Postie blames owners for dog attacks

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.dunfermlinepress.com/news/16 ... g-attacks/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

HE MAY have had sharp teeth puncture his skin and flesh ripped from his limbs but a West Fife postie still loves dogs.

Garry Haldane is no stranger to frightening experiences on his route having been attacked nearly 20 times carrying out deliveries.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) rep for Dunfermline Delivery Office has called for greater protection for postal workers in recent years after being bitten badly on his rounds.

Fresh figures from Royal Mail show that 17 posties were attacked in the KY postcode in the past year, with Mr Haldane adding that four workers at the Dunfermline office had already been pounced on before April this year.


He said: “One worker was bitten on the face – she’s now scarred for life – and three others sustained cuts to their fingers.

“It’s very difficult to prevent.

“A lot of letterboxes now have thicker brushes which makes it harder to put through letters. It means we need to push our fingers through further, and that can lead to bites.

“We do have precautions to take before we even enter the property.

“We rattle the gate if we suspect a dog could be present, as they would usually run towards us or bark.

“If you feel threatened at all, we’re told not to go in.”

The Press reported in January that a West Fife postwoman was taken to hospital after a dog jumped at her, bit her face and drew blood at a Rosyth address.

Mr Haldane was bitten on the back of the arm by a German Shepherd and once again on the leg by the same breed at a second Dunfermline address.

He said: “I used to see the first dog every morning and it was well-behaved and never bothered anyone.

“One day, it leapt over the garden fence at me.

“It bit me and pinned me back against a car. The pain was really bad and required hospital treatment.

“It was right up at my face and I was very lucky it wasn’t worse.

“Another German Shepherd was put down after tearing my leg.

“It was normally chained but this time it managed to bite tear my leg. I had to take days off work as I couldn’t walk on it.


“I’ve been attacked by all sorts of dogs from ones that can fit in your pockets to larger ones.”

The Dunfermline Central councillor reiterated that the blame for these attacks is with the owners, and not their pets.

He added: “I’ve said time and time again that it’s not the dog’s fault; I love dogs.

“The owner’s ignorance to not train their dog properly is the problem.

“Even if they don’t do that, they know what time we make our deliveries.

“They could just leave the dog in the kitchen during that short window, there’s lots of measures that could be taken.”

Royal Mail reported that 2,275 dog attacks were reported from April last year, a decrease of eight per cent on the previous year’s figure.

[p5aul789]

You should be met with a £100 fine for owning a dog in my opinion!

All dogs should be shot!

[TrueBlueTerrier]

You should be met with a £100 fine for owning a dog in my opinion!

All dogs should be shot!

Moved from a customer section post to a more appropriate area. Whilst I disagree with the sentiment, it is an opinion if a little extreme, so I could not remove it as requested in a report. However, it was too extreme for the Customer section where we have different levels of expectation (as posted in that area) so I moved it in here.

[p5aul789]

Someone recently told me that the reason dogs go mad at Postmen/Women is because they come to the house everyday and then keep going away.

So presumably, if they were invited in, the animal would become accustomed to their presence.

Therefore, I suppose the dog feels the constant toing and froing a threat!

Wheather this is true or not, I don't know.

I still hate the little sods.

[aiden01]

Someone recently told me that the reason dogs go mad at Postmen/Women is because they come to the house everyday and then keep going away.

So presumably, if they were invited in, the animal would become accustomed to their presence.

Therefore, I suppose the dog feels the constant toing and froing a threat!

Wheather this is true or not, I don't know.

I still hate the little sods.

someone is winding you up lol

[yellowbelly]

Someone recently told me that the reason dogs go mad at Postmen/Women is because they come to the house everyday and then keep going away.

So presumably, if they were invited in, the animal would become accustomed to their presence.

Therefore, I suppose the dog feels the constant toing and froing a threat!

Wheather this is true or not, I don't know.

I still hate the little sods.

someone is winding you up lol

Perhaps not - the dog is protecting it's territory - as you deliver, it barks and you go away (because you've delivered the mail,
which is irrelevant to the dog) - it's done it's job as a 'protector'.