What Happens If Your Dog Bites Someone in Maine: Laws, Liability, and What to Do Next
April 26, 2026
Your dog just bit someone, and your mind is racing. Whether it happened in your backyard, on a walk, or at the dog park, the moments after a bite can feel overwhelming — and the legal consequences in Maine are serious enough that you need to understand them quickly.
Maine has some of the most clearly defined dog bite laws in the country, including a strict liability standard that can hold you responsible even if your dog has never shown a hint of aggression before. Knowing where you stand legally, what steps to take immediately, and what your dog’s future could look like will help you navigate this situation with clarity rather than panic.
Maine’s Liability Standard: Strict Liability vs. the One-Bite Rule
Maine firmly rejects the old “one free bite” approach. Maine is a strict liability state, and the one-bite rule was rejected in 2001. That distinction matters enormously for you as a dog owner.
Under a one-bite rule, an owner could escape liability the first time their dog hurt someone — as long as they had no prior knowledge of the dog’s dangerous tendencies. Maine eliminated that escape hatch entirely. Maine operates under a strict liability statute, meaning dog owners are held responsible for injuries inflicted by their dogs even if the dog has never displayed aggressive behavior before and the owner had no prior knowledge of their dog’s potential to bite.
There is, however, an important geographic distinction built into the law. The dog bite statute has an unusual feature: strict liability applies only if the victim is not on the owner’s or keeper’s property when injured. In plain terms, if your dog bites someone on a public sidewalk, at a park, or on someone else’s property, you are automatically liable for damages — no proof of negligence required.
Maine is a strict liability state, which means a dog owner will be considered responsible for any injury their dog causes to a person regardless of whether the dog had previously shown signs of being dangerous. On the other hand, if the victim was on your property at the time, they will have to establish that you were negligent in some capacity, such as by failing to control the dog and prevent the attack.
Key Insight: Maine’s strict liability applies off your property. On your property, the injured party must prove you were negligent — but you can still face civil liability either way.
Maine law also addresses comparative fault. When a dog injures a person who is not on the owner’s or keeper’s premises at the time of the injury, the owner or keeper is liable in a civil action for the amount of the damages. Any fault on the part of the person injured may not reduce the damages recovered for physical injury unless the court determines that the fault of the person injured exceeded the fault of the dog’s keeper or owner. So even if the victim played some role in the incident, you remain liable unless their fault was greater than yours. For more on how dog bite liability plays out in neighboring states, see how Connecticut handles dog bite cases and how Florida’s dog bite laws compare.
Your Immediate Legal Obligations After Your Dog Bites Someone in Maine
The seconds and minutes after a bite are not just emotionally charged — they carry real legal weight. Maine law spells out exactly what you must do at the scene, and failing to act correctly can turn a civil matter into a criminal one.
Under Maine Revised Statutes § 3955, your first obligation is to stay and render aid. The owner or keeper shall secure aid for the injured person, including securing medical assistance and reporting the assault to the local law enforcement agency. After securing aid for the injured person, the owner or keeper may leave the scene on a temporary basis in order to contain the dog that assaulted the person. After securing aid and containing the dog, the owner or keeper shall provide their name, current address, and contact information to the injured person, a person acting for the injured person, or a law enforcement officer.
First, stay, secure medical assistance, and give the individual your contact information. Failure to take those steps is a Class D crime punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine. This is not a minor technicality — leaving the scene after your dog causes injury requiring medical attention is a criminal offense in Maine.
Important Note: Under Maine law § 3955, fleeing the scene of a dog bite that requires medical attention is a Class D crime. Always stay, secure help, and provide your contact information before leaving.
Beyond the scene itself, you have additional practical steps to take promptly. Get the dog owner’s contact information and confirm the dog’s vaccination history. If witnesses are present, collect their information too. Notify local animal control or law enforcement to ensure the attack is documented and the dog’s behavior is investigated.
Maine also requires that within 30 days of turning 6 months old, dogs must be vaccinated against rabies. If your dog was current on its rabies vaccination, that documentation will be important. A healthy dog that bites a human should be confined and observed for 10 days. Those that remain alive and healthy 10 days after a bite would not have been shedding rabies virus in their saliva at the time of the bite. Expect animal control to enforce this quarantine protocol regardless of your dog’s vaccination status.
What Happens to Your Dog After a Bite in Maine
One of the most anxious questions dog owners face is what will happen to their animal. The answer depends on the severity of the bite, your dog’s history, and how authorities classify the incident going forward.
In most first-time bite situations, your dog will not automatically be euthanized. After a dog bite is reported, both the dog and its owner can be assessed. Steps can be taken or imposed to ensure that the dog will not hurt anyone else. Those steps can include muzzling the dog when it is outside the home to prevent further biting.
