Dog Bite Prevention week is
April 14th – April 19th.
Any dog can bite and all attacks are preventable through responsible pet
ownership. In 2018 there were 5,714 postal
employees attacked by dogs nationwide. Bailey
(above) belongs to Tampa Manager Customer Service Operations (MSCO) Tim Dose
and his wife Sandy. “He is an eight year
old, twenty pound Jack Russell who is a sweet boy. He loves to run to retrieve tennis balls and go for rides in the car, but
he is not as innocent as he looks. All
dogs can bite,” said Dose.
The Postal Service offers the
following safety tips:
- When a letter carrier delivers mail or packages to your front
door, place your dog in a separate room and close that door before opening
the front door. Dogs have been known to burst through screen doors or
plate glass windows to attack visitors.
- Parents should remind children and other family members not to
take mail directly from letter carriers in the presence of the family pet.
The dog may view the letter carrier handing mail to a family member as a
threatening gesture.
- If a letter carrier feels threatened by a dog, or if a dog is
loose or unleashed, the owner may be asked to pick up mail at a Post
Office or another facility until the letter carrier is assured the pet has
been restrained. If the dog is roaming the neighborhood, the pet owner’s
neighbors also may be asked to pick up their mail at the area’s Post
Office.
To access the video promoting
Dog Bite Prevention, please click here.
