Question: How much money can a child receive due to an injury caused from being bit by a pet pig?
Answer: Potentially zero, if the evidence shows that the pig owner did NOT know or have reason to know that the pet pig had dangerous propensities. Indiana Code § 15–17–2–26 defines a domestic animal as “an animal that is not wild,” and specifically includes swine. Pigs can be a domesticated animal. The Indiana Court of Appeals holds that the owner of a domestic animal is not liable for injuries caused by the animal, unless the animal had dangerous propensities known, or which should have been known, to the owner…. If an individual animal lacks dangerous propensities, the rule is simply that the owner of a domestic animal is bound to know the natural propensities of the particular class of animals to which it belongs. It has been argued that pigs even if they are domestic animals, can’t be compared to a dog or cat which provide companionship as someone’s pet. However, the Indiana Supreme Court has made clear that this rule applies to all domestic animals, not just cats and dogs.