If it turns out that the dog has bitten someone, State Farm will want to know the circumstances surrounding the bite. Other factors the company looks at are the seriousness of the injury and whether the attack was provoked or unprovoked. Considering each case individually Hattaway gives this example. An Irish Setter gives birth to a litter of puppies. She and the puppies are on the back porch.
Some friends come over with their little boy to look at the puppies.
Under the supervision of the insured, everything is fine. Everyone goes inside, and parents tell the boy that it is time to leave the dog alone with her puppies. Well the adults got to talking about adult things, and the little boy, unnoticed, decides he's going to go out and pet the puppies. When State Farm followed up on the claim, we found that the insured had had the female spayed. She wasn't going to have any more puppies, and she showed no further aggressive tendencies.