Winston-Salem Dog Bite Lawyer
Winston-Salem Dog Bite Lawyer
On This Page
- Winston-Salem and Forsyth County Dog Bite Statistics
- North Carolina Dog Bite Law: The Owner's Knowledge, Negligence, and a Narrow Dangerous Dog Statute
- Winston-Salem Leash Law and Dog Ordinances
- Winston-Salem Animal Control and Rabies Follow-Up
- What To Do After a Winston-Salem Dog Bite
- Winston-Salem Hospitals and Urgent Care for Dog Bites
- How To Report a Dog Bite in Winston-Salem
- Who Can Be Held Responsible for a Winston-Salem Dog Bite
- Filing a Dog Bite Claim in Forsyth County
- Compensation for Winston-Salem Dog Bite Victims
- Contributory Negligence in North Carolina: Any Fault Can Bar Recovery
- Statute of Limitations for Winston-Salem Dog Bite Cases
- Homeowner and Renter Insurance for Winston-Salem Dog Bites
- Why Choose Dog Bite Laws for Your Winston-Salem Case
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Sheriff Handles Bites: Inside Winston-Salem, the county animal code applies, and it makes the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office Animal Services Division responsible for bite cases. The city code also has that division collect penalties under its dog restraint rule.
- 240 Hour Quarantine: Forsyth County quarantines a dog that bit someone for 240 hours from the time of the bite, at the owner's expense, and allows home quarantine only on conditions.
- 864 Quarantines in 2025: The Sheriff's Office reported 864 animals placed in quarantine countywide in 2025. The report does not count dog bites, and the quarantine figure is not a bite count.
- City Restraint Rule: Winston-Salem Code section 6-17 bars leaving a dog outdoors unattended unless it is fenced, enclosed, or tethered with someone present, and makes a dog found off its owner's premises without a leash or similar control subject to impoundment.
- Knowledge Rule: North Carolina has no general dog bite statute, so most Winston-Salem claims rest on what the owner knew about the dog or how carelessly it was kept.
- Any Fault Bars: North Carolina still applies contributory negligence, so carelessness of your own that helped cause the bite can defeat a negligence claim.
- Level I Trauma: Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist is a state designated Level I trauma center, and the state lists Brenner Children's Hospital with Level I pediatric verification.
- Three Years, or 90 Days: Most bite claims must be filed within three years. Section 115 of the city charter says a tort claim against the City of Winston-Salem must be presented in writing within 90 days after the cause of action accrues.
If a dog bit you in Winston-Salem, the owner is responsible when the owner knew or should have known the dog was dangerous, or was careless in confining or restraining it. That is the rule under North Carolina dog bite law, which has no general bite statute, and it comes with a hard edge: under contributory negligence, any carelessness of your own that helped cause the injury can end a negligence claim.
This page covers what Forsyth County publishes about bites, the city and county restraint rules, the Sheriff’s Office quarantine, Winston-Salem’s trauma centers, how to report, who can be responsible, the Forsyth County courts, and the deadlines, including a short one in the city charter.
Dog Bite Laws handles dog attack cases. Talk to us for free, and pay no fee unless we recover money for you.
Winston-Salem and Forsyth County Dog Bite Statistics
The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office annual report does not count dog bites, but it does count quarantines, and the county code puts bite quarantines in the hands of the Sheriff’s Animal Services Division for the whole county, city included.
That report counted 864 animals placed in quarantine in 2025, 902 in 2024, and 1,241 in 2023. In 2025 the division also logged 11,825 calls for service, 925 citations issued, and 1,834 animals transported to the shelter. The reports are posted on the Sheriff’s Office annual reports page.
The quarantine number is not a dog bite count. The report does not define it. The county code requires quarantine for any animal that must be vaccinated against rabies, cats and ferrets included, once it has bitten a person, and the figure covers all of Forsyth County.
There is no Forsyth County line in the national insurance data either. The Insurance Information Institute and State Farm put the average dog related injury claim in 2025 at $65,450 nationwide, in their 2025 report, a figure that says nothing about what your own case is worth.
North Carolina Dog Bite Law: The Owner's Knowledge, Negligence, and a Narrow Dangerous Dog Statute
A Winston-Salem bite claim runs on state law, and North Carolina offers three possible routes. The full treatment, with the cases, is on our North Carolina dog bite law page.
