Greater than 5,300 postal employees across the US were attacked by dogs while attempting to deliver mail in 2022, in keeping with the US Postal Service.
The USPS revealed the number last Thursday in its national rankings of dog bites ahead of “National Dog Bite Awareness Week.”
Topping the list of states with essentially the most dog bites was California.
In 2022, there have been 675 incidents of postal employees being attacked by dogs within the Golden State while on the job – up from 656 the yr prior.
Texas got here in second, with greater than 400 incidents recorded in 2022, followed by Latest York and Pennsylvania, at 321 and 313, respectively.
The USPS said a lot of these attacks got here from dogs whose owners had recurrently stated, “my dog won’t bite.”
USPS Occupational Safety and Health Senior Director Linda DeCarlo said a dog who bites a mail carrier will often have been labeled a “‘good dog’ that had not previously behaved in a menacing way.”
“In 2022, too many aggressive dogs impacted the lives of our employees while delivering the mail,” DeCarlo said. “Please help us reduce that number by being a responsible pet owner who secures their dog as we deliver mail.”
The service is advising dog owners to maintain their canines indoors, behind a fence, or on a leash when letter carriers arrive at their homes.
