By LEANNE ITALIE
NEW YORK (AP) — The cuddles. The loyalty. The worshipful eyes. There’s a lot of joy in having a dog, not the least of which is heading out for a brisk walk. And therein lies a peril some dog people should pay more attention to.
Over the past 20 years, injuries related to dog walking have been on the rise among adults and children in the U.S., according to Johns Hopkins University researchers. Fractures, sprains and head trauma are among the most common.
From 2001 to 2020, the estimated number of adults seen at emergency departments for dog-walking injuries increased significantly, from 7,300 to 32,300 a year, lead researcher Ridge Maxson told The Associated Press. Most patients were women (75%). Adults overall between ages 40 and 64 amounted to 47%.
And that’s just emergency room visits. “We know that a significant number of people might seek treatment at primary care, specialty or urgent care clinics for their injuries,” Maxson said.
Dog ownership has become increasingly common, he noted, with about half of U.S. households having at least one dog. The pandemic contributed to the spike.
How to protect yourself
Staying safe when walking a leashed dog takes diligence, focus and, in inclement weather, extra precautions. Multitasking can be hazardous. Put your phone away.
“You can’t really afford to relax when you walk a powerfully built dog with the torque of a small tractor. You have to pay attention,” said Noel Holston, a dog owner in Athens, Georgia.
In the early 2000s, Holston was walking his 65-pound (29.4-kilogram) pit bull in a park near home when a goose flapped and squawked. The dog bolted down an embankment, jerking the now 76-year-old Holston off the sidewalk.
“Off balance and struggling to keep my footing, I stepped into a hole and heard my left ankle snap. The pain was so intense. I almost passed out. My wife, Marty, had to hail a jogger to help get me back to our car. My left foot was dangling like a big wet noodle,” he…
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