North Dakota Dog Bite Law

How dog bite liability works in North Dakota

North Dakota's dog bite rule comes from a single Supreme Court case. In 1976, in Sendelbach v. Grad, a farm visitor buying eggs was bitten by Queenie, a herding dog that had just had pups. The court called the question one "of first impression in North Dakota" and refused to make owners of a known-dangerous dog liable without fault¹. It approved a two-part test instead: the owner must have known, or reasonably should have known, that the dog was dangerous, and must then have failed to use reasonable care to prevent the injury¹. The jury found for the owners, and the verdict stood.

That makes North Dakota stricter on victims than the classic one-bite rule, which makes knowledge alone enough. It is also very different from Minnesota, across the Red River, where a statute makes owners liable without proof of knowledge. South Dakota also uses the one-bite rule, and Montana has a statute only for bites inside city limits.

The Legislature has never passed a dog bite statute. Its dog-specific civil rules cover dogs that kill, wound or chase livestock and poultry, and rabies costs; none makes an owner liable for a bite without fault^20,12. The 1976 opinion also left questions open: the court said its instruction was not "necessarily" correct "in all situations" and limited its ruling to bites on the owner's land¹. No later North Dakota appellate decision on dog bites to people turned up in our search of published opinions.

The upside for victims is time. The six-year limit for injuries to the person is among the longest in the country⁵. Compare every state in the national table.

No dog bite statute: the one-bite rule

North Dakota has no statute that makes a dog's owner automatically liable for a bite. Claims rest on the common law, described below. See the one-bite rule for how it compares with the states that have a statute.

Proving the owner knew or was careless

The Sendelbach instruction is the working rule: an owner "is not liable for personal injuries inflicted by his dog unless the owner knew or reasonably should have known that the dog was dangerous or vicious", and then must "exercise reasonable care to guard against and to prevent injuries"¹. The owner is charged with notice of dangerous traits "of the dog itself, or of the class to which it belongs"¹. Earlier bites, attacks, growling at people and warnings from neighbors are the usual evidence. A year later O'Leary v. Coenen replaced the visitor categories the 1976 case had used with one duty of reasonable care to lawful entrants². North Dakota's general negligence statute makes everyone responsible for injuries caused by "want of ordinary care" in managing their property³. A city leash or at-large ordinance may support a negligence claim, but no North Dakota appellate decision says whether breaking one is negligence per se for a dog bite.

Defenses owners raise

Other defense

No knowledge, or reasonable care. The owner wins by showing they had no reason to know the dog was dangerous, or that they took reasonable precautions¹. In Sendelbach the dog had never bitten a person and nipped cattle only on command while herding; the jury found for the owners¹.

Provocation

North Dakota has no statutory provocation defense. Teasing, hitting or cornering a dog counts as your fault under the comparative fault statute, which reduces or bars the award⁸. It also bears on whether the owner could reasonably have anticipated the bite¹.

Assumption of risk

Assumption of risk and "failure to avoid injury" are not complete defenses. The statute lists them as forms of fault to be compared with the owner's⁸. A groomer, sitter or visitor who knowingly handles a dangerous dog can still recover a reduced amount if their share is under half.

Trespassing

A landowner owes a trespasser only a duty not to injure them willfully or wantonly, and ordinary care once the trespasser's presence is known². O'Leary v. Coenen (1977) dropped the invitee and licensee categories for lawful visitors but kept that rule for trespassers².

Shared fault

Modified comparative fault (barred at 50%) (N.D.C.C. § 32-03.2-02).

Your fault reduces the award in proportion, and it bars recovery if it is "as great as the combined fault of all other persons" who caused the injury, so 50% or more bars you⁸. Liability is several only: each defendant pays its own share, unless they acted in concert⁸. Because North Dakota claims run on negligence, there is no separate strict-liability question here.

How the five fault systems compare: provocation, trespass and shared fault.

North Dakota dog bite statute of limitations

6 years (N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(5))

A claim for "any other injury to the person" must be filed within six years after it accrues, normally the day of the bite⁵. A wrongful death claim has two years from the death, and so does a claim pleaded as assault or battery⁷. A suit against a city, county or other political subdivision must be filed within three years¹⁰. A claim against the state needs written notice to the director of the Office of Management and Budget within 180 days (one year for a serious injury) and suit within three years¹¹.

Children. Time while the child is under 18 does not count, but the extension cannot run "longer than one year after the disability ceases"⁶. On the statute's words, a bitten child has until the later of six years after the bite or the 19th birthday.

Work out your own date with the dog bite claim checker, or compare deadlines in every state.

Damages

You can recover economic damages (medical care, rehabilitation, lost earnings and earning capacity, other monetary losses) and noneconomic damages (pain, suffering, disfigurement, mental anguish, emotional distress, fear of injury)⁹. No cap applies to a claim against a private owner. Exemplary (punitive) damages require clear and convincing proof of oppression, fraud or malice; you must ask the court's permission to add them after filing, and they are capped at twice the compensatory damages or $250,000, whichever is greater⁹. A political subdivision pays at most $500,000 per person and never punitive damages¹⁰. If the dog was unlicensed or unvaccinated, the owner must also pay the cost of your rabies shots¹².

Landlords and property owners

No North Dakota appellate court has decided when a landlord is liable for a tenant's dog. Under O'Leary v. Coenen a person who controls property owes lawful visitors reasonable care under the circumstances², and Sendelbach ties liability to knowledge of the dog's danger¹. A claim against a landlord will likely turn on whether the landlord knew of the dog and could have acted, for example under a lease. See landlord liability.