The 10-day quarantine is the immediate concern. A healthy domestic dog that bites a person may be confined and observed for 10 days under the supervision of the animal control officer in the town where the animal resides. This observation period is primarily a public health measure related to rabies risk, and it can take place at your home, a veterinary facility, or an animal control facility depending on local requirements.
After the quarantine period, the path forward depends on whether a formal dangerous dog complaint is filed. A person who is assaulted or threatened with bodily injury by a dog, or a person witnessing such an assault, or a person with knowledge of such an assault against a minor, within 30 days of the incident, may make written complaint to the sheriff, local law enforcement officer, or animal control officer that the dog is a dangerous dog or a nuisance dog.
Pro Tip: Cooperate fully with animal control during the quarantine period. Resistance or failure to comply can escalate the legal situation and may be used against you in any subsequent dangerous dog hearing.
If no complaint is filed and your dog has no prior history of aggression, the incident may conclude with the quarantine and a civil liability claim from the injured party. However, if a complaint moves forward, the consequences for your dog can become significantly more serious, as outlined in the next section.
Dangerous Dog Designation and What It Means for You in Maine
A dangerous dog designation in Maine is a formal legal finding — and it carries lasting consequences for both you and your animal. Understanding the process and what it could mean is essential.
Maine’s dangerous dog law, established by Maine Revised Statutes Section 3952-A, takes the question of liability a step further. This law notes that dogs who meet certain conditions will be classified as dangerous by the state, meaning that the dog’s owner may face additional consequences should the animal cause harm to another person. More specifically, a dog who bites someone who is not trespassing on the owner’s property and who either causes an injury or instills a fear of assault in the victim may be considered dangerous by the state.
Once a complaint is filed, the process moves through the court system. A representative of the sheriff’s department, a local law enforcement officer, or an animal control officer appointed by the municipality shall investigate and document the complaint. Upon completion of the investigation, the investigator may issue a civil violation summons for keeping a dangerous dog or a nuisance dog.
If the court finds your dog is dangerous, the penalties can be significant. A person who owns or keeps a dog determined by a court to be a dangerous dog or a nuisance dog commits a civil violation for which the court shall adjudge a fine of not less than $250 and not more than $5,000, plus costs, none of which may be suspended.
Beyond the fine, the court has broad authority to impose additional conditions. These can include:
- Mandatory muzzling with a basket-style muzzle in public
- Confinement to your premises
- Requiring you to obtain a minimum of $100,000 in liability insurance for the life of the dog
- Requiring the dog to be evaluated by a certified canine behaviorist or certified dog trainer, and requiring you to attend dog training classes
- Ordering you to notify law enforcement immediately if the dog escapes
In the most serious cases, euthanasia is on the table. If, upon hearing, the court finds that a dog is a dangerous dog, the court shall impose a fine and may order euthanasia if the court finds that the dog has killed, maimed, or inflicted serious bodily injury upon a person or has a history of a prior assault or a prior finding by the court of being a dangerous dog.
Important Note: A nuisance dog designation is less severe than a dangerous dog finding, but a dog may only be classified as a nuisance dog once. A second offense moves it into dangerous dog territory automatically.
Compliance with court orders is not optional. If the owner or keeper of a dog willfully fails to comply with any provision of a court order, the court shall find the owner or keeper in contempt. Additionally, the court may order that the owner or keeper of the dog, if that person has previously been adjudicated of having violated this section, may not own, possess, or have on that person’s premises any dogs for a period of time, which may be permanent.
If you want to understand the wildlife and animal landscape of Maine more broadly, including other animals that can present risks, explore our guide to types of caterpillars in Maine for a sense of the state’s diverse fauna.
Insurance Coverage and Financial Liability in Maine
One of the most practical concerns after a dog bite is money — specifically, who pays for the injured person’s medical bills, lost wages, and other damages. In Maine, the financial exposure can be substantial, and your insurance coverage is your first line of defense.
Homeowners and renters insurance policies typically cover dog bite liability legal expenses, up to the liability limits, which are typically $100,000 to $300,000. If the claim exceeds the limit, the dog owner is responsible for all damages above that amount.
Homeowner’s or renter’s insurance typically covers dog bite claims, including medical bills, lost wages, and other damages. However, insurance companies often try to minimize payouts by downplaying injuries, arguing that the victim provoked the attack, or claiming the policy doesn’t apply. If the dog owner’s insurance refuses to pay, the victim may be able to file a lawsuit for compensation.
