Bronx · Bronx County · Dog bite injuries
Bronx Dog Bite Lawyer
After a dog bite in the Bronx, get treatment and report it to the New York City Health Department. If it happened in or near an apartment building, find out who owns and manages the property.
If the City or NYCHA may be involved, a 90-day notice deadline can apply.
Step one
Reporting a dog bite in the Bronx
Use the Health Department's Report an Animal Bite form or call 646-364-1799, as listed in its published instructions. The Department follows up on the dog so a doctor can decide about rabies treatment.
Keep the confirmation. If the dog belongs to someone in your building, the report also fixes the date and place before anyone's memory changes.
Apartment buildings
Apartment buildings and public housing
In a building, the evidence sits with management and the neighbors. These are the four things we secure first:
- Lobby, hallway and elevator video
- Ask management in writing to keep it. Many systems record over within days.
- Complaints about the dog
- Earlier reports to the super, management office or neighbors show who knew about the danger.
- Lease and house rules
- Pet rules and who allowed the dog to stay matter for any claim against the building.
- Who owns the building
- A private landlord, a co-op, NYCHA or the City. A claim against a public owner can have shorter deadlines.
If NYCHA, the City or another public body may share responsibility, a notice of claim is usually due within 90 days (General Municipal Law 50-e).
Claims against the City are filed with the NYC Comptroller; a claim against NYCHA requires notice to the housing authority itself under Public Housing Law 157. Public property alone does not establish liability. Our guide to suing a city or municipality explains the steps.
Parks and dog runs
Bitten in a park or dog run
NYC Parks rules require a leash no longer than six feet, except in dog runs and designated off-leash areas at set times, and no owner may let an animal be out of control.
Dog runs post their own rules at the gate. A photo of that sign, and of where the bite happened, helps show what the owner was expected to do.
The law in brief
What a Bronx dog owner can be liable for
The same New York rules apply in every borough. For a bite in a building, the negligence route can turn on how the owner handled the dog in shared hallways and lobbies.
The full explanation is on our New York dog bite lawyer page.
Known vicious propensities
If the owner knew or should have known the dog had a tendency to harm people, the owner can be held strictly liable for the harm that results. Growling, snapping or baring teeth can count, even without an earlier bite.
Ordinary negligence
Since Flanders v Goodfellow (Court of Appeals, April 17, 2025), an injured person can also try to prove the owner failed to use reasonable care and that failure caused the injury. Both theories can be raised together; neither guarantees a recovery.
Dangerous dog medical costs
Under Agriculture and Markets Law 123(10), the owner or lawful custodian of a dangerous dog is strictly liable for medical costs it causes, subject to the statute's exceptions. It does not apply to every dog or every loss.
Published firm result
Dog bite result
This is the dog bite result in the firm's published archive. The published description does not say where the bite occurred, and it is not presented as a local case.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case depends on its own facts.
See the full verdicts and settlements archive$300,000
$300,000 Settlement — Dog Bite Without Proof of Vicious Propensities
Obtained a $300,000 settlement for a client bitten by a dog, despite no proof of the dog's vicious propensities.
Meeting with us
Serving the Bronx from Corona
We do not have a Bronx office. Our Corona office at 100-17 Northern Boulevard serves Bronx clients, and we also meet by phone or video. See our Bronx location page.
Bitten in another borough? See Manhattan dog bites, Queens dog bites or find a dog bite lawyer near you.
Bronx neighborhoods we serve include
- Mott Haven
- Melrose
- Morrisania
- Concourse
- Highbridge
- Mount Hope
- Tremont
- Fordham
- Belmont
- Kingsbridge
- Riverdale
- Norwood
- Bedford Park
- Soundview
- Parkchester
- Castle Hill
- Throgs Neck
- Pelham Bay
- Co-op City
- Wakefield
Questions
Bronx dog bite questions
The full explanation of New York law is on our New York dog bite lawyer page.
Report it to the New York City Health Department. Its published instructions list the online Report an Animal Bite form and the phone number 646-364-1799. The Department follows up on the dog for rabies, and the report becomes an official record of the date and place.
The dog’s owner, or whoever was keeping the dog, is the starting point. The building owner or manager may also be responsible in some situations, usually when it knew the dog was dangerous and had the power to act. Complaints to the super or management office are important evidence.
If NYCHA, the City or another public body may be responsible, a notice of claim is usually required within 90 days, and the time to sue can be much shorter than three years. A claim against the private dog owner is not affected. Talk to a lawyer quickly so the notice is not missed.
Possibly. NYC Parks allows dogs off leash only in dog runs and designated areas at set times, and owners may not let a dog be out of control in a park. Being in a dog run does not by itself excuse an owner who knew the dog was aggressive or did not use reasonable care.
A personal injury action is generally due within three years (CPLR 214). For a child, CPLR 208 can extend that until three years after the child turns 18. Public-entity notice deadlines are shorter and still apply, so they are the dates to watch first.
It may. Flanders v Goodfellow allows an injured person to try to prove the owner failed to use reasonable care, even if the dog never bit anyone before. The older rule also remains: an owner who knew or should have known of a dog's vicious propensities can be held strictly liable.
We do not have a Bronx office. Our Corona office at 100-17 Northern Boulevard in Queens serves Bronx clients, and consultations are also available by phone or video. Call (516) 227-2662; the first consultation is free.
Talk to a Bronx dog bite lawyer
Over 40 years of injury practice and more than $100 million recovered for clients. Tell us where the bite happened and who owns the property. The consultation is free.
What to bring
- The building or park where it happened
- The owner's name and apartment, if known
- Your Health Department report confirmation
- Photos, medical records and any complaints to management
Photo credits: Grand Concourse by Andre Carrotflower, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized; Sachkerah Woods Dog Run by Hugo L. González, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.