ST. LOUIS — St. Louis ranks among the top cities in America for dog attacks against postal workers, coming in 4th after Los Angeles, Houston and Chicago.
The information comes from the USPS's National Dog Bite Awareness campaign, which aims to help dog owners ensure the safety of postal workers who deliver mail.
According to the USPS, 46 postal workers were attacked by dogs while delivering mail in St. Louis in 2023.
Across Missouri, there were 180 attacks in 2023 and 166 in 2022, keeping the Show Me State in the top 10 states for both years for dog attacks against postal workers.
Illinois was also in the top 10 states for those years, with 316 dog attacks in 2023 and 245 in 2022.
More than 5,800 dog attacks on postal workers happened last year across the country, and those bites cost a lot.
According to the USPS, a dog bite costs an average of $64,555 per insurance claim. When a postal worker suffers an injury, the dog owner could be responsible for medical bills, lost wages, uniform replacement costs and the employee's pain and suffering.
If postal service workers feel unsafe, mail service can be stopped until the worker feels safe enough to restart delivery. If that happens, the mail would have to be picked up at the local post office. If a dangerous dog issue isn't remedied, owners can be required to rent a Post Office box to get mail.
USPS's Employee Safety and Health Awareness Manager Leeann Theriault said the postal service encourages responsible pet ownership.
“Letter carriers are exposed to potential hazards every day, none more prevalent than a canine encounter," Theriault said. "All it takes is one interaction for a letter carrier to possibly suffer an injury.”
Dog owners can help keep postal delivery workers safe by securing their dogs before their letter carrier arrives every day. This would minimize any potential danger.
When a postal delivery worker comes to your home, keep your dogs inside the home, behind a fence, away from the door, in another room or on a leash.
Pet owners should have children not take mail directly from postal delivery workers because the dog may view the workers as a threat to the child.
The USPS trains postal delivery workers to be alert in areas where they know dogs may be present. They're also trained never to startle, feed or pet a dog.