Just a few days after our own dog-bite incident, which I wrote about in a previous blog, I saw this article on our Web site. Sure enough, the number of dog bites, and court cases, is rising. This isn't a surprise after my experiences in the past few months with some dog owners, who let their dogs run around off-leash and don't want to take responsibility for their actions.

In fact, the article, dated Sept. 14, stated that jury awards and medical costs for dog bites are climbing. Homeowners insurance liability claims for dog bite injuries are up a whopping 28 percent since 2003, according to the Insurance Information Institute.

Claims for canine bites are also “biting into” homeowners insurance costs (sorry about the pun, couldn't resist). Dog bites account for one-third of all homeowners' insurance liability costs. This totaled $387.20 million in 2008—up a whopping 8.7 percent over 2007!