PHILADELPHIA, PA — More than 5,400 postal employees were attacked by dogs in the United States in 2021. In Philadelphia, 32 carriers were attacked, an increase from 26 in 2020. From nips and bites to vicious attacks, aggressive dog behavior poses a serious threat to postal employees and the public. To highlight the enormity of this serious issue, the U.S. Postal Service is providing information on the do’s and don’ts of responsible dog ownership as part of its annual National Dog Bite Awareness Week public service campaign.

The campaign runs Sunday, June 5, through Saturday, June 11. This year’s theme is “The USPS Delivers for America — Deliver for Us by Restraining Your Dog.” Spread the news of the campaign by using the hashtag #dogbiteawareness

“Every year, thousands of postal employees are attacked by dogs as they deliver America’s mail. And while it’s a dog’s natural instinct to protect their family and home, we ask all customers to act responsibly by taking safety precautions with their dogs while the mail is being delivered,” said Philadelphia Postmaster Leroy Middleton. “When a carrier comes to the residence, keep the dog inside the house and away from the door — or behind a fence on a leash — to avoid an attack.”

Most people know the approximate time their letter carrier arrives every day. Securing your dog before the carrier approaches your property will minimize any dog-carrier interactions.

When a letter carrier comes to your home, keep dogs:

• Inside the house or behind a fence;
• Away from the door or in another room; or
• On a leash.

Pet owners also should remind their children not to take mail directly from a letter carrier as the dog may view the carrier as a threat.

Informed Delivery is a useful tool for dog-owning customers. It’s a free service that gives customers a digital preview of the mail and packages that are scheduled to be delivered so that they can take precautions and secure their dog when parcels are delivered to the door. Sign up at informeddelivery.usps.com.

Letter carriers are trained to observe an area where they know dogs may be present. They are taught to be alert for potentially dangerous conditions and to respect a dog’s territory.

2022 Dog Attack Rankings by City

The top 25 ranking are comprised of 32 cities, as some cities reported the same number of attacks. For the 2022 dog attack rankings in your specific city or town, contact your local USPS public relations representative.

Calendar Year 2021
Office City	State	2021	Rank
CLEVELAND	OH	58	1
HOUSTON	TX	54	2
KANSAS CITY	MO	48	3
LOS ANGELES	CA	44	4
LOUISVILLE	KY	42	5
DALLAS	TX	38	6
ST. LOUIS	MO	36	7
CHICAGO	IL	35	8
DETROIT	MI	34	9
PHILADELPHIA	PA	32	10
COLUMBUS	OH	31	11
SAN DIEGO	CA	31
SAN ANTONIO	TX	30	12
DENVER	CO	29	13
PHOENIX	AZ	28	14
TOLEDO	OH	27	15
FORT WORTH	TX	26	16
CINCINNATI	OH	25	17
SEATTLE	WA	24	18
MINNEAPOLIS	MN	22	19
PITTSBURGH	PA	21	20
AKRON	OH	20	21
ALBUQUERQUE	NM	20
DAYTON	OH	18	22
MIAMI	FL	18
BALTIMORE	MD	17	23
MEMPHIS	TN	17
YOUNGSTOWN	OH	16	24
BATON ROUGE	LA	15	25
FLINT	MI	15
FLUSHING	NY	15
INDIANAPOLIS	IN	15

 

Top 10 Dog Bite States:

State	2020	2021
CA	787	656
TX	410	368
OH	369	359
PA	296	281
MI	253	244
NY	294	239
IL	289	226
FL	199	201
WA	122	139
KY	121	123

 

The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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