- The knowledge rule. You show the dog had a dangerous or vicious propensity and that the owner or keeper knew or should have known of it. An earlier bite is not the only proof, so this is not a strict one bite rule. The Supreme Court said in Sink v. Moore in 1966 that the evidence of a vicious propensity must be unequivocal: a small dog’s fights with other dogs and habit of chasing cars were not enough.
- Negligence. The question is whether the owner should have known from the dog’s past conduct that it was likely, if not restrained, to hurt someone, and failed to confine or restrain it.
- The dangerous dog statute. G.S. 67-4.4 makes the owner of a dangerous dog strictly liable, but the Court of Appeals held in Mims v. Parker in 2020 that the dog must already have qualified as dangerous before the bite.
That last point matters in Forsyth County, because the county code lets the Sheriff’s Office or the department of public health declare a dog dangerous or potentially dangerous. If the dog that bit you already had a dangerous or potentially dangerous declaration on file, your lawyer needs that file. If the declaration came after your bite, it protects the next person, and your case will usually rest on the first two routes.
Winston-Salem Leash Law and Dog Ordinances
North Carolina has no single statewide leash law for ordinary dogs, so the rule where you were bitten is local. Inside Winston-Salem two codes apply at once: the city’s own Chapter 6, and the Forsyth County animal ordinance, which city Code section 6-16 makes applicable within the corporate limits.
The city rules:
- Section 6-2. An owner may not permit any animal to run at large upon the streets of the city.
- Section 6-17(a), on the owner’s premises. No dog may be left unattended outdoors unless it is restricted to the owner’s property by a tether while the owner or another competent person is present, an above-ground fence, an underground electronic fence, or a secure enclosure. A fence must keep the dog on the lot and keep other dogs and children out.
- Section 6-17(b), off the premises. A dog found off the premises of the person responsible for it, and not under the control of a competent person and restrained by a leash, chain, rope, or other adequate physical control, is subject to impoundment and the county ordinance.
Section 6-17 carries escalating penalties of $50, $75, and $100, and a violation is also a Class 3 misdemeanor with a fine of up to $500 under section 6-1(b).
The county ordinance adds its own layer. Forsyth County Code section 6-13 makes it unlawful to allow an animal to run at large, defined as being off the owner’s property and not under the physical restraint of a competent person, and requires a leash in any public park except inside a designated dog park.
Why this matters for your claim: North Carolina courts have said that breaking a safety statute can establish negligence by itself. But even where the owner broke a safety statute or ordinance, the rule as the courts stated it helps only an injured person who was free from contributory negligence. Note how the dog was kept anyway, because the negligence route asks whether the owner failed to confine or restrain it.
Winston-Salem Animal Control and Rabies Follow-Up
The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office Animal Services Division enforces state law and the county animal ordinance, and the city code names that division as the one that collects penalties under its dog restraint section. County Code section 6-4 makes the Sheriff’s Office responsible for records of bite cases, violations, and complaints. The county code assigns the Forsyth County Animal Shelter to the county’s Animal Services Division in Health and Human Services, and the Sheriff’s Office says animals its deputies pick up are released into the shelter’s custody.
The quarantine is set by County Code section 6-27:
- Confinement right away. An animal that has bitten a person must be confined immediately, reported promptly to the Sheriff’s Office, and quarantined for 240 hours from the time of the bite. That matches the 10 days state law requires.
- Where. At the owner’s expense, in a veterinary hospital or at the county animal shelter if space is available.
- Home quarantine is conditional. The Sheriff’s Office may allow it only after inspecting the premises, and only if the owner files a written request, documents at least one earlier rabies vaccination, keeps the dog in a locked, fully enclosed or fenced area, and agrees in writing. Deputies re-inspect around the seventh day and can move the dog to the shelter or a veterinary hospital if the conditions are broken.
- Release. If rabies does not develop, the dog is released only with the Sheriff’s Office’s written permission.
If there is any evidence a bite may have occurred, the code assumes it did and the quarantine applies. Whether you need rabies shots is a separate decision for your doctor and the Forsyth County Department of Public Health.
What To Do After a Winston-Salem Dog Bite
- Get away from the dog and get help. If the dog is still loose or someone is badly hurt, call for emergency help first.
- Wash the wound and get care the same day. The state health department says to wash with soap and water for 15 minutes, then seek medical attention right away.
- Identify the owner and the dog. Get the owner’s name and address, the address where the dog lives, who was holding the leash, and the rabies tag number. State law requires a dog to wear its rabies tag at all times.
