Dog bites are no more frequent at full moon

Dogs that bite are not more active during a full moon. But the risk of people being bitten does increase at weekends and during the summer, and men and boys are more likely to be victims, say researchers who set out to investigate claims that bites are more common around the time of the full moon (Accident Analysis and Prevention 2003;35:435-8).

Recently a number of reports have looked at connections between dog bites and the lunar cycle. One English study (BMJ 2000;321:1559-61) found that the highest numbers of animal bites occurred on or around days …