More than a 3 day weekend!  Memorial Day is coming up in just a couple of days and the weekend will be full of Memorial Day Celebrations, which is great, however, I don't want the actual meaning of the day to get lost in a whirlwind of pool parties, hot dogs and burgers on the grill. 

Originally Memorial Day was called Decoration Day - the tradition began on May 30, 1868 with decorating graves of Civil War soldiers with flowers, wreaths and flags. The name was changed to Memorial Day in 1950 calling on Americans to observe each Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and designating a period on that day when the people of the United States might unite in prayer.  In 1971 President Nixon changed it to a National Holiday in order to honor the  men and women who died in all wars.

Some of the ways to honor our Veterans include:

Putting flags or flowers on the graves of men and women who served in wars
Fly the U.S Flag at half-staff until noon
Visit monuments dedicated to soldiers, sailors and marines
Participate in a National Moment of Remembrance at 3 pm local time
March in  / attend a parade

So thank you to our Veterans - those who served so bravely.  We thank the families of those who gave their lives for our country.  Thank you to our Veterans and our current men and women in all branches of the military - we thank you for the fact you are willing to lay down your lives for our country.  May you stay safe.

We honor these brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice.  Your sacrifice was not in vain.

If you have purchased Home or Renters Insurance, you have been asked about whether you have pets or not.  What they really want to know is if you have a dog on the Doggie Hit List!   But WHY?  Why do they want to know?

There are dogs (I know I'm going to get push back on this!) that historically are more likely to cause damage - serious damage - than others.  I know I know.... it is how they are trained or raised.  Well, not always.  There are some breeds  just more likely to bite, regardless of how gently you may have raised that pup! 

I think the most common misconception is that the general public assumes we are only talking about the dog biting.  While that may be mostly true, it is also true that many liability claims that are paid through Homeowner Insurance may be due to injury that occurs because of the dog, but does not necessarily mean biting! 

When my son was small, we had a very sweet but large Chocolate Lab Maggie!  While Maggie was destructive as in eating the wiring to the hot tub and the cross bar off the privacy gate , she would never hurt a person by biting them!  She would, however, hurt my son because she was so happy to see him that she would run straight at him and knock him down!  After a few times of getting knocked down on the cement, my son no longer wanted to go out in the backyard to play!  Did that make Maggie a bad dog? No, but it did make me reconsider whether she was the right pet for us!  My son never cracked his head open from it, but what if a little friend had been over playing and Maggie had done the same thing to them.  Maggie could have very easily hurt someone without the intention of it!  Medical bills could have been amassed and there was no biting involved!  This is the kind of thing that your Liability and Medical pays for from your Homeowner policy. 

According to P&C Newsweek, in 2015 Texas ranked 5th in the nation in terms of the number of claims.  Although this only considers those claims that were reported, there were 688 claims with an average amount paid $30,241. This number is an 11% increase from the previous year.  This trend, again, is not only dog bits, but also includes knocking down children, cyclists, the elderly, etc, all of which can result in fractures and other trauma injuries. 

So, what can we as dog owners do?  Help your dog develop social skills and learn to read your dog's body language. Children and dogs should never be left alone together. Other things we can do is to discourage children from disturbing a dog that is sleeping or eating. Teach children not to approach a strange dog and to avoid eye contact with a dog that appears threatening.  Take time to research BEFORE getting a dog, which breed would be most likely to fit with your family and neighborhood. 

Here are a couple of resources that are committed to education about preventing dog bites:
American Academy of Pediatrics  www.aap.org
American Veterinary Medical Association   www.avma.org 

#NationalDogBitePrevention  #safetymatters  #homeinsurance  #KnowYourDog  #Liability