More than half of all children will be victims of a dog bite by the time they reach age 12. One-quarter of all persons bitten require medical care, and most bites are inflicted by dogs whose owners thought their dogs would never bite. In most cases, the dog was familiar to the family, frequently the family pet. The chances of dying of a bite are much greater for babies than adults. Often, the infant is killed while asleep or in a crib.
Dog bites are a major, yet preventable, public health problem among children.
No one knows why a normally friendly dog will act aggressively toward an infant who is too young to intentionally provoke an attack. No one can really say for sure. A parent sleeping in the same room does not constitute supervision. Lavish extra attention on the dog when a new baby is brought home. All too often the family house dog is relegated to the backyard when the new baby arrives.