Discussions

Came across an interesting little tidbit today...  
 
One of the more effective little ideas I've seen is a local mail carrier who would regularly bring dog treats with them to help route dogs understand that they aren't the enemy. For many dogs it made a world of difference... they would go as far as being excited for the mail carrier being on the block in stead of confrontational.  
 
Apparently new policy has been put in place at Canada Post prohibiting carriers coast to coast from doing this.  
 
A quote from a Canada Post writeup:  
 
"Dog behaviorists agree that movement, regardless of the motivation, is a trigger for most dog bites and the sharing of dog treats put carriers and others at risk. “Canada Post is not the only company delivering goods and services to the door. Raised awareness of dog bite prevention benefits everyone. Breaking the ‘Give the dog a treat’ cycle is one of the practices that will help us all"  
 
Other more specific reasons which could make sense:  
- the mail carrier won't necessarily know what allergies individual dogs have  
- for dogs whose intent it is to be guard dogs, this contradicts what the dog's intent is and softens them on people when their owners don't necessarily want them to be  
- in situations where there needs to be a replacement carrier, unless that carrier knows the route they won't necessarily know the intent of the dog running their way  
 
Info from Canada Post can be found at the bottom of the link below. The whole writeup is very worthwhile reading to understand the dog-related challenges that carriers face on a day-to-day basis:  
http://www.canadapost.ca/cpo/mc/aboutus/news/pr/2009/2009_may_dogbites.jsf  
 
thoughts?