Vol. 8 No. 2 (2022)
Papers

Bites monitoring in Aosta Valley from 2014 to 2020

Claudio Trentin
AUSL Valle D'Aosta
Marco Ragionieri
AUSL VDA

Published 2023-02-20

Keywords

  • aggressiveness,
  • bite,
  • assessment grid,
  • risk assessment

Abstract

The aim of this survey was to analyse the bites recorded by the Simple Structure of veterinary epidemiology of the Aosta Valley Local Health Unit, from 2014 to 2020, to identify and outline the average biter dog's features, those of the assaulted subject and those of the context in which attacks happen. Reports referred to events mainly linked to domestic dog bites have been taken into consideration, in a region which is good for zootechnics and tourism, for a period considered statistically significant, with particular reference to aggressive episodes, correlating them to relevant activities carried out at the Simple facility of veterinary epidemiology.Most of the reports that have been taken into consideration referred to events linked to domestic dog bites, in a region which is good for zootechnics and tourism and for a period considered statistically significant. In particular, the study focuses on aggressive episodes, and correlates them to relevant activities carried out at the Simple facility of veterinary epidemiology. In order to standardize biter dog's evaluation and to make it as much as possible homogeneous as well as to prevent efficiently biter dog's attacks, a procedure with numerical data has been adopted using an assessment grid that allows to characterize prevention measures to be applied to biter dogs and their owner's behaviours. To evaluate man's sensibility (as a citizen and animal owner) and to propose an operating protocol for aggressiveness risk assessment, phenomenons have been examined to study in depth the context of accidents and the dynamics which have caused them. As far as this phenomenon is concerned, it is important to remember that public opinion's sensibility can be easily influenced by press campaigns which are sometimes considered unjustified. In the end data collection can be useful for a better prevention of most frequent aggressiveness forms recorded by the Veterinary Service.