Houston ranks second for dog attacks on USPS workers

Houston ranked second in the nation for dog attacks on U.S. Postal Service employees in 2023, according to agency data.

There were 56 dog attacks reported in Houston, eight more than third-place Chicago. Los Angeles leads the nation with 65 attacks.

St. Louis and Cleveland round out the top five.

Three other Texas cities ranked in the USPS top 30 for dog attacks in 2023: Dallas with 39, San Antonio with 26 and Fort Worth with 23.

Only mail carriers in the state of California had more reason to worry about dogs, as that state ranked first for dog attacks; Texas comes second on the list.

“Based on the most recent information available from the Insurance Information Institute, the average cost per insurance claim for a dog bite is $64,555,” according to a USPS press release on dog attacks . “When a postal employee suffers an injury, the owner could be responsible for medical expenses, lost wages, uniform replacement costs and the employee’s pain and suffering.”

Houston has been at or near the top of the rankings for the past decade. The Bayou City has placed first in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022 and second in 2014, 2016, 2021 and now 2023.

Although it leads when it comes to dog attacks, its overall numbers have declined in recent years.

From 2014 to 2020, Houston suffered more than 80 dog attacks on two occasions, between 70 and 79 attacks on three occasions, and between 60 and 69 on two occasions. Houston’s high total was 85 dog attacks in 2019, the most attacks in a single city in the past decade.

However, Houston has not had more than 58 dog attacks in each of the last three years.