Insurance

We found no North Dakota statute that limits how insurers use a dog's breed, and the state requires no liability insurance for dangerous dogs because it has no dangerous-dog statute⁴. Any insurance requirement comes from city ordinances, which North Dakota cities may adopt to regulate the keeping of dogs¹⁶. See dog bite insurance.

More on coverage, breed exclusions and renters policies: dog bite insurance.

Why Sendelbach still decides North Dakota cases

Sendelbach v. Grad, 246 N.W.2d 496 (N.D. 1976), arose on a McHenry County farm. Mary Ann Sendelbach walked past a doghouse to fetch eggs, and the farm's herding dog bit her leg from behind¹. She asked for a strict-liability instruction: an owner who knows a dog is vicious pays regardless of care. The Supreme Court refused. It said strict liability "fails to take into consideration the utility of the animal", noted that the dog was kept to herd cattle, and held that bites on the owner's land are judged like any other injury to a visitor¹.

Two limits matter. The court said it was ruling only on bites on the owner's property, and it did not hold the instruction correct "in all situations"¹. A bite in a park or on a street has never been squarely decided. And the visitor categories the case used were dropped the next year in O'Leary v. Coenen, which put a general duty of reasonable care in their place². The knowledge-plus-negligence instruction itself has not been replaced.

Bite reports and quarantine

The state health department asks that animal bites and possible rabies exposures be reported to its Division of Disease Control at 701.328.2378 or 800.472.2180¹⁴. Bites themselves are not on the state's list of mandatory reportable conditions; rabies in an animal or a person is¹⁵. City ordinances may add a duty to report to police or animal control.

A healthy dog that bites someone should be confined and held for observation for 10 days, with a veterinary exam at the start and the end¹³. Confinement means a building, cage, fence or pen that keeps the dog away from people other than the owner's household and from other animals, so it can be at home^12,13. If the owner will not cooperate, the department can seize the dog; a law enforcement officer decides whether to impound it or how it is confined¹². The owner pays the veterinary exam, and pays the quarantine costs if the dog was unlicensed or unvaccinated¹².

Dangerous-dog hearings, euthanasia orders and criminal penalties are covered on North Dakota dangerous dog law.

Questions about North Dakota dog bite law

Is North Dakota a one-bite state?

Yes, and a demanding one. Under Sendelbach v. Grad you must prove the owner knew or should have known the dog was dangerous and also failed to use reasonable care to prevent the bite¹. Proof that the dog had bitten before is the strongest evidence of knowledge. See the one-bite rule.

How long do I have to sue for a dog bite in North Dakota?

Six years from the bite for a personal-injury claim against the owner⁵. If the bite caused a death, the family has two years from the death⁷. Claims against a city or county have three years, and claims against the state need written notice within 180 days^10,11.

How long does a bitten child have in North Dakota?

The time a child is under 18 does not count, but the extension cannot run more than one year after the child turns 18⁶. On the statute's words, the deadline is the later of six years after the bite or the child's 19th birthday. See child dog bites.

Does the dog owner have to pay for my rabies shots?

Yes by statute if the dog was not licensed or not vaccinated or confined as state or local law requires: the owner is liable for the cost of your post-exposure treatment and the dog's quarantine¹². In other cases those costs are part of your damages in a negligence claim⁹. The state may give the shots free if you cannot pay¹².

My dog bit someone in North Dakota. Will it be put down?

Not automatically. A healthy dog is observed for 10 days, usually at home¹³. State law orders a dog killed only after a court finds it a public nuisance for habitually molesting people on public roads, or if it shows signs of rabies^4,12. Your city's ordinance may allow more. See my dog bit someone.

Official contacts

Sources

1. Sendelbach v. Grad, 246 N.W.2d 496 (N.D. 1976), CourtListener (Free Law Project). Checked 17 October 2026.
2. O'Leary v. Coenen, 251 N.W.2d 746 (N.D. 1977), CourtListener (Free Law Project). Checked 17 October 2026.
3. N.D.C.C. § 9-10-06, Willful acts and negligence - Liability, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
4. N.D.C.C. ch. 42-03, Dogs as public nuisance, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
5. N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16, Actions having six-year limitations, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
6. N.D.C.C. § 28-01-25, Disabilities extend limitations on actions generally, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
7. N.D.C.C. § 28-01-18, Actions having two-year limitations, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
8. N.D.C.C. § 32-03.2-02, Modified comparative fault, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
9. N.D.C.C. §§ 32-03.2-04 and 32-03.2-11, Economic and noneconomic damages; exemplary damages, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
10. N.D.C.C. ch. 32-12.1, Government liability (§§ 32-12.1-03, 32-12.1-10), North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
11. N.D.C.C. § 32-12.2-04 (notice of claim against the state) and § 28-01-22.1 (actions against the state), North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
12. N.D.C.C. ch. 23-36, Rabies control, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
13. Rabies FAQs, North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services. Checked 17 October 2026.
14. Rabies Guidance for Veterinarians (updated April 2024), North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services. Checked 17 October 2026.
15. N.D. Admin. Code § 33-06-01-01, Reportable conditions, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
16. N.D.C.C. § 40-05-01(22), (47), City powers: dogs; animals running at large, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
17. HB 1364 (2023), relating to animals as a public nuisance: bill overview and actions, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
18. N.D.C.C. §§ 12.1-16-02 and 12.1-16-03, Manslaughter; negligent homicide, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
19. N.D.C.C. § 12.1-17-03, Reckless endangerment, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.
20. N.D.C.C. §§ 36-21-10 and 36-21-11, Dogs worrying or damaging livestock, North Dakota Legislative Branch. Checked 17 October 2026.