Negotiating a settlement can take quite a bit of time. The vast majority of dog bite claims are paid out by the dog owner’s homeowners or renters insurance. Insurance companies generally try to keep claim payouts as small as possible. They will generally avoid making a fair settlement offer until it becomes apparent that the case is going to end up in court if they don’t.
One thing insurance companies like even less than paying out claims is paying for expensive litigation with uncertainty as to what the court will order them to pay on the claim. Often, the best settlement offer either happens just before the trial begins or even after the trial has begun but before a judgment has been ordered.