New dog bite statistics were recently released by the U.S. Postal Service, based upon dog bite attacks on letter carriers; it’s not just a cliche, it really happens.
The Postal Service is promoting National Dog Bite Prevention Week, May 15-21, an annual event that provides dog attack prevention tips and information on responsible pet ownership.
Nationwide last year, 5,669 postal employees were attacked in more than 1,400 cities. Houston tops the list (to the left) with 62 letter carriers attacked in 2010.
Beyond the needless pain and suffering, medical expenses from dog attacks cost the Postal Service nearly $1.2 million last year.
Dog attacks accounted for more than one-third of all homeowners’ insurance liability claims paid out in 2010, costing nearly $413 million.
Dog Bite Injury Prevention
To spread the word that dog attacks are preventable, the Postal Service is working with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) aap.org, American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) avma.org, and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) plasticsurgery.org. Other organizations include the American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons (ASMS) maxface.org, the American Society of Reconstructive Microsurgery (ASRM) microsurg.org, Prevent The Bite preventthebite.org and the Insurance Information Institute .iii.org.
“Warm and wonderful relationships are shared between more than 72 million pet dogs and their owners in the United States,” said Dr. Lori Teller, who serves on the AVMA’s Animal Welfare Committee and is past president of the Texas VMA. “To protect those relationships, everyone must take responsibility for preventing dog bite injuries.”
Statistics Dog Bite: Children
“According to the ASPS, 32,961 reconstructive procedures to repair dog bites were performed in 2010, up 8 percent from 2009,” explained plastic surgeon Lior Heller, of the Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, who also represents the ASRM and ASMS. “Unfortunately, the majority of reconstructive surgeries to treat dog bites were performed on children who are frequently bitten on the face, which can result in severe lacerations, infection or scarring.”
“Dog bite prevention education cannot begin early enough,” said Kelly Voigt, 19, the victim of a savage dog attack when she was seven years old. She endured the pain of 100 stitches to her face as part of her recovery The experience was the catalyst behind the creation of Prevent The Bite, a non-profit organization that promotes dog bite prevention to young children. To date, Voigt has spoken before more than 10,000 elementary school students.
Call a California Dog Bite Attorney
Letter carriers fearing for their safety due to a loose or unrestrained pet may curtail delivery and ask homeowners to pick up their mail at the Post Office until the carrier is assured the pet is restrained. In cases where a carrier sees a dog roaming and can’t discern where it resides, delivery could be curtailed to the entire neighborhood.
Of course, letter carriers are not the only ones that are in danger from dog bite attacks. 4.7 million Americans are bitten annually – the majority of whom are children. If you, or someone you love, has suffered a dog bite attack, you need to speak to an experienced California dog bite attorney today. Our expert dog bite lawyers will help you receive medical care and a dog bite settlement. Call 877-702-7274 today.
[...] we mentioned in an earlier blog, recent dog bite statistics show that dog bite attacks are up across the country, as are dog bite settlements. If you are the [...]