Recently, at a local beach, an unrestrained dog attacked and bit me. He took a chunk out of my calf, leaving me with six deep punctures and without a large area of skin. Bleeding, I walked away from the dog, looking for the owners. I took photos of the dog, the wound, the license plate of the owner's truck and the owner. I called 911 and an officer came to take a report.
I've since learned that the fine for an unrestrained dog is from $50 to $500. If the dog had attacked and killed a monk seal - and he attacked me right where I'd seen a monk seal earlier this year - the fine is up to $50,000 plus jail time for the owners. The owners are lucky I'm not a seal.
I have good health insurance, otherwise the dog's owners would be paying for an emergency room visit, an antibiotic, a follow-up visit with my doctor and a tetanus shot - none of them cheap.
The good news is there is no rabies on Maui. I didn't know that, and I don't think the owners did either.
I'm still angry, have an ugly wound, am limited in what I can do until it heals and now carry pepper spray. This was a dog that had never bitten anyone before, probably just like your dog.
Save yourself some grief - obey the leash law.
Emery Walters
Kihei
