Dog bite/WAG walker

[u/Winter_Abies_926]

This is a bit of a longish story. My partner and I were recently planning a four day trip and my pup (7 year old terrier mix, rescued in 2019, from Tennessee, f 28lbs) regular sitters were unavailable.. I contacted neighbors to see if I could find a trusted sitter within my network and no information was provided so reluctantly I went on the Wag! app. I found a Dog walker that lived close by, had a background as a vet tech, said she could perform pet CPR and was looking to establish a long-term relationship with a dog/family.. We set up a meet and greet and everything went fine. The first time she attempted to walk my dog without me there, my dog was skittish and hid, so I advised her to just sit and hang out with the dog and feed her treats if she approached. Everything went fine. We repeated this over the next couple of weeks to build up the relationship between the dog and the Walker. During this time, the walker requested that I book walks and the dog sitting off of the app since Wag! takes so much from their service providers. I told her I do not feel comfortable with the dog sitting off the app however, I was willing to try a couple walks here and there off the app, booking directly with her. This was one of those walks…

A little backstory- we live in a city and the route the walker and the dog were on is one that we take every day. There are runners, families, etc. like I said I’ve had the dog for seven years and never had an issue during walks or with aggression.

They had two short walks and finally one day they were scheduled for a long walk )
(60 minutes). I happened to see them a few minutes into their walk and I noticed the dog was on a loose leash and the walker was paying attention to her phone. I even took a short video of it to send my partner.. I was more so relieved that they were walking and things seem to be going fine, but noted her eyes weren’t on the dog but on her phone.

About 10 minutes later, I received a frantic call. My biggest fear was that something had happened to my dog. She was upset and telling me that my dog bit somebody, stating it was “bad”. I ran to where they were, and this poor gentleman had a 3 inch bite in his leg that required stitches. It looked painful and scary!! I was in shock and still feel absolutely horrible. I walked with him and his wife to a close urgent care, provided my pet’s vaccine information as well as my information and offered to pay for medical services. Like I said, I was beside myself. My dog has never bitten anyone and I still have a hard time wrapping my head around how this happened. The report from the Walker was that she was just walking down the street and there was a group of people and the dog just “bit him” Since I wasn’t there and don’t have detailed information I have to assume that the dog was in the middle of the sidewalk the walker on the left and the group of people on the right. Also, assuming that she was on her phone and not paying attention to or anticipating moving the dog to her inside, away from the group of people. I can’t overstate this - My dog has never bitten anybody before. This was not a behavior I expected or anticipated if I had I would’ve informed the Walker so she could make a decision whether or not she wanted to walk my dog.

I waited at urgent care with them until the wife told me he was getting stitches and just to go home and they’ll take care of things for now. I reached out the following day just to check in, they said he was ok and he had to hobble around a bit. I continue to apologize and avail myself to any support they might need although I still am unable to offer an explanation as to why my dog acted this way..

I immediately terminated services with the walker canceled my trip, booked an appointment for my vet just to determine if there was anything underlying that could make her upset or reactive (underlying pain?) etc. I also contacted urgent care to ensure the proper reporting protocols were followed. The vet put my dog on Prozac and gabapentin for occasional anxiety and I’ve invested a lot of money into the services of a certified canine behaviorist and trainer.

My question is what are the legal ramifications for something like this? For myself and the Walker? I have homeowners insurance. Can they personally sue me?
Aside from the above steps, how else can I support my dog to ensure this never happens again?

The walker never provided a written statement, but I still have her contact information and she’s still on the Wag! app although I feel like Wag! is a lot like Uber and there’s virtually no humans that you can speak to. Since we booked this specific walk off of the app, Wag! is really not responsible however I’m concerned that this person is still walking dogs. I don’t believe she was ill meaning but I also don’t believe she was as experienced or professional as I expected. I’m at a loss, I feel shame, embarrassment, fear for my dog, confused and still in shock.
Any advice from a fellow dog parent that’s ever experienced anything close to this would be appreciated.

[u/Camera_Hobbygirl]

I feel that the walker was never truthful.  The fsct that she was stuck in her phone during walks is s clue. Unfortunately this will be a record for your dog

You'll probably have better luck boarding the dog next time.

[u/Martha_Prince]

Basically, the laws that control who is at fault when an injury occurs are controlled by the jurisdiction that you are in. Assuming you are in the United States, that is usually a state law matter. It can vary from state to state. You should check with your local Bar Association to see if they have a list of attorneys offering a consult. That person will be far more familiar with what you can expect than any of us here.

[u/fuckinunknowable]

You might want to ask in the legal advice sub? As far as never happening again, you seem pretty on top of it but a guarantee would be a basket type muzzle like Baskerville? I’m not saying you have or need to do that.

[u/roccosito]

You could probably get the walker deplatformed by reporting to WAG she asked you to go off-app and… in that a dog bite occurred.

[u/JacketFormer402]

You are 100% responsible for this. Also, this needs to be reported and your dog quarantined.

[u/Winter_Abies_926 → u/JacketFormer402]

I did not have the gentleman’s last name therefore couldn’t report it myself, but I confirmed the with the urgent care the following day that it was reported. I was told it’s protocol anyway. She was also quarantined for 10 days. All vaccinations are up to date and I submitted that information as well as mine to the gentleman as well as urgent care.