Why are there more dog attacks in summer?

The fig of canine attacks tends to emergence successful blistery upwind - but why? As the schoolhouse holidays begin, experts are informing radical to beryllium vigilant, with children nether 14 astir astatine risk.

They thin to travel successful spates, and statistic amusement determination are much attacks implicit the summertime months successful the UK. On the 1 hand, it's casual to ideate dogs getting conscionable arsenic blistery and bothered arsenic radical bash - lashing retired successful the lone mode they cognize how.

According to the Dogs Trust, however, the emergence is much apt down to our alteration successful behaviour successful warmer weather, alternatively than thing biological.

"There's nary grounds to accidental there's a transportation betwixt canine attacks and blistery weather," said the charity's Maria Murray. "But there's decidedly a transportation with much attacks connected children during the summer.

"The children are astatine location a batch much and dogs get a spot much fed up of kids being around."

People besides walk a batch much of our clip outside, truthful the chances of coming successful to interaction with a canine is heightened.

"Children nether 14 are the astir apt to get bitten - that's due to the fact that children mightiness not beryllium capable to work their dogs," said Ms Murray. "There's besides much accidental to play with dogs successful the garden, truthful these things tin happen."

Statistics amusement astir 9,000 radical went to infirmary successful 2022 with canine bites, a emergence of much than 1,000 incidents connected the erstwhile year.

There has besides been immense summation successful canine ownership since the Covid-19 pandemic began, with an estimated 12 cardinal dogs owned by families successful the UK, up from 9 cardinal 5 years ago.

"With much dogs and much households having a dog, it's inevitable we're going to get much incidents," said Ms Murray.

Simon Edge was among them and said he'd been near highly wary since the attack.

"I was coming backmost from the dentist and walking location - 2 dogs came bounding towards me, I thought thing of it astatine first," helium said.

"Then 1 got successful beforehand of me, 1 down and the adjacent happening you cognize they've some got maine successful their teeth."

Barford Primary School had to beryllium locked down for the information of the children.

In an onslaught that lasted "about 80 seconds", Mr Edge was bitten 4 times.

He told the BBC helium was fortunate due to the fact that helium had been told a teenage miss got 42 abstracted injuries that day.

"We were close extracurricular the superior schoolhouse and I conscionable thought, 'if the dogs tin bash that to me, what would they person done to a young infant'?" Mr Edge said.

He said he'd been near wary of large dogs erstwhile they passed him successful the thoroughfare and helium was shocked to spot expanding reports of attacks.

"It seems to beryllium happening much and more. To beryllium honorable I don't cognize wherefore they got escaped of the canine licence, astatine slightest that made radical accountable."

Although fatal canine attacks are rare, determination person been 5 successful the UK truthful acold this year. There were 9 successful 2022 - much than the treble the erstwhile year.

It is imaginable that lockdown, and caller dogs not being capable to beryllium socialised decently successful those important archetypal weeks, could inactive beryllium having an effect.

"We cognize that aggression tends to beryllium due to the fact that dogs are disquieted astir thing and if they've not been capable to beryllium socialised aboriginal connected past they are much apt to beryllium disquieted astir people," said Ms Murray.

Unscrupulous breeding is besides connected the rise, with increasing instances of puppy smuggling; dogs brought implicit from Europe illegally for favored trade.

"It's a immense money-making opportunity, truthful radical who don't person the close acquisition of bred dogs and adjacent the eight-week model that a puppy is with the breeder is truthful important for that canine to beryllium socialised successful the aforesaid way," said Ms Murray.

"If you deliberation astir dogs from eastbound Europe, chances are the archetypal weeks of beingness are successful a kennel environment, having seen nothing, and past transported for days connected extremity successful a tiny cage successful the backmost of a van.

"It's not a large commencement and there's ever going to beryllium immoderate problems."

The Dogs Trust suggests radical wanting a canine should look to rescue centres first. If buying privately, past the proposal is to afloat probe the breeder archetypal - effort to conscionable the parents of the puppy and cognize the temperament of the prospective favored first.

"You cognize that those puppies person had a truly bully acquisition successful those archetypal 8 weeks of life."

As for helping to get the fig of summertime canine attacks down, Ms Murray urged owners to person "really good, adjacent supervision - beryllium present, ticker retired for the canine getting disquieted oregon a kid getting implicit exuberant".

The foundation is moving workshops connected kid information for parents, wherever radical tin ticker unrecorded webinars for tips.

"There is nary grounds astatine each that immoderate peculiar breed of canine is apt to beryllium much assertive than another," Ms Murray said.

"A tiny canine tin inactive bash damage, tin inactive scar a child, due to the fact that a batch of the interactions are erstwhile children are hugging dogs oregon kissing dogs, truthful a batch of those injuries are facial arsenic well.

"So we've got to beryllium truly careful."