Dog Bite Deaths by Breed: Dobes same as Labs!

2579 Views 21 Replies 18 Participants Last post by LizR, Nov 8, 2011

Zoetica

Discussion Starter · Nov 7, 2011

We'll be getting our Doberman pup next Spring from a very reputable breeder of Dobermans with excellent temperaments, and plan early socialization, obedience training, etc. I've heard that some people have had problems with their Homeowners Insurance over the ownership of Dobermans. A 2-yr. nationwide report by dogbites.org shows that the percentage of Dobermans contributing to dog bite deaths is no higher than Labrador Retrievers! Has anyone had trouble with their insurance company, or have any suggestions? In the summary below, the first number represents the "Contribution to Deaths," the second number shows the percentage of all deaths for that particular breed.

BREED

Pit bull 52 59%
Rottweiler 12 14%
American bulldog 4 5%
Husky 4 5%
German shepherd 3 3%
Doberman pinscher 2 2%
Chow chow 2 2%
Wolf-hybrid 2 2%
Labrador 2 2%
Australian shepherd 1 1%
Golden retriever 1 1%
Boxer 1 1%
Bullmastiff 1 1%
Great pyrenees 1 1%
Mixed breed (undetermined) 1 1%
Jack Russell terrier 1 1%
Old English sheepdog 1 1%
Mastiff 1 1%
Presa canario 1 1%

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Reactions: 4

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ZeldaRules

· #2 · Nov 7, 2011

dogsbite.org is a biased website and not that credible of a source. Unless you're a dog bite lawyer or pit bull hater with a vengeance.

Reactions: 5

Zoetica

Discussion Starter · #3 · Nov 7, 2011

Do you know of a credible source of information for accurate statistics? Do you have any answers to concerns regarding Homeowners Insurance? I've already learned so much from DT, but, thus far, haven't found anything related to the issue of Homeowners Insurance. Thanks!

ZeldaRules

· #4 · Nov 7, 2011

Thr CDC has a more accurate report. I'm on my phone and about to go into work, otherwise I'd be able to post more, sorry!

Leliel

· #5 · Nov 7, 2011

Here ya go:
CDC - Dog Bite: Facts

There's a link on there to the official report with the chart and all. Note that is it not normalized by breed popularity.

If your homeowners insurance does not accept dobes, vote with your pocketbook and move to one that does. Be sure to let them know why you're leaving, too!

Reactions: 5

Echo

· #6 · Nov 7, 2011 (Edited)

ZeldaRules said:
Thr CDC has a more accurate report. I'm on my phone and about to go into work, otherwise I'd be able to post more, sorry!

Not sure which report you're referring to, but if it's "the" report released in the late 90's it is no more useful than the pit bull hating site.

I've posted this before, but.....

So-called "bad dog" lists that grew out of CDC dog bite studies from 1979 to the mid-1990s typically include the pit bull, Rottweiler, German shepherd, Siberian husky, Doberman pinscher, chow chow, Great Dane, Saint Bernard and Akita.

Despite the fact that the CDC's studies were not intended to address dog-bite risk by breed, these larger breeds signaled danger to some homeowners insurance companies.

CDC spokeswoman Gail Hayes calls that a misinterpretation of the data. "Because we do not know how many of a particular breed exists, there is no way for us to then determine which breed may or may not bite more," she says. "You have to have that particular denominator to be able to determine that."

The problem with the denominator is relevant to the dogbite site material as well. They make attempts at defining the percentage of breeds in the population, but while the material posted there makes an attempt at looking very official, none of it is peer reviewed research.

Echo

· #7 · Nov 7, 2011

Leliel said:
Here ya go:
CDC - Dog Bite: Facts

There's a link on there to the official report with the chart and all. Note that is it not normalized by breed popularity.

Yup, that's the one.

Oh, and while there are many threads regarding this, I'll mention State Farm has no breed restrictions on Homeowners or Renters policies.

Reactions: 2

MeganUK

· #8 · Nov 7, 2011

I have state farm for homeowner's insurance. They do not discriminate against breeds.

Toby'shuman

· #9 · Nov 7, 2011

How ridiculous, do they refuse to insure you guys if you have guns in your home?

Vote with your feet.

