Another dog tore a hole in my dogs ear...who pays the vet bill?

I’d say that it should be split 50/50, if nothing else.

Not that THAT is truly ‘fair’...but, animals are animals, and, unfortunetley, everyone now knows that these two are not compatible and should not be allowed to go nose to nose.

Did they even OFFER?

A person of ‘integrity’ would IMMEDIATELY offer to pay, if not the entire bill, at least half.

@Coloma They did offer and they are really upset over what happened.

I’m so glad. They have no class at all if they didn’t immediately offer to pay for at least half the bill.

Since it is your dog, the responsibility falls in your court. If both dogs were on leashes, and both owners allowed the dogs to get close to each other, then it sounds like a no-fault case. Since the neighbor feels responsible, or is at least upset about it, I’d offer to go 50/50. It will put his mind at ease.

If my dog did the biting, I would pay the whole bill, but as has been stated, both dogs were on leashes, so both owners bear some responsibility. I think in this case, as good relations with your neighbor may be more important than who actually pays, you should go 50/50 with your neighbor.

Just to clarify…their dog was on a “tether” essentially tied up to long line up but unattended to while owners gabbed….I had full control of her leash fully aware of the aspect of “socializing” a new puppy….puppy was in submissive position and bigger older male pup just snapped…..lightning quick no time to intervene.

I would let them pay the bill. If you like them and feel you had any part in the incident, I would let them pay half.

Years ago when I first moved to the hills my dog chased the neighbors cows, that were in my yard, back through the hole in the fence that they escaped from.

The neighboring rancher shot my dog in the hip with a 30/30 rifle and blew his hip wide open. It was HORRIBLE!

A fist sized hole in his flank!

Because all they SAW was my dog chasing their livestock.

When they found out the real story and discoverd the wayward bovines escape hatch they paid for my half my dogs vet bill.

All they could afford was $100, but, at least they did the right thing, to the best of their ability. I was pleased.

This situation happened to my dog, but when he was at a kennel during a summer vacation. Since both dogs were tied up, and both owners didn’t seem to mind them playing with each other, it doesn’t sound like anyones fault. Sometimes dogs can get territorial or dominant in one on one situations. I would however consider splitting the bill since the other dog bit yours.

If they did offer, I would probably not take the money but ask that they be more mindful of their dog when out for a walk. The problem was that the dog was being ignored. Grown up gabbing needed to stop when you approached with another dog.

I completely agree with you @noelleptc…in the end we did allow Sade to play with their dog on their property. GA!

Eek :( You’ve got a good neighbor. I’d thank him very much but do as @noelleptc wrote.

I have a 4-year-old adopted retriever who is very sweet with people and but has lightning flashes of bad temper with other dogs. I keep him leashed and under control if there’s any possibility of meeting another dog because I don’t entirely trust his behavior. Usually, if we do meet others on the trail, the owners will ask me before letting their dog approach mine. If they did not ask and my dog caused an injury, the fault is with the other owner. However I would still feel badly enough to offer some compensation.

@Blueroses

My same dog above was a big hound dog, with major food stealing issue. lol
Once I let him off leash on a trail I thought, had nobody around for miles.
Ooops, I was wrong…he took off, that nose! and all of a sudden I heard a big WOOOOOOO!
I ran as fast as I could and when I came upon him he had discovered some hidden campers picnicing at their site…they were all hiding behind their trailer while he snarfed up plates of chicken and potato salad!

I have NEVER been so embarresed in my life! They were slightly amused, but not much!

He weighed 96 lbs. and once drug me into the street to lap up a melted candy bar! haha

This is one of those “what’s right, what’s legal, and what happens in the real world” things.

The right thing is for your neighbor to offer of his own accord to pay the damages. What’s legal is a bit more grey but you could probably make a good case if you wanted to take it to court. Now, what happens in the real world is in order to keep from starting a war with your neighbor is you pay the vet bill and hope that he/she has enough integrity to do the right thing, and if not consider it one of those “bummer” expenses that we all have to deal with from time to time.

Good news….our pup came with 90 days doggie insurance that will cover the cost of the stitches and the “friend” of ours insists on paying the deductible. Sade now gets to do her best imitation of a Victrola for 10 days.

Yay Sadie!
Worked out perfectly!

Oh…duh, just caught your ‘Victrola’ insinuation..I get it now!
The cone head dog! lolol
I put a little drool towel in my dogs cone so his chin didn’t get chapped. haha

Nothing more pathetic than a cone head puppy. :-(

Zuppy can pick up 124 channels when he’s in Victrola Mode!

FWIW, had to put one of my “girls” in the dogs from space collar recently. If it is going to be more than a couple of days it is WELL worth the investemnt to buy one of the padded fabric ones at the pet store rather than just using el-cheapo plastic job they provide at the vet.

@YoBob I actually found it to be worth the $ to get the E-collar that is transparent rather than any opaque one. It’s hard to think of a more pathetic sight than a dog in a “no-chew” device. the poor babies.

@JilltheTooth

hahaha,, satellite dog!

FWIW…she got the clear “E” collar and she seems very fine with the device. Sadie is soooo cute!! :)