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According to Australia Post, attacks by small dogs are a major problem for postmen

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Australia Post is warning against delivering mail to addresses with aggressive dogs in a bid to curb an alarming rise in attacks.
More than 55 mail carriers are attacked by dogs every week while on the job. The postal service says that small dog breeds are the most notorious.

The Australia Post dog safety education website reports an average of 1,000 dog attacks per year.

But new data released Monday shows that there have been 1,420 incidents involving dogs in the last six months alone – some of which required serious medical treatment.
Queensland continues to record the highest number of incidents with 466 incidents in the last six months, followed by NSW with 408 and Western Australia with 215.
Rod Maule, Australia Post’s General Manager of Safety and Welfare, urged dog owners to take responsibility for their pets.
“Postal carriers will not make deliveries if it is too dangerous for them to do so and will stop deliveries to customers’ home addresses until the danger is removed,” Maule said on Monday.

“Our team members just want to be able to deliver to our customers without being attacked, harassed or chased by dogs.”

According to Australia Post data, half of all incidents occur on customers’ property, with almost a third of them occurring at the front door.
The greatest danger is dog bites. 15 percent of all incidents occur when postmen try to put mail in the mailbox.
Australia Post’s dog safety education website urges people to keep their dogs on a leash, distracted or confined while delivering mail, or to consider installing a large, secure mailbox for parcel deliveries.
Despite the warnings, according to the website, more than 300 postal workers require medical treatment each year for dog attacks, in some cases requiring surgery.
Australia Post reports dog-related incidents to the relevant local authorities in order to initiate enforcement action against the owners.

With additional reporting from Australian Associated Press.

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