Hair of the dog that Bit You
Whether you're a student of etymology or you don't even know what that word means, tell us how you think this animal expression originated. We'll post the most accurate as well as the most inventive. Email your answer to when_pigs@discovery.com.
This, of course, refers back to the days before we had injury and compensation lawyers roaming the Earth. If you were bitten by a neighborhood dog, then you would retrieve one of the hairs that it would leave upon your person and take it downtown where there was a board posted of all events and occurances. One of these listings, of course, was a posting of all wayward animals who had done wrong. The only proof a person had was a piece of the hair from the suspected animal. If enough matching pieces of hair were posted on the board, then those people could gain a small sum of money from the owner for the damages. Usually, it ended up being grade school children (in the same school class), who were bullying the animal in question, which is how we came upon the saying of "class-action suit". From this we ended up with "personal injury lawyers" who thought they could make a buck or two (or, perhaps, find the golden goose).
—mysticsushi
This is a phrase that came from a Sherlock Holmes novel that was never published. A man was bitten by a vicious dog — or so the people of the town thought. Because the man's injures were so bad, he was in the hospital and could not answer questions about the actual event. Sherlock Holmes searched the scene of the crime and took samples of the hair from the dog that bit the man. After studying the hair, he found it was human and not animal and was then able to determine the attacker to be the man's girlfriend.
—IrishYndina
This dates back to prehistory. Dogs weren't quite domesticated, yet man knew they needed them. So man would try to approach the dog, enticing them with all kinds of wonderous things. However, dogs didn't like wearing animal skins, nor did they appreciate gifts of fruits and roots. Finally, frustrated and still healing from the last bite, man made one last attempt at friendship. He started petting and grooming the dog. Dogs were so enamored of the hair thing, that they stopped biting long enough for a quick grooming.
—toreador_jade
After a particularly bad bar room brawl a very drunken man probably feel asleep on the side of a building. His "buddies" from the bar saw him there, noticed a mangy mutt, and the next day when they saw how bad this man looked they decided he looked as bad as "the hair of the dog that bit him."
—dsndmom
This was made up after a long night of drinking. A dog bit a drunk, who got so mad, he bit the dog back.
—jvest
I honestly had never heard this expression before, but I would guess it has something to do with a warning. When a dog is about to bite you, the hair along its spine tends to stand up as a warning that the dog is ticked off and about to defend itself.
—anippy
In the 1700s you were required to bring the hair of the dog that bit you to court for positive identification. Unless the dog brought a piece of pant leg material from someone else, it was found guilty, and had a "dog day afternoon."
—pete wendt
If you get bitten by a dog, the best way to teach him never to do it again is to shave off all his hair.
—larthur
In ancient times, capturing the animal that bit someone and then using its hair to make a tonic or ointment was considered to provide relief and healing. This expression now refers most often to consuming alcoholic beverages the morning after a night of drinking as a hangover remedy.
—rpatka
I think this comes from the time when werewolves were thought to roam. If one bit you the only way to break the curse and become human again was to bite the same one back.
—nancy11270
In witchcraft one may use a part of a subject to substitute for the whole. This is called "pars pro toto." Therefore, to cure a dog bite (or curse the dog!), a witch would use a "hair of the dog that bit" her in her potion.
—vitae_rosa
Refers to when dogs get mad the hair on their back raises.
—bond_12950
The most complete answer I found: "The origin of the expression stems from a belief that the most effective way to cure a bite from a mad dog was by binding the wound, but not with a form of liniment. The idea centered on two main routes: one could either take hairs from the dog and eat them with a slice of bread and some rosemary (the dog having been killed for it's actions), or bind them together with herbs in a dressing and lay this on the wound. Frying the hair with rosemary and placing this on the wound was another version."
—periwinkle76
It was practice by witches that to cure a dog bite one must obtain a hair from that dog and sleep with that hair under your pillow until the next full moon.
—heathereney
An old wives tale: If you are bitten by an animal make a tonic using its hair and you will feel better.
A long time ago, if you were bitten by a dog and you wanted to report it to the dog police, they wanted more evidence than just a dog bite — like the hair of the dog that bit you!
—utohfiveo
This saying is based on the forensic evidence that is now being used to prove a dog's innocence or guilt. The first time it was quoted was following a doggy trial when the judge told the victum that it was the "hair of the dog that bit you" that allowed the dog catcher to catch the dog.
—fitpanther
It was believed that rabies could be prevented by drinking a concoction that included hair from the rabid dog.
—scribenbirder
