I. Avoid Danger: Close the Door on Dog Bites

Below are recent excerpts from news stories about car­riers who experienced being attacked and bitten.

“A postal carrier was bitten on his hands, right arm and leg by a Pit Bull Terrier and Rottweiler while delivering mail. The dogs attacked the carrier from behind. Prior to attack­ing the carrier, the dogs had charged at a woman, but she avoided injury by climbing on top of a car.”

“An elderly man was attacked by two Pit Bulls after try­ing to save his seven-month-old Jack Russell terrier. The man was mauled by the dogs and suffered multiple bites. The postal carrier was on his route when he heard scream­ing. He pulled his truck up, swung the door open, making a loud noise that caused the dogs to be distracted, enabling the man to get into his house. The carrier used a spray repellent to detain the dogs until the police arrived. The car­rier is credited with saving the man’s life.”

“Perhaps the masters of dog escape strategies are the mail carriers, who are bitten at the rate of about 3,000 per year. Dudley Bradburn, a Catonsville carrier and Postal Ambassador, has been dodging jaws for about three decades. He is used to using his mail bag as a shield and has no qualms about breaking out the dog repellent. One of the animals he feared most was a grumpy-looking German Shepherd that guarded a porch on his route. He befriended the dog. Then, one day, after Bradburn had delivered the mail and turned to leave, the befriended monster lurched to his feet. ‘He tore right past me,’ Bradburn said. ‘He attacked another dog that was coming at me, that I never saw. He was trying to protect me, I guess.’”

Today’s news reports are filled with stories of children, adults, and even other animals such as these, who have been injured, or even killed, in vicious animal attacks.

Every year, the Postal Service™ calls attention to, and continues its crusade against, what continues to be one of the nation’s most commonly reported public health problems: dog attacks and dog bites.

National Dog Bite Awareness Week in May is the Postal Service’s public awareness campaign. This year’s cam­paign, scheduled for the week of May 19–26, provides an opportunity for all Postal Service leaders to work to remind employees, customers, and community representatives of our joint responsibility to do everything possible to prevent animal attacks. It also offers Safety Tips and emphasizes the need for increased pet owner responsibility in prevent­ing these disturbing attacks.

Contrary to what cartoonists and comedians might think about dogs and the letter carrier, children in the United States are the most frequent victims of dog bites and attacks. According to the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Humane Society of the United States, small children, the elderly, and Postal Service letter carriers — in that order — are the most frequent victims of dog bites and attacks. Children suffer more than 2 million incidents each year.

In fiscal year (FY) 2006, the Postal Service averaged 11 Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recordable dog bites per delivery day. Recent statistics show the annual number of dog attacks exceeds the reported instances of measles, whooping cough, and mumps, combined. In addition, dog bites requiring medical attention in the United States number 500,000 to 800,000 annually. Countless more bites go unreported and untreated. Dog bite victims account for up to 5 percent of emergency room visits.

As we focus on the future of the Postal Service and on delivering value to the American public, we must do so with an ever-increasing resolve to promote the safety and well–being of our employees. Medical expenses, workers’ compensation, legal costs, delivery curtailment, carrier replacement, and other costs associated with dog bite accidents result in significant annual costs for the Postal Service. The cost in employee pain and suffering cannot be measured.

In a move to continue the momentum of previously suc­cessful public safety campaigns, we’re asking postmasters to work with employees, organizations, local humane soci­eties, animal shelters, and professionals to focus attention on this important safety issue. In addition to the nationwide publicity effort, more needs to be done. The American Vet­erinary Medical Association (www.avma.org), the American Academy of Pediatrics (www.aap.org), the United States Postal Service (www.usps.com) and Prevent the Bite (www.preventthebite.org) are each working to educate Americans about dog bite prevention.

This publicity and safety prevention kit contains all the tools needed to promote employee awareness, community awareness, and pet owner awareness. The 3,184 Postal Service employees who sustained OSHA recordable inju­ries in 2006 due to dog bites carry the memory of the incident with them every day. We carry the responsibility to use the tools in this kit to help prevent those costly and painful injuries by reminding our communities that dog bites are no laughing matter.