Being the victim of a dog attack is traumatic. If you have only had amicable contact with dogs prior, you may find yourself wondering how this could have happened to you. Dogs, like most animals, can attack for several reasons.
BBC confirms that stress and pain are major contributors to dog attacks.
Stress-induced attacks
Most dogs will attack when they are afraid. If threatened, dogs are most likely to bite. For some, they may bite if they feel like you are a threat to their territory. Leaving dogs with strangers or exposing them to loud parties or other events can cause undue stress and you may see them lash out easily. Dogs cannot tell you when they are uncomfortable and sometimes their body language is easy to confuse.
Children can also stress dogs out. If a dog has not been around children, all they see is a smaller human who acts unpredictably. Kids wave their hands, pet and pick up dogs with little reservation. For many dogs, this is an extremely alarming situation.
Pained attacks
Dogs who suffer from moderate or chronic pain are more likely to attack. Like people, pain causes irritability in dogs. Dogs with joint problems may snap if a person forces them to walk when they do not feel up to it. Some quiet diseases can cause not only pain but problems with the brain. Liver disease and brain tumors, for instance, can cause a dog to behave unpredictably.
Dog attack prevention is possible. Most dogs need training from a young age to avoid any aggression issues in their future.