The lawyer known simply as the dog bite solicitor, James McNally, has been featured in the Daily Mail and interviewed on BBC Radio 5Live
Slee Blackwell’s James McNally, AKA ‘the dog bite solicitor’, has been busy dealing with media enquiries following the latest tragic news of yet another fatal incident involving a pet dog.
James has recently featured in a lengthy Daily Mail article which you can read on the MailOnline website here.
He has also been interviewed about the problem on BBC Radio 5Live.
James says he has recently seen an alarming spike in dog bite incidents, resulting in a huge increase in the number of legal actions he is pursuing on behalf of victims
He is quoted in the Daily Mail article as saying that some of the worst injuries he is seeing are being caused by familiar, much-loved breeds such as Collies, Jack Russells and Huskies.
James makes the point that any dog, of any breed is capable of causing an injury at any time.
He told the newspaper, “We’ve had a lady who lost the tip of her nose, and delivery drivers who are missing fingers. There are cases we’re dealing with,” he continued, “where a child has been scalped by a dog and suffered serious facial injuries — they’re all horrendous.”
While many of the attacks involve dogs that are unknown to the victim, a significant number of them involve the victim’s own family dog.
James believes the Covid-19 pandemic has been a major contributing factor. Lockdown led to a puppy boom and this in turn has resulted in a rising number of dog bites. Add to this the impact of unregulated puppy farms churning out animals that have not been properly socialised, and a powder keg situation is created.
James is particularly critical of the dog breeding industry and unregulated “rescue centres”, describing the current situation as being a bit like the Wild West. “We have the wrong dogs, being bred by the wrong people, going to the wrong homes. It’s simply a recipe for disaster,” he warns.
In 2018 James was asked to assist with proposed reforms to the Dangerous Dogs Act. Unfortunately none of the recommendations made by the DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) committee were subsequently adopted. In response to the latest attack the Government says it is aware of the problem and DEFRA has confirmed it is looking at introducing measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership.
James has offered his services to DEFRA should they need input from someone with his level of practical knowledge and expertise.
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