- Report the bite to the Sheriff’s Office the same day. The 240 hours run from the bite, not from your call.
- Photograph the scene. The open gate, the gap in the fence, the tether, the yard, and your wounds, then the wounds again every few days.
- Write down how the dog reached you. Note what the owner said, such as that it got out again.
- Get witness names. Include neighbors who have seen this dog loose or aggressive before.
- Say little to the owner’s insurer. In North Carolina one sentence about reaching toward the dog or stepping into the yard can become a contributory negligence defense. Talk to a lawyer before any recorded statement, and sign nothing.
Watch for the signs of a dog bite infection, and keep a short diary of pain, sleep, and missed school or work.
Winston-Salem Hospitals and Urgent Care for Dog Bites
Winston-Salem has a Level I trauma center. The North Carolina Office of Emergency Medical Services lists these centers on its state trauma center page:
- Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, Winston-Salem. Level I designation, first designated in 1982, with American College of Surgeons and American Burn Association verification.
- Brenner Children’s Hospital. Listed by the state with Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist as holding American College of Surgeons verification as a Level I pediatric center, which matters when the person bitten is a child.
- Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital, Greensboro. Level II designation, first designated in 1984.
Whatever the wound looks like, the state health department says to wash it with soap and water for 15 minutes and seek immediate medical attention, and that a doctor will determine what treatment is needed, such as post-exposure vaccination. Tell staff it was a dog bite, and say so if the dog is unknown or unvaccinated. A treating physician must report the bite to the local health director within 24 hours under G.S. 130A-196.
How To Report a Dog Bite in Winston-Salem
Two duties overlap here. State law, G.S. 130A-196, tells the person bitten, or a parent or guardian, and the dog’s owner to notify the local health director immediately. Forsyth County’s code adds that it is unlawful to fail to report a bite to a person as soon as possible, and unlawful for an owner who gives a biting dog away or moves it off the premises to keep the Sheriff’s Office from knowing where it is.
In practice:
- Call the Sheriff’s Office. The Animal Services Division says concerns that need a deputy go to the Sheriff’s Office’s 24/7 non-emergency dispatch line, listed on its Animal Services page. Its email and voicemail are checked only during business hours and are not for reporting a complaint.
- Tell the health department. Forsyth County’s own rabies guidance says to report a bite to the Forsyth County Department of Public Health or to animal control.
- Have the details ready: your name and address, the owner’s name and address, when and where the bite happened, and a description of the dog. Ask for a case number.
A bite report can also lead to a dangerous dog declaration. Under County Code section 6-59, the Sheriff’s Office or the department of public health may declare a dog potentially dangerous or dangerous based on bite reports, a written complaint from a citizen willing to testify, what deputies see, or other credible evidence. Forsyth County’s definition of a potentially dangerous dog is broad: a dog that bites a person without provocation qualifies. The owner gets a written declaration, has a short window to appeal to the county’s hearing board, and can take the final ruling to Forsyth County Superior Court within 10 days. For what comes next, read what happens after a dog bite is reported.
Who Can Be Held Responsible for a Winston-Salem Dog Bite
The claim starts with the owner, and often reaches further.
- The owner. Often more than one adult in the household. Our article on what determines ownership of a dog explains how that is sorted out.
- A keeper. North Carolina’s knowledge rule reaches anyone who undertakes to manage, control, or care for the dog as owners usually do, with or without the owner’s permission. In Lee v. Rice in 2002, owning the house where the dog lived was not enough, because the defendants had never fed or cared for it.
- Anyone careless with the dog. The Supreme Court of North Carolina held in Holcomb v. Colonial Associates in 2004 that a negligence claim does not require the defendant to be an owner or keeper. So whoever had charge of the dog when it bit, such as a walker or sitter, is worth looking at. Whether each one owed you a duty of care depends on the facts.
- A landlord. Since Curlee v. Johnson in 2021, a landlord is liable for a tenant’s dog only if, before the bite, it knew the dog posed a danger and had enough control to remove it, such as a lease clause. Complaints to a Winston-Salem property management office are often the key evidence, so ask for them early.
- A government body. A police dog or a dog in public custody brings immunity rules and, for the city, a notice rule in its charter, covered below.
Forsyth County’s code has its own, wider definition of owner for enforcement purposes, reaching anyone who has a property right in a dog, keeps or harbors it, or acts as its custodian for seven or more consecutive days. It also says a public right-of-way and the common areas of a condominium, apartment complex, or townhouse development are not the owner’s property. Those are definitions in the county animal ordinance. Whether they change who can be sued is a question for your lawyer.
