "Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998" [CDC link]

2007-11-23T05:30:00.000-08:00

The CDC has not tracked attacks of any type by breed since 1998:

[P]ost 1998, the CDC stopped tracking which breeds were involved in fatal attacks because, according to a spokesperson, that information isn’t of discernible value. ["Breed-ban talk usually starts with pit bulls." THE NEWS TRIBUNE Saturday, November 13th, 2004.]

On another site the CDC states:

A CDC study on fatal dog bites lists the breeds involved in fatal attacks over 20 years (Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998). It does not identify specific breeds that are most likely to bite or kill [emphasis mine], and thus is not appropriate for policy-making decisions related to the topic. Each year, 4.7 million Americans are bitten by dogs. These bites result in approximately 16 fatalities; about 0.0002 percent of the total number of people bitten. These relatively few fatalities offer the only available information about breeds involved in dog bites. There is currently no accurate way to identify the number of dogs of a particular breed, and consequently no measure to determine which breeds are more likely to bite or kill.

Many practical alternatives to breed-specific policies exist and hold promise for preventing dog bites. For prevention ideas and model policies for control of dangerous dogs, please see the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Task Force on Canine Aggression and Human-Canine Interactions: A community approach to dog bite prevention.

"Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks" is occasionally cited as proof that certain breeds bite more often than other breeds: a claim that is impossible to verify, and one that has no relation to the conclusions of this study.

Further discussion of this study can be found here.

RE: Texas Animal Bite Summaries [State Statistics link]

2007-11-23T00:34:00.000-08:00

Texas is the only state in the U.S. that has attempted to track dog bites by breed. The Severe Attack Summaries were published from 1996 to 2002, then discontinued: the recorded information had never been complete [some counties didn’t report] and the Texas Department of Health believed the numbers were being misused and misinterpreted. (How do I know this? I phoned the Texas DSHS and asked.)

The CDC has verified that no other state has attempted to track dog bites by breed, and only one other state -- Minnesota -- has published a recent, state-wide study on dog bites.

Note the proviso in each of the Texas reports:

Note: the number of animals in various dog breeds in the overall canine population is unknown; therefore, no conclusions can be drawn concerning whether dogs of these breeds are prone to bite more often than other breeds or if these are merely the more popular breeds.

The reason for this website

2007-11-22T23:48:00.001-08:00

In the year or so that I've been posting on Lassie, Get Help, I've noticed [courtesy of StatCounter] that many visitors found LGH while googling for information on dog bites. Hence, this site.

Dog Bites: Information and Statistics provides authoritative, factual information on dog bites. Studies and stats on this site are held to a peer-reviewed, PubMed standard. If I make an editorial comment, the facts -- and the sources-- will back it up.

The child above was injured in an attack by a medium-sized, mixed-breed dog last summer in New Zealand. [Photo by Stacey Squires for The Press.] The dog had escaped from its yard. The child's parents were not present -- no adults were present when the dog attacked. Randall Lockwood, a senior vice-president of the A.S.P.C.A. and one of the leading dogbite experts in the U.S., might have been speaking of this or any serious attack when he told author Malcolm Gladwell:

"A fatal dog attack is not just a dog bite by a big or aggressive dog. It is usually a perfect storm of bad human-canine interactions -- the wrong dog, the wrong background, the wrong history in the hands of the wrong person in the wrong environmental situation." [Source.]

Although I own two rescued pit bulls [in addition to my working border collies], I have no dog in this fight. I'm not interested in cherry-picking studies to make specific breeds look good or bad: in fact, I believe the "safe breed"/"dangerous breed" dichotomy is one of the reasons dog bites are as common as they are. The aim of Dog Bites: Information and Statistics is to counter the ignorance and urban legend surrounding the topic by providing the most factual and up-to-date statistics on dog bites and dog attacks. For my thoughts on breed-specific legislation, you'll have to visit the other blog.