2025 Guide for Dog Bite Law by State

Over 4.5 million people suffer dog bites yearly in the U.S., while over 800,000 must get medical attention to survive. When a dog bite happens, knowing how the dog bite law comes into play is pertinent. Depending on your state and the circumstances surrounding the occurrence, you may be entitled to compensation from the dog’s owner.

This piece explains the legal options available to you and how to explore them to correctly get the compensation you deserve.

Understanding Dog Bite Laws

Many specific places across the U.S. have passed laws defining when and how to hold dog owners liable for bites. These laws are in two broad categories:

Strict Liability

Strict liability states hold dog owners liable for a bite on public property or when the victim is legally in a private building.

If the victim did not trespass or provoke the dog, the law requires the owner to cover all damages associated with the incident. It does not matter if the dog has never bitten before.

One Bite

Conversely, in one-bite jurisdictions, dog owners are only responsible for a bite if there is reason to suspect the animal is likely to attack. However, it does not often imply that the dog must have bitten anyone in the past, but there must be proof that a bite could have occurred, like an attack on other animals or aggression.

Bite victims can use other legal routes to recover compensation from dog owners in one bite state. For instance, they may use negligence if they can establish that the owner was illogically carefree, even if the animal had not bitten in the past. However, recovery under specific dog bite laws is impossible unless the victim can prove a history of an issue with the dog before the attack.

Dog Bite Law According to States

The table represents the dog bite law applicable across U.S. states:

