National Canine Research Council

Statistics by State

Perspective Reports

There is a widespread misperception that not only are dogs a significant danger, but that dogs are becoming increasingly more dangerous.

Numerous sources claim there is a "dog bite epidemic" in this country. (See page "An Epidemic of Dog Bites?" addressing this claim).

Intense media focus on recent cases of dog attacks have contributed greatly to this misperception.

To get a better perspective on the dangerousness of dogs, the factors that contribute to canine aggression and the comparative risk of a fatal dog attack, an overview of fatal dog attacks per state has been compiled.

Please click on your state:

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri

Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Total Number of Fatalities by State:  1965 to 2008

Alabama	14		Montana	3
Alaska	30		Nebraska	5
Arizona	11		Nevada	4
Arkansas	9		New Hampshire	2
California	59		New Jersey	8
Colorado	10		New Mexico	7
Connecticut	1		New York	25
Delaware	2		North Carolina	25
Florida	34		North Dakota	0
Georgia	29		Ohio	17
Hawaii	3		Oklahoma	13
Idaho	3		Oregon	4
Illinois	23		Pennsylvania	16
Indiana	10		Rhode Island	1
Iowa	2		South Carolina	16
Kansas	11		South Dakota	5
Kentucky	14		Tennessee	21
Louisiana	6		Texas	58
Maine	2		Utah	3
Maryland	12		Vermont	1
Massachusetts	5		Virginia	11
Michigan	29		Washington	8
Minnesota	3		Wisconsin	14
Mississippi	7		West Virginia	4
Missouri	13		Wyoming	3

 Updated to:  July 23, 2008