MAN'S BEST FRIEND? DOG-BITE INCIDENTS A GROWING CONCERN IN CAPE GIRARDEAU

"I heard a loud scream, and Julian came running toward me with blood in her face," described Hope Welker.

Seconds earlier Welker, who was barbecuing with friends, said she saw her 3 1/2-year-old daughter, Julian Yenicek, riding her bicycle down the sidewalk past the neighboring Cape Meadows apartments.

A woman who lives several apartments away said DOG, her 1-year-old part chow and part Labrador retriever, had been tied to a tree in the backyard for no more than two minutes.

Neither Welker nor the woman who owns the dog witnessed the July 7 attack on Julian. But in the few minutes preceding 1:20 p.m., DOG's jaws made contact with Julian's face, leaving scratches around her right eye and upper lip.

Although incidents of dog bites in Cape Girardeau are not frequent, they do occur, said Charles E. Stucker, chief animal-control officer for the city.

Twenty-nine dog bites were reported in Cape Girardeau County in 1996, and 22 have been reported this year, said Jane Wernsman, assistant director of the Cape Girardeau County Health Department.

A report of the July 7 incident was filed, but no one has been charged with a violation of city ordinances, Stucker said.

Cape Girardeau city code states all dogs must be securely tied or led on a line or leash no longer than 10 feet outside the owner or caretaker's property. The code remains vague whether supervision of the animal on the leash is required.

Stucker met with Debbie Mantz, assistant city prosecuting attorney, Wednesday to discuss possible revisions to the city's animal ordinance. After reviewing similar ordinances from across the state, he proposed a list of those he thinks would better define how animals should be controlled within the city limits.

But city ordinances can't prevent dog attacks. When a dog bite occurs, the potential for a civil suit exists, said Michael Maguire, an attorney with Johnson, Montgomery and Maguire.

State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. in Bloomington, Ill., the nation's largest home insurer, paid more than $77 million in claims for injuries caused by dog bites in 1996.

The law for dog-bite cases in Missouri is based on a one-bite rule, said Maguire, who has dealt with dog-bite civil cases on both sides.

"The law says that so long as the dog has never shown any vicious tendencies, then the dog's first bite is a freebie, "Maguire explained. "It could be shown as comparative negligence on the part of the plaintiff, such as if the person was teasing the dog," he said. "But once you are aware there is a propensity to bite, then you are strictly liable for that animal."

The owner of the dog that bit Julian admitted that a couple of months ago a little boy came on her patio and DOG bit him on the leg, but she insists her dog is not vicious. All the children tease him, she said.

Propensity to bite doesn't necessarily require a prior bite. Growling and bearing teeth when people walk by could also classify, Maguire said.

The breed of the dog is also an important factor.

"If you carry a breed that has been known to be a mean dog such as a pit bull, then it muddies up the case a little bit," he said.

In cases where the judge rules in favor of the victim, damages can be awarded for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and counseling in most cases with children, Maguire said.

"And you almost always have to put the dog to sleep," he said.