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For most of us, a dog is family. They sleep in our homes, celebrate our happiest moments, comfort us during our darkest days, and love us without condition. Yet under New York law, when someone else’s negligence seriously injures or kills your dog, the law generally treats your beloved companion as nothing more than a piece of personal property.
That legal classification has real consequences.
In most cases involving injuries to a dog, New York law limits recovery to the animal’s market value and reasonable veterinary expenses. Courts generally do not permit recovery for the owner’s emotional distress, grief, or loss of companionship simply because a cherished pet was injured or killed. As a practical matter, these cases often are not economically actionable, even when the emotional harm to the family is devastating.
As The New York Dog Bite Lawyer, I believe that result is fundamentally wrong.
Our legal system rightly recognizes emotional damages when people suffer certain profound losses. Yet when a reckless dog owner allows an attack that maims or kills another family’s beloved companion, the law often ignores the very real emotional devastation left behind.
The law has not kept pace with society. Today, millions of New Yorkers view their dogs as members of the family—not property equivalent to a bicycle or a television.
That is why I support meaningful legislative reform, including proposals such as Penny’s Law, which seeks to strengthen accountability for negligent and reckless dog owners and close important gaps in New York’s existing laws governing dog attacks.
While Penny’s Law focuses primarily on increasing accountability for irresponsible dog owners rather than expanding civil damages, it reflects a growing recognition that our laws must better protect companion animals and the families who love them.
New York should go further. Our laws should recognize that when someone negligently destroys a cherished companion animal, the harm extends far beyond veterinary bills. Justice should reflect the true value of the human-animal bond.
If you have been injured due to a dog bite, you should contact Mack Press, the New York Dog Bite Lawyer. He will fight for you, while also ensuring it is the owner, and not the dog, that gets held accountable. Contact the New York Dog Bite Lawyer at 833-8-DOGBITE (833-836-4248), or visit our contact page.
