(EDITOR'S NOTE: This is one in a series of three articles on dangerous dogs and the move by some Minnesota legislators to legislate against certain dangerous breeds of dogs.)

by T.W. Budig
ECM capitol reporter

Stray dogs do not account for most dog bites.

The number of dog bites in Minnesota has increased in recent years.

These are some of the findings by a trio of epidemiologists with the Minnesota Department of Health's Injury and Violence Prevention Unit.

Their study was recently published in the periodical, "Minnesota Medicine."

The scientist looked at hospital-treated dog bites, finding the rate of these bites increased by 40 percent over the eight-year study period from 1998-2005. It was found that the highest rate of treatment and hospitalization occurred among children ages one to four.

In three-quarters of the cases, the victim was familiar with the dog or dogs that bit them.

Nearly half of the dog bites studied occurred in the home, about 18 percent in the yard.

Among children ages 5-14, walking, biking or running past a dog was the leading cause of injury.

Supervision needed

The scientists opined their study shows the importance of doctors, especially pediatricians, to counsel parents on the importance of supervising children when around dogs and teaching them safe behaviors around animals.

Some 849 hospitalized patients and more than 24,000 emergency room patients were treated for dog bites in Minnesota over the study period.

The scientist found little data about the offending dog in the medical records, breed not being identified in almost 60 percent of the cases.

Bites from roving packs of feral dogs does not appear to be a problem in the state, data suggest.

A Rotta Love Plus is a group that supports all breeds of dogs and is against proposed legislation against dangerous dogs. (Photo by T.W. Budig, ECM Capitol Reporter)

In 2000 the Journal of the American Veterinary Medicine Association published a report on dog-related human fatalities examining data from across the country for the previous 20 years.

Pit bulls and Rottweilers

It found that at least 25 breeds of dogs had been involved in 238 dog-related human deaths but that pit bull-type dogs and Rottweilers were involved in more than half of them.

Further breaking down the data, the study found about a quarter of the deaths involved unrestrained dogs off their owners' property, more than half involved unrestrained dogs on their owners' property, and about 17 percent involving restrained dog on their owners' property.

The report concluded that because of the difficulties of determining a dog's exact breed, enforcement of breed-specific laws raised constitutional and practical issues.

Because fatal attacks represent a small portion of dog bites, they should not be used as a driving factor in setting dangerous dog policy, the report opined.

Critics of a proposed statewide ban on certain breeds, including pit bulls and rottweilers, argue that bite statistics reflect a breed's popularity - the more dogs, the greater the potential for bites, they argue.