Dog Bite Question

Location: New Hampshire, U.S.

My spouse and I were involved in an incident last weekend that resulted in multiple bite wounds to both my wife and our dog.

We were walking our dog, (120 lb Alaskan Malamute), on a leash through our neighborhood park. Another couple with a dog (pit/bully) entered a tennis court in the park and removed their dog’s leash and collar. Their dog wiggled through the tennis court door, ran across the street, and grabbed my dog by the neck. It took three adults well over a minute to separate the dogs. When it was all said and done, my dog walked away with some minor wounds and my spouse with multiple (6) puncture wounds in her hand. The police were called, and a report filed. Shortly thereafter, the AOC contacted us to advise that the dog had never received a rabies vaccine. My spouse was seen in the emergency room where the wound was cleaned and she began antibiotics and started the rabies post-exposure protocol. While my wife is bruised and very sore, nothing was broken, and so far there are no indications that there was soft tissue or nerve damage. We have health insurance, but I expect the rabies treatment will set us back $3,000 - $4,000.

In an effort to settle this simply and civilly, my plan was to reach out to the other couple and ask that they cover our out-of-pocket costs for the rabies treatment. When I spoke to the officer investigating the case, I was surprised to learn that the names of the dog owners would likely be redacted on the police report. The officer explained that we would likely have to file a charge, and that we would need a lawyer to request the names and contact details of the other party involved.

I hope that I’m missing something, but it sounds like I should expect to need legal representation just to obtain an un-redacted police report. Is this just how the system works? Am I asking the right questions? Should I just call a local lawyer? Thank you!