Dogs are most commonly known as man's best friend. However, they can be one of the most aggressive and dangerous animals when they decide to attack. Dog bites are not only painful in when they occur and expensive to treat, but the damages can last well into the future, especially for a developing child.

The mental trauma suffered by a child during an attack can have a lasting effect. When a child is permanently scarred, they often struggle to understand the physical difference and can become the subject of criticism and staring by peers and others in society. A 6-year-old boy was traumatized in a dog attack this week that will most likely haunt him into the future.

The young boy had been walking with his mother in their Southern California neighborhood on a Wednesday. The walk started out like any other average walk but quickly turned to a day neither of them would ever forget. As they walked along the Moreno Valley street, a dog came up behind them.

When the dog approached at full speed, it attacked the young boy, tearing viciously at his delicate ear. The boy's mother frantically tried to pull the dog off of her child. When she did this, the animal turned its sights onto her and latched onto her back. Eventually, the attack ended and the young boy was rushed to the local hospital.

The dog was a bull-mastiff that had escaped from a nearby residential property. The animal's owners claimed that the dog did not have a history of attacking anyone. The incident illustrates that even though a dog has not attacked in the past does not mean that it will not in the future. A homeowner who is negligent in the security and restraint of an animal can be held liable for the damages his or her pet causes.

Source: UP.com, "Boy, 6, loses ear in dog attack," Jan. 25, 2012