In bicycle-friendly communities such as Davis, California,
residents enjoy recreation and transportation by bicycle.
Cyclists, however, may encounter dogs ready to chase a bike or
even attack, and bike riders are among the more than 4.7 million
people each year—most of them children—who are bitten by dogs.
800,000 individuals seek medical treatment for dog bites each
year, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Animal behavior specialists at UC Davis explain that any dog can
bite, and no guarantee exists that a dog, having bitten, will
never bite again—even after extensive training. Biting is part
of a dog's "vocabulary," says Melissa Bain, DVM, DACVB, MS,
Assistant Professor of Clinical Animal Behavior. She is chief of
service in the Behavior Service at the William R. Pritchard
Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. Many cases of aggression,
she states, can be helped with appropriate diagnosis and
behavior modification designed to reduce the risk of bites.
People—children, too—can be educat