DAYTON — Ohio is ranked in the top three states for dog attacks on postal workers, with Dayton, Columbus, Cleveland, Toledo, and Cincinnati among the top cities with reported attacks in 2021, according to a spokesperson for the United States Postal Service.
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The rankings were released Friday ahead of National Dog Bite Awareness Week that starts next week. In 2021, over 5,400 USPS employees were attacked by dogs, including 359 in Ohio, according to data released by the postal service.
Ohio was ranked third in the country with dog attacks, only behind California and Texas. The number of attacks in Ohio, 359, was ten less than those reported in 2020, according to the USPS data.
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Multiple Ohio cities including Dayton ranked in the top 25 cities for attack instances with Cleveland being the top city for attacks with 58 in 2021.
Other Ohio cities making the list for top instances of dog attacks:
- Columbus: 31 attacks, ranked 11th
- Toledo: 27 attacks, ranked 15th
- Cincinnati: 25 attacks, ranked 17th
- Akron: 20 attacks, ranked 21st
- Dayton: 18 attacks, ranked 22nd
“Every year, thousands of postal employees are attacked by dogs as they deliver America’s mail. And while it’s a dog’s natural instinct to protect their family and home, we ask all customers to act responsibly by taking safety precautions with their dogs while the mail is being delivered,” USPS Employee Safety and Health Awareness Manager Leeann Theriault said in a media release. “When a carrier comes to the residence, keep the dog inside the house and away from the door — or behind a fence on a leash — to avoid an attack.”
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A USPS spokesperson added postal carriers are trained to not startle dogs, respect a dog’s territory, make noise or rattle a fence to alert a dog if entering a yard, and other techniques to prevent attacks.