Filing a Dog Bite Claim in Forsyth County
Forsyth County is Judicial District 31 for both superior court and district court, and the Forsyth County Clerk of Court’s office is at the Forsyth County Courthouse, 175 N. Chestnut Street in Winston-Salem.
- Small claims. A claim for money of $10,000 or less is a small claim under G.S. 7A-210 when the plaintiff asks for assignment to a magistrate, and the chief district judge may assign it to one if the defendant lives in the county.
- District court. The proper division for civil cases of $25,000 or less under G.S. 7A-243.
- Superior court. The proper division when more than $25,000 is in controversy.
Whether a case settles with the owner’s insurer or goes to court, it helps when the file holds the Sheriff’s Office case number, the quarantine record, any earlier complaints or declarations at that address, and every bill and pay stub. Our guide on how to file a dog bite claim walks through the process, and medical evidence in a dog bite claim explains which records carry the most weight.
Compensation for Winston-Salem Dog Bite Victims
A North Carolina dog bite victim can recover compensatory damages for what the injury has cost and will cost:
- Medical bills, past and future, including surgery, scar revision, rabies treatment, and counseling.
- Lost wages and any loss of earning capacity.
- Pain and suffering, scarring and disfigurement, and mental anguish, including emotional trauma after a dog attack.
- Damage to property, and under G.S. 67-4.4 injury to another animal, such as your own dog.
North Carolina’s statutory cap on noneconomic damages, in G.S. 90-21.19, applies by its terms to medical malpractice actions, not dog bite claims. Punitive damages are different: under G.S. 1D-15 they require fraud, malice, or willful or wanton conduct proved by clear and convincing evidence, and under G.S. 1D-25 they are capped at three times compensatory damages or $250,000, whichever is greater.
For more, see dog bite compensation, our page on the average dog bite settlement in North Carolina, and the dog bite settlement calculator, which gives a rough frame rather than a prediction.
Contributory Negligence in North Carolina: Any Fault Can Bar Recovery
This rule shapes almost every Winston-Salem negligence case. If your own failure to use ordinary care for your safety helped cause the injury, you can recover nothing on that claim. It is not a matter of trimming the award by your share of the fault: the Supreme Court said in Smith v. Fiber Controls Corp. in 1980 that a contributory negligence verdict conclusively bars recovery.
The limits on the rule are what keep cases alive:
- The owner must prove it. G.S. 1-139 puts the burden of proof on the party asserting contributory negligence.
- It is often for a jury. In Hill v. Williams in 2001, a drywall finisher who admitted he did not trust a Rottweiler and still went outside was not contributorily negligent as a matter of law, and the question went to the jury.
- Gross negligence defeats it. The Supreme Court held in Yancey v. Lea in 2001 that contributory negligence is not a bar when the defendant’s gross negligence, or willful or wanton conduct, is a proximate cause of the injury.
- Children under seven are protected outright. Under Welch v. Jenkins in 1967, a child under seven is conclusively presumed incapable of contributory negligence, a child between seven and fourteen is presumed incapable of contributory negligence unless the owner proves otherwise, and a teenager of fourteen or older is presumed to have an adult’s capacity unless clear proof shows otherwise. If an adjuster says your child provoked the dog, read whether a child can provoke a dog.
So be careful what you tell an adjuster about reaching for the dog, opening a gate, or walking into a yard.
Statute of Limitations for Winston-Salem Dog Bite Cases
The general deadline is three years from the bite under G.S. 1-52.
- Children. A child’s own claim generally runs until the twenty-first birthday, because the clock does not start until 18. A parent’s claim for the child’s medical bills is separate and should be reviewed right away.
- A death. A wrongful death action must be filed within two years of the death under G.S. 1-53.
- A state agency. A claim that a state employee’s negligence caused the injury goes to the North Carolina Industrial Commission within three years, and the Commission may award damages only if it finds no contributory negligence by the claimant.
- Forsyth County. A county is generally immune for governmental functions, but buying liability insurance waives that immunity to the extent of the coverage.
- The City of Winston-Salem. Section 115 of the city charter says tort claims against the city must be presented in writing to the city council or the mayor within 90 days after the cause of action accrues, and that suit must be brought within 12 months of presenting the claim. The charter says an action is barred unless both are done.
