Dog Attacks Threaten Owners’ Mail Delivery

After having six of his mail carriers bitten or threatened by dogs in the last two months, Pacific Palisades Postmaster Jason Miles is taking action. ‘I have to provide a safe working environment for my employees,’ said Miles, who is asking local dog owners to restrain their animals between 9:30 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. ‘Do not place your animal in a situation where it could even come in contact with one of my employees,’ Miles wrote in an open letter to homeowners. ‘While you may not believe that your pet is a threat, my employee–your mail carrier–is a stranger who must enter the property of a territorial animal.’ If you chose not to keep your pet restrained and the dog is threatening or has made threatening advances, Miles will stop mail delivery to your residence. In order to resume delivery, the registered owner of the dog will be required to meet with Miles and sign a contract, which includes a statement that the dog owner will have the dog restrained during delivery hours. ‘The suspension of delivery is not the most desirable method, not do I enjoy the inconvenience that it may cause you, but it is completely legal and well within my rights to protect my employees,’ Miles wrote in his letter. He noted that two of the recent dog attacks caused injuries that were serious enough to require medical treatment and transportation to a medical facility. Miles has also contacted the L.A. County Department of Animal Services, which will enforce code 53.34: ‘It is illegal to allow your dog to assault, menace or threaten another person or other animal. Failure to control your dog could result in losing your dog and the right to own a dog for three years.’ Mail carriers are equipped with Mace to help ward off attacks, Miles said, but usually have their hands full with mail and are unable to reach the Mace in time. Working in the Palisades, carrier Julie Garcia suffered a dog bite that put her on disability for six months and required plastic surgery to her face. ‘I was aware that there was a dog at the residence,’ Garcia said. ‘The yard had a three-and-a-half-foot fence around it, but as I approached the yard, a man opened the door and the dog leaped over the fence and bit me on the face.’ Miles said, ‘Over the course of their careers, 65 to 70 percent of my carriers have been bitten. This is not okay.’ Supervisor Otis Foster pointed out that when a mail carrier is bitten and leaves work (either to be treated or to go out on disability) it affects the entire community. ‘We have to cover that assignment,’ Foster said. ‘Then people complain because the mail is late.’ ‘You can’t expect a new person to learn 500 names in three hours,’ said Miles, who warned dog owners that carriers can file civil lawsuits if they are bitten.