The United States Postal Service has released its annual report of dog bites against postal workers, showing that Rochester had the most in Western New York and ranked 26th in the nation. In all, 6,549 USPS employees were attacked by dogs last year; 69 of those attacks occurred in Western New York.
The Postal Service also shared information on new safety initiatives it is putting in place to help protect its employees as part of its promotion of National Dog Bite Prevention Week, which began Sunday and runs through Saturday.
Of the 4.5 million Americans bitten by dogs annually, half of all victims are children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Many attacks to children are by the family pet or a dog familiar to the child, so it’s important to keep children and dogs separate, especially if a dog is known to act aggressively.
Local dog bites on postal workers in 2015
- Rochester – 19
- Buffalo – 12
- Orchard Park – 4
- Webster – 4
- Elmira – 2
- Ithaca – 2
- Jamestown – 2
- Lancaster – 2
- Niagara Falls – 2
- Sodus – 1
- Attica – 1
- Clarence – 1
- Corning – 1
- Cuba – 1
- Geneva – 1
- Grand Island – 1
- Hamburg – 1
- Le Roy – 1
- Lockport – 1
- Medina – 1
- Mount Morris – 1
- Ontario – 1
- Pittsford – 1
- Salamanca – 1
- Wayland – 1
- Wellsville – 1
- Westfield – 1
- Williamson – 1
Enhancing Employee Safety
The Postal Service announced two new safety measures to alert USPS Carriers of dogs on their delivery routes. Customers using USPS.com’s Package Pickup are now asked to indicate if there is a dog at their address when they schedule a package pickup.
In addition, the Mobile Delivery Devices letter carriers use to scan packages to confirm delivery will include a feature that allows carriers to indicate the presence of a dog at an individual address. This is especially helpful to substitutes who fill-in for letter carriers on their days off.
What Dog Owners Can Do
The Postal Service provided the following tips and suggestions for dog owners:
If 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 get at strangers.
Dog owners should keep the family dog secured. Parents should remind their children not to take mail directly from letter carriers in the presence of the family pet as the dog may view the letter carrier handing mail to a child as a threatening gesture.
The Postal Service places the safety of its employees as a top priority. If a letter carrier feels threatened by a vicious dog or if a dog is running loose, the owner may be asked to pick up the mail at the Post Office until the carrier is assured the pet has been restrained. If the dog is roaming the neighborhood, the pet owner’s neighbors may be asked to pick up their mail at the Post Office as well.
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