State	State Law	Statute or Case Law
Alabama	The dog owner is responsible for every injury the animal causes without provocation if the victim is lawfully in the owner’s building	Ala. Code 3-6-1
Alaska	Negligence rules determine the owner’s liability	Sinclair v. Okata
Arizona	The owner is responsible for the harm the dog caused without provocation if the victim is lawfully in the owner’s building	Arizona Rev. Statutes sections 11-1020, 11-1025, 11-1026
Arkansas	Dog owners are strictly responsible if they know about the animal’s dangerous propensities	Strange v. Stovall
California	The owner is responsible for the harm the dog caused without provocation if the victim is lawfully in the owner’s building	California Civ. Code § 3342
Colorado	The owner is strictly responsible for severe bodily injuries. The one-bite rule works in other contexts Exceptions to owner liability for provocation, or if they had signs like “Beware of Dog”	Colorado Rev. Stat. § 13-21-124
Connecticut	Owner strictly responsible for hurt except if the victim trespassed, abused the dog, or committed a tort Presumption against trespass for victims under seven years	Connecticut Gen. Stat. Ann. § 22-357
Delaware	Owner strictly responsible for injuries except if the victim trespassed, insulted the dog, or committed a tort	Delaware Code Ann. § 1711
District of Columbia	Dog owner is strictly responsible for injuries an at-large dog causes. Contributory negligence rules work to prevent victims from getting compensation if they are both to be blamed for the attack	D.C Code Ann § 8-1808
Florida	Owner strictly responsible for injuries save for trespass, tort, or if the owner put a “Bad Dog” signal in a visible place	Flo. Stat sections 767.01, 767.04
Georgia	Owner responsible for dogs not under control or for the attacks “dangerous animals” commit	Georgia Code Ann. sections 51-2-7
Hawaii	Negligent dog owners are responsible, except in the cases of abuse of the dog or trespass	Hawaii Rev. Stat. Ann. § 663-9
Idaho	One bite rule is applicable	Idaho Code § 25-2805
Illinois	Dog owner is strictly responsible for hurts except in the cases of provocation or trespass	510 I.L.C.S 5/16 § 16
Indiana	Owner liable is the dog injured victim while performing federal or state duty, like postal workers Negligence or one-bite rules work in other contexts	Indiana Code 15-20-1-3
Iowa	Owners responsible for dogs attempting to bite or attack people or disturbing, killing, or maiming domestic animals	Iowa Code Ann § 351.28
Kansas	Negligent owners responsible, and one bite rule is applicable	Henkel v. Jordan Mercer v. Fritts
Kentucky	The owner is strictly liable	Ky. Rev. Stat. § 258.235
Louisiana	The owner is liable if they could have stopped the bite, except if the victim provoked the dog	La. C.C. Art § 2321
Maine	The owner bears strict liability if the bite happens off the owner’s property and the victim did not provoke the animal	Maine Rev. Stat. Ann. § 3961
Maryland	Owner bears full responsibility if the dog bites the victim while running at large The exception is if the victim trespasses, provokes the dog, or tries to commit another crime	Code of Maryland § 3-1901
Massachusetts	The dog owner bears responsibility except if the victim provoked the dog or trespassed Presumption against provocation and trespassing if the victim was below seven years old	Massachusetts Gen. Laws Ann. 140 § 155
Michigan	The owner would bear full responsibility for an unprovoked attack if the victim were in a public building or lawfully in a private residence	Michigan Comp. Laws Ann. § 287.351
Minnesota	Owner would bear liability for unprovoked bites if the victim stayed peaceably anywhere where they could lawfully be	Minnesota Stat. Ann. § 347.22
Mississippi	One bite rule is applicable	Poy v. Grayson
Missouri	The owner is strictly liable for unprovoked attacks if the victim was lawfully on a private or public property	Mo. Rev. Stat. § 273.036
Montana	The owner bears responsibility for damages their dog caused in an incorporated town or city	Mont. Code Ann. § 27-1-715
Nebraska	The owner bears responsibility except if the bite happens through the dog’s playfulness or the victim trespassed	Nebraska Rev. Stat. § 54-601
Nevada	Negligence rules are applicable Owners can undergo felony charges under Section 202.500 for a vicious dog bite	Nevada Stat. Ann. § 202.500
New Hampshire	The owner bears responsibility for every situation where their dog causes harm, including mischievous acts	N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 466:19
New Jersey	The owner would bear responsibility if the victim were lawfully on a private or public property	N.J. Stat. Ann. § 4:19-16
New Mexico	The dog owner is liable for negligence or if they were aware of the dog’s likelihood of being violent	Smith v. Village of Ruidoso
New York	Owner responsible for the injuries a “dangerous dog” causes	N.Y. Agriculture & Markets Law, § 123(10)
North Carolina	Owners are strictly liable for at-large or dangerous dogs In other situations, negligence determines the owner’s liability	North Carolina Gen. Stat. Ann. § 67-12, 67-4.4, 67-4.1
North Dakota	Negligence rules are applicable	Sendelbach v. Grad
Ohio	Owners are responsible for injuries dogs cause except if the victim trespassed, committed another crime, insulted, teased, or tormented the dog	Ohio Rev. Code. Ann § 955.28
Oklahoma	The owner is responsible for bites that happen when the victim is lawfully on public or private property and did not provoke the dog	Oklahoma Stat. Ann. § 4-42.1
Oregon	Dog owner is liable if they know or should have been aware of the dog’s violent acts	Westberry v. Blackwell
Pennsylvania	The owner is liable for unprovoked serious injuries. One bite rule is applicable in other situations	Pa. Consol. Stat. § 502 A
Rhode Island	The owner bears total liability except if they confined the dog	Rhode Island Gen. Laws § 4-13-16
South Carolina	The owner bears strict liability for bites that happen when the victim is lawfully on a public or private property	South Carolina Code. Ann. § 47-3-110
South Dakota	The owner is liable under negligence rules or if they were aware of the dog’s violent acts	Blaha v. Stuard
Tennessee	Strict liability except if the victim trespassed	Tennessee Code Ann. § 44-8-413
Texas	Owner liable if they were aware of the dog’s dangerous acts, was negligent, or breached leash laws	V.T.C.A., Health & Safety Code § 822.005
Utah	Owners bear full responsibility, save for peace officers, cities, towns, or counties who are not responsible for injuries caused by law enforcement animals	Utah Code. Ann. § 18-1-1
Vermont	Owners are liable if they knew or should have been aware of the dog’s risky propensities	Hillier v. Noble
Virginia	Dog owners have a common law role in ensuring ordinary care, and the victim can hold them responsible if they were aware the dog had a threatening propensity	Butler v. Frieden
Washington	Strict responsibility except for counties, peace officers, towns, or cities who are not liable for injuries caused by law enforcement dogs	Washington Rev. Code § 16-08-040
West Virginia	Strict responsibility if the animal is running at large	West Virginia Code § 19-20-13
Wisconsin	One bite rule applicable for the first bite Penalty from $50 to $500 if the dog injures someone, deer, game, domestic animal, birds, nests or eggs of game birds, or property Strict responsibility for double the damages for another bite	Wisconsin Stat. § 174.02(1)(a) and Wisconsin Stat. § 174.02(1)(b)
Wyoming	The owner is responsible if the victim proves negligence or knew of the dog’s dangerous acts	Borns ex rel. Gannon v. Voss

Compensation for Dog Bites

Suppose you show evidence that the dog’s owner is guilty through your state’s dog bite law. In that case, you will recover monetary compensation for these losses: pain and suffering, medical expenses incurred from the bite, lost earnings, and emotional distress.

The burden of proving the extent of damages of the dog bite is on the victim.

Seeking Legal Help

Every dog bite victim needs an experienced and result-driven dog bite attorney to help them pursue adequate claims under their state’s rules. “Engaging a lawyer will help you maximize the compensation you should receive from the dog owner.” says attorney Felix Gonzalez .