Animal attack
Animal attacks are a cause of human injuries and fatalities worldwide. According to the 2012 U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook, 56% of United States citizens owned a pet. In the United States in 1994, approximately 4.7 million people were bitten by dogs. The frequency of animal attacks varies with geographical location. In the United States, a person is more likely to be killed by a domesticated dog than they are to die from being hit by lightning according to the National Safety Council.
Animal attacks have been identified as a major public health problem. "Unprovoked attacks occur when the animal approaches and attacks a person who is the principle attractant, for example, predation on humans..." In 1997, it was estimated that up to 2 million animal bites occur each year in the United States. Injuries caused by animal attacks result in thousands of fatalities worldwide every year. All causes of death are reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention each year. Medical injury codes are used to identify specific cases. The World Health Organization uses identical coding, though it is unclear whether all countries keep track of fatalities caused by animals. Though animals, excluding some tigers, do not regularly hunt humans, there is concern that these incidents are "...bad for many species 'public image'.”
Injuries and infections
Bite injuries are often the consequences of an animal attack, including those instances when a human attacks another human. Human bites are the third most frequent type of bite after dog and cat bites. Dog bites are commonplace, with children the most commonly bitten with the face and scalp the most common target. In 1936, amputation was required in one third of cases in which treatment was delayed for 24 hours or longer.Epidemiology and treatment
Animal bites are the most common form of injury from animal attacks. The US estimated annual count of animal bites is 250,000 human bites, 1 to 2 million dog bites, 400,000 cat bites, and 45,000 bites from snakes. Bites from skunks, horses, squirrels, rats, rabbits, pigs, and monkeys may be up to 1 percent of bite injuries. Pet ferrets attacks that were unprovoked have caused serious facial injuries. Non-domesticated animals, though assumed to be more common especially as a cause of rabies infection, make up less than one percent of reported bite wounds. When a person is bitten, it is more likely to occur on the right arm, most likely due to defensive reactions when the victims uses her or his dominant arm. Estimates are that three quarters of bites are located on the arms or legs of humans. Bites to the face of humans constitutes only 10 percent of the total. Two thirds of bite injuries in humans are suffered by children aged ten and younger. The subsequent treatment for those who have been attacked depends on the injuries. Though trauma may be addressed first, subsequent infections are also treated with appropriate antibiotics.Up to three quarters of dog bites happen to those younger than 20 years-old. In the United States, the costs associated with dog bites are estimated to be more than $1 billion annually. The age groups that suffer most from dog bites are children 5 to 9 years-old. Often, bites go unreported and no medical treatment given. As many as one percent of pediatric emergency room visits are for treatment for animal bites. This is more frequent during the summer months. Up to five percent of children receiving emergency care for dog bites are then admitted to the hospital. Bites typically occur in the late afternoon and early evening. Girls are bitten more frequently by cats than they are by dogs. Boys are bitten by dogs two times more often than girls.
Medical codes for animal attacks
Injuries resulting from encounters with animals occur with sufficient frequency to require the use of medical codes by clinicians and insurance companies to document such encounters. The ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Codes are used for the purpose of clearly identifying diseases, their causes, injuries in the United States. Clinicians use these codes to quantify the medical condition and its causes and to bill insurance companies for the treatment required as a result of encounters with animals.Notable deaths
| Year | Name | Age | Notability | Details |
| 1920 | King Alexander of Greece  | 27 years | king | Monkey bite |
| 1980 | Azaria Chamberlain  | 2 months | missing person | Attacked by a dingo |
| 1994 | Allen Campbell  | 37 years | Elephant trainer | Crushed by circus elephant Tyke |
| 1996 | Patricia Wyman  | 24 years | wildlife biologist | Killed by captive wolves |
| 2003 | Timothy Treadwell | 46 years | bear enthusiast | Devoured by a bear |
| 2003 | Vitaly Nikolayenko  | 65 years | photographer | Mauled by a bear |
| 2006 | Richard Root | 68 years | infectious disease expert and medical educator | Killed by a crocodile |
| 2006 | Steve Irwin | 44 years | zoologist | Killed by a stingray during a diving expedition |
| 2006 | Ali Khan Samsudin  | 48 years | unknown | Bitten by a king cobra. |
| 2007 | Surinder Singh Bajwa  | 44 years | Deputy mayor of Delhi | Attacked by a group of Rhesus Macaques at his home and fell from a first floor balcony |
| 2009 | Taylor Mitchell | 19 years | singer | Coyote attack |
| 2010 | Dawn Brancheau | 40 years | SeaWorld trainer | Killed by killer whale Tilikum. |
| 2011 | Horatio Chapple  | 17 years | student | Killed by a polar bear on an Arctic expedition |