Postal Letter

how long can you have a dog tied to the front yard?

hey i have a problem... i have a female pitbull about 7 months old and i sometimes leave her tied up in front of my house next to some tree... she has her dog house there. I live in a corner house and she's tied on the opposite side of my door. which my mailbox is next to my door.Today i got a us postal service letter saying that my dog was interfering with the mail man leaving the mail, and that they would no longer leave our mail since the mail man feels threatened to get bit. Now, my dog is very friendly dog and the mail man always use to go over to her and pet her when he would come and all of a sudden he's complaining. Our dog doesn't even reach our steps or our driveway to our front door. I then went to speak to someone at the post office and she told me that we couldn't have her tied up for more than 4 hours and that she should be inside a fence. Also, after she asked what kind of dog i had i told her it was a 7 month old pitbull and her face expression suddenly changed and said, "Pitbulls kill people!" which i think that she's being totally prejudice against that breed. I was thrown off guard because i approached her in a calm manner just wondering why i got this notice and she didn't even let me speak! she went on and on about how my dog could bite the mail man and that would get sued. I honestly tought that she was very rude! and shouldn't have spoken like that to me. What can i do in my situation? my dog has never caused a problem and i have always put her in that spot, and there is no way she even reaches our mailbox. **first of all we don't have our pet tied up all the time... Our dog is very sociable and comes with a great temperature... The only time our dog is tied up is when were home and we take her outside after her daily walks. We do treat her like a family member and no, we would never tie a family member to a tree! Just because pitbulls have a bad rep. it doesn't mean that all pitbulls are the same. It's the owners fault. For Example, when a chihuahua killed a infant.... that doesn't mean all chihuahuas are killers? does it?

Public Comments

1. kill
2. dont ever tie your dog up that is animal abuse trust me i watch animal cops what you should do is get a long stong lead for your backyard i have one too!
3. I think its cruel to have a dog tied up outside dogs need love and companionship you wouldn'y tie ur family member up outside so why your dog?
4. talk to someone higher up in the company's ladder, you have to be prepared to show them everything you know about dogs, espically pits, and how they have been given a Bad Rap because of their breed. The fact that you do tie your dog up though I personally don't agree with, because it does make the dog more defensive, and sometimes agressive. So putting it inside a fence would make the situation better for you, your dog, and the fact that you'll be getting mail again.
5. Tieing a dog can and does make them aggressive. Think about it would it be OK to tie a human to a tree. In Some places its even illegal to tie up a dog. Its a pit bull, that breed is responsible for 41% of fatal dog attacks on Humans. You have it tied in the front yard and you wonder why the postal person does not want to deliver your mail. Put up a dog run thats fenced in and protect everyone.
6. Perhaps it was a different mail man complaining?.. If they insist on your dog causing trouble (even though it's not, it is only a puppy so far), then maybe it would be good, just to keep the peace, to put some kind of a fenced area to where her kennel is. It is better not to leave a dog tied for many hours on end as dogs get very bored, after all, who wouldn't? If you can't leave her untied anywhere, how about getting someone to take your dog for a walk while you are gone?
7. Your best bet would be to have the dog inside a fenced area. Mailmen are the same way out here and I can't tell ya how many times I've seen a neighborhood dog running around that got of the rope. You can also get an easy to assemble kennel-style enclosure for your dog that is movable. Something like that would make the passers by feel safe and it's cheaper and less permanent than a real fence.
8. first of all i do hope you are not keeping your dog tied outside all the time they need to be a part of your family not just tied outside. how would you like that? second you need to watch your dog maybe he is acting different now then he did before . I have a dog who is sweet and gentle to everyone i know and let in my home but i have since found out that when he id outside in our yard in our invisible fence he is not so nice to the electric guy who reads our meter they to left me a note stating they could not read my meter. if you are leaving your dog tied out with no one to play with and the same ole things to look at and do no wonder he is trying to bite people i would too. even though he cant reach them they still may be afraid he will break his chain. you really need to do something better then tie him outside all day long.
9. Unfortunately you don't have much of a choice here. You can either comply with the post office, or pick up your mail directly from them. I understand that you feel like it is a prejudice, and you can blame the idiot owners of the aggressive pitts for that one. They didn't raise their dogs appropriately and you must now suffer the consequences which is unfair. Try to put yourself in the post mans shoes. He may be worried now because she is getting older and larger. A puppy doesn't look quite so intimidating! My mom works for FedEx and has gotten bit numerous times (more by dachshunds than pitts), but she is wary of all dogs that are not in a fenced in area. It sucks, but thats just how it is. Good Luck!
10. I'll give you a bit of background info, then finish with my advice to solve the problem. Thing is dogs react differently to people they know and don't know. I have delivered mail for some time now and I know only too well about dogs. I remember when I was new to the delivery, there was a German Shepherd sitting in a garden (between the gate and the letterbox). Its owner saw me coming from an upstairs window and shouted to "come on in, the dog wouldn't hurt you". As I opened the gate, the dog barked, but the owner shouted at it, and the dog calmed and let me pass, with no problem. The next day, I had to go to the same garden, but with no sign of the owner, the dog went wild and flew at me as soon as I opened the gate. Luckily I shut it quick enough and refused delivery each day the dog was out in the garden, much to the owner's disgust. She couldn't understand why I didn't like her beloved pet. I've been bitten by a Staffordshire pit bull terrier, and it hurt like hell. Its jaw locked but I was lucky. I managed to get out of the garden and on to a main street (still with the dog attached dragging at my leg). A passing policeman beat the dog with his nightstick until it passed out, otherwise I could have easily lost a limb. I was still off work unable to walk for a week though. This is one particularly nasty example: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cambridgeshire/7797370.stm The chap is almost certainly out of work now, and may lose an arm. 5000 attacks on UK postal workers a year. Not nice figures. This is the reason we don't take any chances. Thankfully our employers value us to that extent, and if we don't feel safe because of the environment a homeowner creates, we can refuse to deliver. As for your postman's change in stance, it could be a new member of staff. I remember one other dog on a round I used to do. Its owner held its collar while I came and petted and chatted to it. It got to know me, so I could come into the garden and it'd just sniff around my ankles and pant at me, leaving me to work. Yet when I was moved to another round, it tried to attack the new postman, simply because it didn't know him. I hope this is something you can understand. Some dogs have a nice temperament, but others are nice only while its masters are there. That is why there is the generalization. As far as I know a chihuahua hasn't killed an infant, but if I knew of an instant, I'd avoid the chihuahua (except I wouldn't, as I know its small enough not to do me any damage, or to be nudged away with my boot). As pitbulls are known to be responsible for a large number of attacks, they are treated accordingly. My advice is to ensure your dog is kept somewhere where they can't see the postman or have something strong and permanent around them, at least during the delivery time. Your postman may be coming into the yard, and the dog begins barking and straining enough to give him concern that it may break loose. The dog may only want to give him a kiss and have a play, if it is as nice a dog as you say, especially if its sociable, but the postman probably doesn't know this and won't take a chance. You only get one set of limbs after all.