The types of damages a victim can pursue in Maine are wide-ranging. The value of a dog bite injury lawsuit varies from case to case because you can only be sued for the amount of damages incurred. Typically, the injured individual will attempt to recover compensation for medical treatment including surgery and physical therapy, as well as pain and suffering.
| Damage Type | What It Covers |
|---|---|
| Medical Expenses | Emergency care, surgery, physical therapy, follow-up treatment |
| Lost Wages | Income lost due to injury and recovery time |
| Pain and Suffering | Physical pain and emotional distress from the attack |
| Psychological Trauma | Counseling costs, anxiety, PTSD related to the incident |
| Property Damage | Damage to clothing, equipment, or other property during the attack |
| Wrongful Death | Damages available to surviving family if the attack proved fatal |
Be aware that your insurance situation could change after a bite. Once a dog has bitten someone, it poses an increased risk. In that instance, the insurance company may charge a higher premium, nonrenew the homeowner’s insurance policy, or exclude the dog from coverage.
Common Mistake: Do not speak to the injured party’s attorney or make any admissions about fault before consulting your own insurance company or a personal injury attorney. Statements made early in the process can be used against you.
If your dog is later designated as dangerous by a court, remember that the court can order you to maintain a minimum of $100,000 in liability insurance for the life of the dog — a cost that compounds over years of ownership. Maine’s statute of limitations also matters here: under Maine law, a lawsuit must generally be filed within six years of the dog attack, which allows time for a full diagnosis of the injuries, including long-term psychological effects. That six-year window means a claim against you can arrive long after the incident itself.
Understanding what your dog eats and how its health affects behavior can also be relevant context in bite cases. Our guides on what types of meat dogs can eat and what fruits dogs can eat cover canine nutrition basics. For insights into what the color of your dog’s gums can tell you about its health, see what the color of your dog’s gums means.
Criminal Charges for Dog Bites in Maine
Most dog bite cases in Maine are handled as civil matters — but certain circumstances can cross into criminal territory, and you need to know where that line is.
The clearest criminal exposure comes from leaving the scene. As noted earlier, Maine § 3955 makes it a Class D crime to leave after your dog causes injury requiring medical attention without rendering aid and providing your contact information. A violation of this section is a Class D crime. In Maine, Class D crimes carry penalties of up to 364 days in jail and fines up to $2,000.
Beyond the scene-leaving statute, broader criminal liability can arise when an owner’s conduct is reckless or intentional. Dog owners could be charged with serious crimes if their dogs attack and severely injure people. In cases involving a dog with a known dangerous history that an owner failed to control, prosecutors may pursue charges related to reckless conduct or criminal threatening.
Maine’s treble damages provision adds another layer of financial and quasi-criminal consequence. If a dog whose owner refuses or neglects to comply with a court order wounds any person by a sudden assault or wounds or kills any domestic animal, the owner shall pay the person injured treble damages and costs to be recovered by a civil action. Treble damages means the court can multiply the base damages by three — a significant escalation that functions as a punitive measure.
Pro Tip: If your dog has been previously designated as dangerous and you fail to comply with court-ordered restrictions, your exposure to both criminal contempt and treble damages in any subsequent incident increases dramatically. Full compliance with all court orders is essential.
There is also the matter of what happens when a dangerous dog’s owner ignores a court order entirely. After issuing a summons and before hearing, if the dog poses an immediate or continuing threat to the public, a sheriff, local law enforcement officer, or animal control officer shall give a written order requiring the owner or keeper of the dog to muzzle with a basket-style muzzle, restrain or confine the dog to the owner’s premises, or have the dog confined at the owner’s expense. Defying that written order can result in the court authorizing law enforcement to seize your dog.
It is worth noting that Maine also grants significant legal protection to people who act in self-defense during a dog attack. Any person may lawfully kill a dog if necessary to protect that person, another person, or a domesticated animal during the course of a sudden, unprovoked assault. This provision underscores just how seriously Maine law treats dangerous dogs — and by extension, how seriously it holds owners responsible for preventing attacks from happening in the first place.
If you are facing potential criminal charges related to a dog bite, consulting with a qualified Maine attorney is the most important step you can take. The intersection of criminal law, civil liability, and animal control regulations is complex, and the stakes — for both you and your dog — are too high to navigate alone.
For a broader look at responsible pet ownership and animal behavior, explore related topics like what animals are in petting zoos or learn more about what omnivore animals eat to understand animal instincts and behaviors more deeply.
Putting It All Together
A dog bite in Maine sets a clear legal process in motion — one that you have very little power to stop once it begins. What you do have control over is how you respond. Staying at the scene, cooperating with animal control, notifying your insurance company promptly, and understanding the dangerous dog designation process are all steps that can meaningfully affect the outcome for both you and your dog.
Maine’s strict liability standard means that “my dog never did this before” is not a defense. The law is designed to protect the public, and it places the burden squarely on owners to manage their animals responsibly. The good news is that for first-time incidents without serious injury, the consequences — while real — are manageable with the right approach.
If your dog has bitten someone and you are uncertain about your next steps, speaking with a Maine personal injury or animal law attorney early in the process gives you the clearest picture of your exposure and your options.