Dog attack in Linz: cyclist injured – court gives harsh verdict!

Dog attack in Linz: cyclist injured – court gives harsh verdict!

A significant incident on the subject of dog behavior recently caused a stir in Linz. In May 2023, a dog bit a cyclist in the back of the head after he fell. According to a report by crown The cyclist suffered a wound that had to be stitched and treated several times. The mayor of the municipality of Ansfelden then noticed the dog's abnormality, which led to a complaint from the dog owner to the Upper Austrian State Administrative Court.

The dog owner argued that the old Oö. The dog ownership law should be applied and claimed that the dog was frightened and was otherwise inconspicuous. However, the state administrative court dismissed the dog owner's complaint. It was found that the new Oö. The Dog Keeping Act 2024 applies, which provides stricter rules for conspicuous dogs.

Newer laws and their effects

According to the court, the assessment that a dog is unusual results from an injury to a human, as defined in the Criminal Code. In this specific case, the cyclist's head wound was qualified as a minor injury. The court concluded that there was no attack on the dog because a falling cyclist does not constitute an attack per se. The mayor had therefore acted correctly when he noticed the dog's abnormality.

The new animal protection law that the federal government has introduced in Austria is intended to increase safety when dealing with dogs. This law, which contains stricter obligations for dog owners, stipulates, among other things, that owners of suspicious dogs are not allowed to hand over the dog to a new owner until they provide the municipality with the contact details of the new owner in writing. This is also important for officially approved institutions, as stated in the legal framework ( RIS ).

Protection against dangers from dogs

The new Animal Welfare Act also introduced measures to protect pets, especially dogs. Instead of a breed list, it bans specific breeding characteristics and relies on stricter controls on breeders. The need for stricter regulations became clear, particularly after incidents such as the fatal attack on a jogger in Upper Austria in October 2022. The dog involved was reportedly taking part in bite and attack training, which has reignited discussion about the need for regulatory measures, such as Planet Dog reported.

In addition to these regulations, the Animal Welfare Act requires dog owners to provide proof of expertise that demonstrates expertise in keeping dogs and other animals. New regulations on protection dog training and the training of working dogs have also been introduced to optimize safety in human-animal interactions.