Reactions: 2

PatchworkRobot

· #10 · Nov 7, 2011

I'm pretty sure I have State Farm too.

If your current plan doesn't cover you tell them that you're leaving, tell them why, and leave.

supastar1568

· #11 · Nov 7, 2011

Hmm, guess I'm in the same boat. I've had my Dobe since a puppy for over a year, and it recently dawned on me to notify my insurance agent.

They said they checked with multiple homeowners insurance companies and the Dobe is on the "No" list on all of them.

Heather P

· #12 · Nov 7, 2011

I have Liberty Mutual and they allowed dobes.

Reactions: 2

VZ-Doberman

· #13 · Nov 7, 2011

State Farm doesn't discriminate against dobes.

Reactions: 2

aruiz0322

· #14 · Nov 7, 2011

I have USAA and no problems with Dobermans either!!!!!!!!!

Amy:swing1:

Reactions: 1

Adobe4two

· #15 · Nov 7, 2011

Even the CDC reports are inaccurate and flawed. And they've always been pretty open about that fact. Which is why, last I checked, they stopped compiling reports.

Dog bite statistics are never fully accurate and heavily flawed because:

1. The general public is not capable of properly identifying a dog's breed.
2. Not all dog bites are reported
3. Of those that are reported, many have discrepancies between different records of the same bite: mainly being the breed reported varies. Such as the medical report says breed X and the police report says breed Y.
4. There is no way to know the actual populations of the dog breeds in question even if one could accurately identify breeding (that would need to include mutts and mixes).

Also, regarding its application against pit bulls. Other breeds are listed individually where as the three pit bull breeds are grouped together and any dog resembling and misidentified them are included and reported as "Pit Bull Type". That means over 30 different breeds and mixes there of are contributing to a statistic that is then compared against statistics compiled by breed rather than type. Obviously, using two different standards created a huge slant. It also doesn't take into consideration a breed's population in comparison to the number of bites and fatalities. Obviously, the more dogs of a particular breed there are, the more bites there will be. But this doesn't mean the breed is more dangerous than another breed.

ex:
population : bites
100 goldens : 1 bite (1% chance of a bite)
1,000 pit bulls 10 bites (still 1% chance of a bite)

Given that ratio, neither breed is more dangerous. Its just a matter of perspective. If you ONLY look at the bites numbers, it seems more dangerous. But there is more to it than a simple bite tally.

So I wouldn't bother with ANY dog bite statistics. They're useless.

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GrdnDelite

· #16 · Nov 7, 2011

I've conversed with three Farmers' Insurance agents, and all have indicated that there is no breed prejudice with Farmers.

I've also read my personal property/personal liability insurance policy cover to cover and there is no mention at all of dogs.

Farmers is an "until they bite" insurer. If your dog does bite someone, they cover your liability, but the dog then becomes excluded from your policy. However, the policy continues in force.

achiever

· #17 · Nov 8, 2011

We have Allstate and I don't think that it is a problem. At least when the Allstate guy was out here to check on a claim that we made, he did not have any problems playing with Dude.

Fitzmar Dobermans

· #18 · Nov 8, 2011

achiever said:
We have Allstate and I don't think that it is a problem. At least when the Allstate guy was out here to check on a claim that we made, he did not have any problems playing with Dude.

Allstate excludes Dobermans as far as I know. If your agent didn't say anything then they are just ignoring company policy and you are lucky.

We have State Farm, but Farmers just moved into Pennsylvania and I am thinking of looking into them.

ZeldaRules

· #19 · Nov 8, 2011

Leliel said:
Here ya go:
CDC - Dog Bite: Facts

There's a link on there to the official report with the chart and all. Note that is it not normalized by breed popularity.

If your homeowners insurance does not accept dobes, vote with your pocketbook and move to one that does. Be sure to let them know why you're leaving, too!

This is the part of the report that I wanted to quote:

"It does not identify specific breeds that are most likely to bite or kill, 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."

DoubleDogDare

· #20 · Nov 8, 2011

We also have State Farm, and I double checked with them before we brought Dylan home. No problems with Dobies. And I found them competitive with other companies in terms of rates, as well. So you won't be paying more, necessarily, for a company that is cool with Dobermans.

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