Rising Dog Maulings in Two Central Texas Cities (2018-2023): What Public Safety Policy Got Wrong—and How to Fix It

Austin and San Antonio Severe Injury Dog Bite Data Pre- and Post-Covid Austin, TX - Since 2022, we have been reporting a steep rise in dog bite fatalities in CDC Wonder data during the Covid and post-Covid years. In October, we published our 2022 Macro-Level Forces Report. We discussed the rise in the total number of deaths to 98 -- the highest ever recorded in CDC Wonder data -- and a 180% rise since 2018 (from 35 deaths to 98). Our hypothesis quickly became that if Covid-era dog bi… [Read full blog post]

No-Kill Eats Their Own: When the 'Badge of Honor' to Keep Serial Biters Alive Causes Rescuers to Devour Their Own

In her zeal to keep serial biters alive, a no-kill rescuer attacks larger no-kill agencies. No-Kill Meets Mad Max Austin, TX - Recently, we were alerted to a post by Promoting Integrity in No Kill Sheltering, which is penned by Eileen McFall. The post features two central players in "no-kill," which is the private-public partnership of Austin Pets Alive (APA), a 501(c)3 organization, and Austin Animal Center (AAC). The city of Austin has a 95% save rate initiative (5% above t… [Read full blog post]

Dog Bites Increase 35% in Austin After the Adoption of 'No-Kill' Policy

2007-2011 Dog Bite Data Austin, TX - DogsBite.org recently reviewed 5-years of dog bite data gained from the City of Austin under the Freedom of Information Act. The data shows that dog bites have increased substantially since the city adopted a No-Kill policy in 2010. Between 2009 and 2011, dog bites increased 35%. The primary offenders of all bites were pit bulls and their mixes, responsible for 22% (1,288), followed by Labradors and their mixes, which inflicted 12% (682)… [Read full blog post]