Colorado's dog bite law is a strict liability statute. Dog owners can be liable for bites, even without their dog showing prior aggressive behavior.

Liability applies if these two factors exist:

• The bite victim was lawfully present on public or private property

• The bite caused serious bodily injury or death 

The law defines bodily injury as severe bruising, tears, or lacerations needing medical care. Serious bodily injury involves the risk of death, disfigurement, organ damage, or severe burns.

This statute protects victims and holds owners accountable for their dogs' actions.

Colorado follows the one-bite rule, which assumes a dog isn’t dangerous until it shows aggressive behavior. 

However, Colorado's dog bite statute overrides this rule in certain cases. If a dog bite causes serious injury, the owner may be liable, even if they didn’t know the dog was dangerous.

The one-bite rule doesn’t mean a dog gets a "free" bite. Behaviors like jumping, lunging, or snapping at people can alert the owner that their dog may be dangerous.

No. Trespassing is one of the exceptions when determining whether a dog owner is liable.

An owner is also not liable if the victim ignored “beware of dog” or “no trespassing” signs before the bite occurred. This also applies when the victim has knowingly provoked the dog.