Children should not be left alone with dogs, a medic has warned.
Instead of always blaming dogs for their behaviour, owners should be made more accountable, she said.
Writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), paediatrician Rachel Besser called for "mandatory classes for expectant dog owners to teach them about the responsibilities of dog ownership".
Her comments follow the death of five-year-old Ellie Lawrenson, who was mauled by a pit bull terrier at New Year. The article accompanies a clinical review on how doctors can best care for dog bites.
Ms Besser, who is a lifetime dog owner and trainee with the London Deanery, said data from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) showed that 70,000 people attended A&E in the UK in 2002 for dog bite injuries.
Many such attacks are on children and take place in the family home, she added.
Dog bites are a "child protection issue" but the medical profession was "left to mop up the mess" because people were reluctant to take responsibility, she added.
"Undoubtedly, few people bitten by dogs die or are left with a profound disability. However, the number of people admitted to UK hospitals after being bitten by a dog is rising, despite a fall in dog ownership."
She also called for measures targeted at children to help educate them on how to approach dogs.
NHS figures show that 4,133 people were admitted to hospital last year suffering dog bites, almost double the number in 1996. More than a fifth (22%) were children under nine, the editorial said.
