AusPost Urges Dog Owners to Secure Their Dogs After Attacks

Aussies are being reminded to please secure their dogs and to shut their gates due to increased dog attacks on our Australia Post posties and delivery drivers. More than 1000 AusPost employees at work are involved in dog attacks every year, with over 300 of those requiring medical attention. These incidents are not only traumatic for our posties but can have lasting effects in both injury and mental health.

Where Dog Attack Incidents Occur During Delivery

• 41% on the footpath
• 22% at the front door
• 17% at the letterbox
• 16% in the front yard
• 3% on the road

(Source)

While attacks can happen at front doors, letterboxes and front yards they also take place on footpaths and streets. This can make it quite dangerous to both the postman and dog.

Even if a dog does not bite, running in front of the driver can cause the driver to crash which can cause injury to your beloved pet. Drivers that have been involved in these incidents no longer feel safe delivering to locations where these attacks have occurred. This is why it’s so important as pet owners that we keep our dogs secure and gates shut.

Why do our beloved fur-babies attack posties in the first place? There is no clear answer but here’s what we can do to help.

Before the age of 16 weeks, it is very important for your puppy to be exposed to the postman/delivery driver, this critical socialization period for puppies will help prevent them developing fear or aggression towards them that can be hard to undo as they get older.

This is also where basic dog training comes in. Teaching your dog simple commands like ““sit”, “stay” or “go to bed” are going to be very beneficial for you and your dog if you’re noticing they’re having issues with unexpected visitors. Other ways that can help can be by placing your pooch on a leash or putting them in a separate room with their favourite toy or treat to help distract them.

While Australia Post employees are trained in dog safety it is important that we as pet owners do our part as well. After all, everyone deserves a safe work environment.

 

Written by the PETZOO Team

PETZOO team are a group of pet industry experts with backgrounds in animal care, nursing, zoo keeping and all things pet related.