Maybe it'll be he birds in OP's tree ruining his oh-so-perfect uniform

Haha, I'm a mailman and I actually had a couple magpies dive bomb me when I was headed up someone's walk once, they wouldn't let me pass. They were gone the next day though. If the mailman doesn't know better, he should talk to the owner. If an unknown dog is at the front of the house, we are instructed to be cautious. Talking to him or his supervisor should clear things up.

But even if the mailman has an actual phobia of dogs, that is HIS problem, not OP's. The correct thing in that case would be to go see a psychologist or switch jobs since it's pretty much guaranteed that he's going to have to see at least one house with a dog no matter which route he's assigned.

yeah,. because switching jobs and seeing psychologists are so easy and cheap... theres no way a psychologist will see a dog phobia as anything important, not when there are people with far worse who need actual help.

A person with a phobia of dogs shouldn't be a mailman in the first place.

Guys don't bother with mathalamus, from his comment history he is a fool and his comments are utterly useless. This is a forum he uses to talk about himself.

and this is why i believe this community is very, very hostile. seriously, its the most hostile community to me, by far. people like you disgust me. you pass judgement with little to no thought. well im out of this peice of crap you call a community. not even disqus was this bad. and i was a *worse* jerk there.

Funnily enough, #25, psychologists will see ANYONE who comes to them with a problem. It's their job, and they get paid for it. It's not like we have a shortage of psychologists and they have to prioritize who to see and who to leave to their own devices. Getting treatment for phobias is actually pretty common, especially if they keep you from doing your job.

So you'd inconvenience another person because they happen to own a dog instead of admitting that you're the one who has a problem and getting help?

But it's an old arthritic dog that can barely walk, #33. How unacceptable could his behaviour possibly be? The worst he could've done is growl at the mailman or maybe bark, and THAT's something a mailman should be able to deal with without throwing a hissy fit. The dog is physically unable to run after him and hurt him in any way, so saying it's a threat is laughable.

But does the mailman know the dog is sick, and the dog is standing there growling at him, he is trained to walk away. I usually yell for the owner to come out if I don't know, as if the dog is outside, they are usually nearby. But I won't put myself at risk for a piece of mail. If the mailman knows, then he is just being petty and lazy.

53 There is no evidence that the dog was growling or even doing anything. For all we know he could have been laying down doing nothing. If the dog was out there baring his teeth and getting into a stance to attack then yeah you shouldn't walk up to it. But I've seen mailmen scared of my dog who was just laying in the grass on a lead, not even moving. This sounds more of like the case.

If an unknown dog is standing (or laying) between the mailman, and the mailbox, we are instructed to not approach. It doesn't matter if the dog is just laying there, most dogs are fast and can jump up at a moments notice. The mailman's livelihood and health is not worth a piece of mail. The growling was in regards to 42's worst case scenario.

My moms dog loves the local ups carrier. He has a big bag of treats in the van that he gives to dogs on his route. Of course things got pretty crazy when a different carrier had the route. Dog chased the van down the street and hopped in the van when my mom got there he was sitting by the treats smiling like an idiot, now that guy had a right to be terrified.