Managing Fights and Bites

Purpose

Fights should be rare, but they happen, and being ready matters more than being surprised. This SOP walks you through breaking up a fight without getting hurt, and then through the fuller chain of steps that kicks in any time a bite or a fight actually breaks the skin, even a scratch.

At a Glance

Anyone who hears a fight drops what they're doing and responds, and calls for help on the walkie talkie.
Your instinct will be to grab the dogs. Don't. Try a loud sound, a break board, or a barrier first.
Grabbing a dog is a last resort. Be ready to let go fast, because a dog can redirect its energy from the fight onto you.
Any bite or fight that breaks the skin, even just a scratch, triggers a full reporting and follow-up chain beyond basic first aid.
A mental health check-in that evening and a follow-up meeting the next work day are both part of that chain, not optional extras.

Immediate Actions

When You Hear a Fight

A fight sounds different from rowdy play, and you'll learn to tell the two apart quickly. The moment you hear one, drop what you're doing and head to where it's happening. Call for help on the walkie talkie right away so more people can get there and assist.

Separating Safely

Your first instinct is going to be to grab the dogs apart. Resist it. That instinct is exactly what gets people bitten. Try these instead, in whatever order makes sense for what's in front of you:

Make a loud sound. An air horn or banging stainless steel bowls together can startle the dogs enough to separate them on their own.
Put a break board between the dogs, or grab whatever barrier is nearby, a chair, a piece of play equipment, a clipboard, and get it between them.
If neither works, you can put a leash on a dog to pull it clear.

If none of that works and you have to grab the dogs as a last resort, be ready to let go quickly. A dog in that state can turn and redirect its energy onto whoever is touching it, even someone trying to help.

Once the dogs are separated, slip leashes over their heads and move them to a safe area. Anyone else who came to help should be leashing and moving all the other dogs out of the area at the same time, into crates, kennels, separate rooms, or storage, and keeping them secured until the fight is fully managed. Once the fighting dogs themselves are separated, put each one in its own crate or run and start checking both the staff and the dogs for injuries.

If a Bite Draws Blood

This next part applies to any dog bite or fight that draws blood or breaks the skin, even if it's just a scratch. It's a longer list than the fight itself, and that's on purpose, because a lot needs to happen correctly and in order:

Clear the area, contain the dog or dogs involved, and put the employee under supervision while someone else prepares first aid. Shock is real here; the person may faint or break down, and they shouldn't be alone.
Give first aid and support to the employee and the dog while transport is being arranged.
A supervisor drives the employee to medical care with the workers comp paperwork in hand. We also keep a set of those documents on file at our local urgent care.
A second supervisor may need to get veterinary attention for any dog involved, if it's warranted.
File an initial incident report for the dog, then add the fuller detail, timestamp, injury severity, full breakdown of what happened, staff response times, once camera footage has been reviewed.
File a separate incident report for the employee and hold a debrief, for HR and for workers comp.
Reach out to the dog's parent with an initial update: what happened, what corrective measures are planned, and what the next steps are.
Check in on the employee's mental health that evening, after work.
Hold a follow-up meeting with the employee on their next work day, usually with at least a day's break built in depending on how serious it was.
Follow up with everyone else who was part of it: other parents, other staff, HR, workers comp, whoever was touched by the incident.

Follow-Up Steps

The dog and employee incident reports are two separate documents. Don't try to combine them.
The mental health check-in and the next-day follow-up meeting aren't optional; they're part of taking care of your own team after something like this.
Keep circling back until every party involved has had their follow-up: the employee, the dog's parent, and anyone else touched by the incident.

Who to Ask

A supervisor handles getting an injured employee to medical care and holds the debrief with HR and workers comp. For where the equipment is kept and how a Daycare-specific fight gets signaled, see Managing Emergencies in Daycare. For treating an injury that doesn't rise to this level, see Injuries and First-Aid.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should new hires know about their instinct to grab the dogs apart?

That it's the wrong first move. Try a loud sound or a barrier like a break board, a chair, or a clipboard first. Grabbing the dogs is a last resort, and if you do it, be ready to let go fast.

What should new hires know about what counts as "a bite that draws blood"?

Any bite or fight that breaks the skin, even a scratch. It doesn't need to look serious to trigger the full chain: first aid, medical care with workers comp paperwork, incident reports for both the dog and the employee, parent communication, a mental health check-in, and a follow-up meeting.

What should new hires know about the mental health check-in after a bite?

It happens that same evening, after work, and it's a real part of the procedure, not an afterthought. A follow-up meeting comes on the employee's next work day too, usually with at least a day's break first depending on how serious the incident was.