Baltimore Among Worst For Dog Attacks On Postal Workers

BALTIMORE, MD — The number of dog attacks on postal workers in Baltimore fell in 2018, according to new figures released Thursday by the U.S. Postal Service. The postal service credited the overall decline nationwide to technology improvements that help mail carriers remain safe.

In Baltimore, there were 31 attacks last year compared with 44 in 2017.

Charm City tied with two others in the U.S. at No. 15 on the list of cities with the most dog attacks on postal workers. It was on par with Denver and Kansas City.

Around the country, there were a total of 5,714 postal worker attacks last year, which is a decrease of more than 500 compared with 2017.

Texas had four cities rank in the top 10 among metropolises with the most dog attacks on postal workers. Houston once again saw the highest number of attacks: 75. Postal workers in that city saw four more attacks than the previous year.

Here are the cities with the most dog attacks on U.S. Postal Service workers:

• 1. Houston, Texas — 75
• 2. Los Angeles, California — 60
• 3. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — 51
• 4. Cleveland, Ohio — 50
• 5. Dallas, Texas — 49
• 6. San Antonio, Texas — 47
• 7. Minneapolis, Minnesota — 38
• 8. Chicago, Illinois — 37
• 8. Columbus, Ohio — 37
• 10. Fort Worth, Texas — 35
• 11. Detroit, Michigan — 34
• 12. San Diego, California — 33
• 13. Charlotte, North Carolina — 32
• 13. Memphis, Tennessee — 32
• 15. Baltimore, Maryland — 31
• 15. Denver, Colorado — 31
• 15. Kansas City, Missouri — 31

Overall, more mail carriers in California were attacked by dogs than in any other state with 794, followed by Texas with 462 and New York with 339. Ohio and Illinois rounded out the top five with 304 and 273 attacks, respectively.

The report comes amid National Dog Bite Prevention Week, which runs through Saturday, April 13.

Preventive Measures Are Key

The USPS highlighted new technology, including mobile delivery scanners and a package pickup app, that have helped lower the number of attacks.

Carriers use mobile delivery scanners to confirm deliveries. The devices include a feature that indicate there’s a dog at a specified home or business.

The package scheduling pickup app asks customers to indicate whether there are any dogs at their address. If there are, the USPS sends alerts to those carriers.

“Our employees have been great at taking preventative measures against dog attacks, but they need help from our customers, too,” Linda DeCarlo, safety director of the Postal Service, said in a release. “We are confident we can keep moving the trends of attacks downward, and ramping up overall awareness for everyone is the best way to do that.”

To keep mail carriers safe, the U.S. Postal Service offers a few tips.

• Before opening the door, customers should put dogs in another room behind a closed door.
• Parents should inform their kids not to take mail directly from mail carriers when near a dog.
• If the mail carrier doesn’t feel safe making a delivery, customers may be asked to pick up their mail from a nearby post office.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.