If anything about the bite involves a city or county employee, vehicle, or property, talk to a lawyer within days, not months. Our guide to the dog bite statute of limitations explains how these clocks interact.
Homeowner and Renter Insurance for Winston-Salem Dog Bites
In most cases the money comes from the dog owner’s homeowners or renters policy. The North Carolina Department of Insurance’s consumer guide to homeowners insurance explains that personal liability coverage applies when you or a resident of your household are legally responsible for injury to others, and that it provides a defense and pays damages. Medical payments coverage, a separate part of the policy, pays reasonable medical expenses for people accidentally injured on the property.
Forsyth County goes further than the state’s dangerous dog statutes, which do not require the owner of a dangerous dog to carry insurance:
- Declared dangerous dogs. County Code section 6-60 requires the owner to show a liability policy of at least $100,000 for the benefit of anyone the dog injures, for as long as the dog stays in the county, along with a six-sided enclosure, warning signs, a microchip, and sterilization.
- Preventive orders. Under section 6-18, the Sheriff’s Office or the department of public health can order preventive measures for an animal, and an unprovoked bite is one of the listed reasons. Those measures can include $100,000 of liability insurance and a warning sign.
If the dog that bit you was under one of those orders, the required policy is a place to look for payment. Ask the owner in writing for the insurer’s name and policy number. The Department of Insurance warns that keeping certain breeds can lead to cancellation or nonrenewal, so confirm the policy was in force on the day of the bite.
Why Choose Dog Bite Laws for Your Winston-Salem Case
Dog Bite Laws handles dog attack cases, and a Winston-Salem case is built from county records: the Sheriff’s Office bite file, the quarantine record, any section 6-18 preventive order or dangerous dog declaration, earlier complaints at the address, and the city restraint rule the owner broke.
North Carolina law makes the early work count. We prove what the owner knew, find every owner, keeper, landlord, and policy connected to the dog, and handle the adjuster so a casual phone call does not hand the insurer a contributory negligence defense.
We also take cases in Greensboro, Charlotte, Raleigh, and Durham. Read about founding attorney Michael Agruss, and contact us when you are ready. The consultation is free, and there is no fee unless we recover money for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
The county. The Forsyth County animal ordinance applies inside the city, and it says a bite is reported to the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office Animal Services Division, which asks that concerns needing a deputy go through the Sheriff's Office's round-the-clock non-emergency dispatch line. State law also expects the bite to reach the local health director, so let the Forsyth County Department of Public Health know as well. Ask the Sheriff's Office for a case number.
Yes, on conditions. The Sheriff's Office must inspect the home first, and the owner must ask in writing, prove the dog has had at least one rabies vaccination, keep it in a locked enclosed or fenced area, and sign the terms. A deputy checks again around day seven. If the owner lets the dog out, deputies can move it to the shelter or a veterinary hospital for the rest of the 240 hours.
Yes, in effect. Off its owner's premises, a Winston-Salem dog must be under the control of a competent person and restrained by a leash, chain, rope, or similar physical control, or it can be impounded. At home, an unattended dog outdoors must be fenced, enclosed, or tethered with someone present. County rules also require a leash in public parks outside designated dog parks.
Usually not for your own bite. The Court of Appeals held in 2020 that North Carolina's strict liability statute applies only if the dog already qualified as dangerous before the bite in question. A declaration made after your bite protects the next person, but your case will usually rest on the owner's knowledge of the dog's behavior or the owner's negligence in restraining it. A declaration that existed before your bite is a different matter, so ask whether there was one.
The owner can try, but the law starts on your child's side. A child between seven and fourteen is presumed incapable of contributory negligence, and the owner has to prove this particular child understood the danger. A child under seven cannot be found contributorily negligent at all. Your child's own claim also generally lasts until the twenty-first birthday, though your claim for the medical bills needs attention much sooner.
Not every owner. The county requires at least $100,000 of liability coverage for a dog declared dangerous, and it can order the same coverage as a preventive measure, for example after an unprovoked bite. North Carolina's dangerous dog statutes have no such requirement. For an ordinary dog, payment usually comes from the owner's homeowners or renters policy, so ask for the carrier and policy number in writing.
Possibly a very short one. The city charter says a tort claim against the City of Winston-Salem must be presented in writing to the city council or the mayor within 90 days after the cause of action accrues, and that suit must be brought within 12 months after the claim is presented, or the action is barred. The city may also be immune except to the extent it carries liability insurance. Do not wait for the general three-year deadline. Talk to a lawyer right away.
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