You really should talk to a lawyer. Not to be mean, not to be greedy, not to be malicious. But to cover your butt on a lot of stuff they take into consideration that we don't even think about.
As of yet no one in this thread has mentioned "pain and suffering." You might poo-poo it, but it may well be considered a contributor to other factors in your case.
This may not be the first time the dogs owner(s) have had issues and have always ignored it because good, decent folks who didn't want to be "greedy" or "take advantage" of them haven't pushed the issue. Let's say they buy a replacement dog and control it the same way they did the dog you had to shoot. Except this dog attacks a five (5) year old kid playing in their own yard.
The one dog is dead.
The owners need a wake up call - HUGE.
Talk to a lawyer, get some free advice, then make a decision.
Regards,
Doug
Not all dog bites are worth the same. A pretty girl, bit in the face, with lots of medical bills, scars, etc is going to be worth a helluva lot more than some guy that got his hand nipped with no medical attention ever sought.
Asking for only 1k is really selling yourself short. I personally would hope you can get more closer to at least 2-3k. Totally a messed up situation. Hope all worrks out in a timely yet reasonable manner
Um..... How do you know the OP isn't a pretty girl?
I found out from animal control they left their other dog with them because the wife of the dog owned could not control the dogs when he was gone, and they had gotten out several times and now they were worried that it might be worse next time.
Our dogs are still quite put off every time they go outside now which is really annoying. Last night we let Buster out and he refused to come in for some time because he was sniffing around every where. And he kept running the fence line by the kids.
I think I am going to wait until next week before I make any decisions, this a.m. I had to get antibiotics because one of the bits was swelling and getting red.
I think part of the problem is me because most times I try to treat people the way I would want to be treated, which I think causes me to be too nice at times.
From what I am told average dog bite claim gets settled between $5 to $8k to settle. I don't want to be a jerk but I think I have my bases covered.
Clear liability
Documented property damage
Video of dog in question killing chickens, and biting me
Sheriff's and Animal control reports
I think you can ask for whatever you want, and if you're comfortable with $1000 go for it. It could be worth more if you spoke to an attorney and made a claim, and it probably is. If you do escalate it, be prepared to have your actions scrutinized. If you contributed in anyway to getting bit, that will be debated. They will review your video, they will ask you why you didn't stay inside... all of those things. Might not ultimately matter, but be prepared.
Or pay for an hour of the lawyers time and tack it on to your bill.
I think its a good idea just to CYA. I also think that as long as both parties involved think its fair, then its really none of the rest of our business.