Help Protect Your Mail Carriers

Toby and I read this article in the Daily Herald.  We thought we would share.  Thankfully all Toby cares about are chasing the squirrels not necessarily the mail carrier! 

As far as Gilberto Cuellar Jr. is concerned, the hardest part of delivering mail each day isn't bad weather.  It's the dogs.  In his decade of letter carrying, Cuellar has been bitten three times, all within an 18-month span a few years ago. Each bite drew blood, and one left a permanent scar.  "The weather I can handle," says the Arlington Heights letter carrier. "The dogs I sometimes can't."  It's National Dog Bite Prevention Week, and the post office is taking the chance to remind pet owners that loose dogs can sometimes make mail carrying a dangerous job.  Last year, 2,900 letter carriers were attacked by dogs nationwide, according to the U.S. Postal Service. From October to mid-May, there were 45 incidents of carrier bites in northern Illinois, up from 32 in the same period the previous year, officials said. Each year, an estimated 4.7 million people, mostly children, are attacked by dogs.  With the weather warming, letter carriers are warning pet owners to be mindful of their dogs. Carriers won't deliver if they feel unsafe for any reason - from a barking dog to an icy doorstop.  "Even if your dog is sweet and loving to you, he may not feel safe to other people," said U.S. Postal Service spokesman Sean Hargadon. "Pet owners don't realize it's a different situation for carriers, and a dog is simply protecting his turf."  Crystal Lake carrier Jo Morehead has lost count of the times owners have said their pet doesn't bite.   "Famous last words," she said. "Other people assume that since they love dogs, we will too. But it's not about liking dogs."  "Every dog can potentially bite," Hargadon said. "It just depends on who it is and the situation."  In all three attacks, Cuellar never saw the pet coming. The first involved a black Lab, who bit his left thigh from behind. "It hurt," he said. "There was a burning sensation."
He went to the hospital; the bite left a scar. To make matters worse, the owner initially didn't believe Cuellar and asked for proof. He later found out the dog also had bitten a girl in the face and eventually was put to sleep.  Two Yorkies were Cuellar's other attackers. The first rounded a corner and bit his knee; the second came through a fence and bit his ankle. Both owners were apologetic, "and one thanked me for not kicking the dog," he said.  Cuellar said he feels completely safe around only one dog on his route and particularly nervous around two - a pit bull and a Rottweiler. "The little dogs I can handle," he said.  Morehead, who has delivered mail for 27 years, mostly in the Crystal Lake area, considers herself lucky she's been only bitten once. A man opened his door, and a mutt bit her arm, breaking the skin. The owner eventually put the mailbox on the street.  She has frequently been chased by dogs - one right up to her car, which she literally dove into. "I'm sure the neighbors were laughing," she said.


Help stamp out dog bites

Tips to help postal carriers deliver without a bite
• Put the dog in a separate room when accepting mail, and shut the door.
• Don't let children accept mail when a pet's around. The dog's natural instinct is protection.
• If the dog is outside when mail arrives, leash the dog to a fixed stake so it cannot reach the mail carrier.
• Obedience training and spaying and neutering your pet are recommended to tame aggression.