Chunghwa Post Co has offered some of its postal workers tennis rackets and dog treats in a bid to stave off dog attacks, with trials in the Neihu (內湖), Muzha (木柵) and Beitou (北投) districts of Taipei over the past six months indicating that the treats are the best solution.
There have been 2,045 dog attacks on postal workers over the past four years, with deliveries in remote areas proving the most hazardous, the company said.
The company said that it bought 300 tennis rackets for postal workers to use against aggressive dogs, but many postal workers were reluctant to carry the extra weight and also felt that it looked inappropriate to members of the public.
Photo courtesy of Chunghwa Post
Dog treats were then mooted as an alternative to tennis rackets, and were found to be an effective and economical solution, with a monthly cost of just NT$2,000, the company said.
Still, households with dogs that have a record of attacking postal workers should take preventive measures or risk losing their mail service, the company said.
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