NJ Postal Officials Support National Dog Bite Prevention Week

Northern, NJ — New Jersey postal officials are calling attention to one of the nation’s most commonly reported health problems by supporting National Dog Bite Prevention Week 2009. This year’s National Dog Bite Prevention Week is May 17-23. To raise awareness and reduce the number of dog bite injuries, officials are offering safety tips and emphasizing the importance of pet owner responsibility.

For every letter carrier bitten, there are, by comparison, hundreds of children who needlessly suffer the pain and trauma of dog bites. Whatever the reasons, dog bites are a serious problem for the entire community not just our letter carriers. Last year, 3,000 letter carriers suffered dog bites, including 88 here in New Jersey. However, these numbers pale in comparison with the more than 4.5 million people — mostly children and the elderly — who suffer injuries from dog attacks each year.

Officials offer the following tips to avoid being bitten:

• Don’t run past a dog. The dog’s natural instinct is to chase and catch prey.
• If a dog threatens you, don’t scream. Avoid eye contact. Try to remain motionless until the dog leaves, and then back away slowly until the dog is out of sight.
• Don’t approach a strange dog, especially one that’s tethered or confined.
• While letter carriers are discouraged from petting animals, people who choose to pet dogs should always let a dog see and sniff them before petting the animal.
• If you believe a dog is about to attack you, try to place something between yourself and the dog, such as a backpack or a bicycle.

Here’s some advice on being a responsible dog owner:

• Obedience training can teach dogs proper behavior and help owners control their dog in any situation.
• When the letter carrier comes to your home, keep your dog inside, away from the door, in another room, or on a leash.
• Don’t let your child take mail from the letter carrier in the presence of your dog. Your dog’s instinct is to protect the family.
• Spay or neuter your dog. Neutered dogs are less likely to bite. Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) statistics reflect that dogs that have not been spayed or neutered are up to three times more likely to be involved in a biting incident than neutered or spayed dogs.
• Dogs that haven’t been properly socialized, receive little attention or handling, or are left tied up for long periods of time frequently turn into biters.

Additional dog bite prevention information is available through the American Academy of Pediatrics at www.aap.org, the American Veterinary Medical Association at www.avma.org, The Humane Society of the United States at www.hsus.org, and the Prevent the Bite program at www.preventthebite.org.