YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – If you live in an area where the zip code begins with 445, including Youngstown, you may notice stickers on your mailbox.
The U.S. Postal Service is trying to prevent its mail carriers from being attacked and bitten while on their delivery routes. Workers are now placing color-coded stickers with “paw prints” on mailboxes so carriers have a better idea of what to expect on the job.
The Paw Program which has been instituted in several cities across the U.S. since it was rolled out in 2020, uses a color-coded system to inform carriers who may not be familiar with the route which houses have dogs. A yellow paw sticker means that there is a dog living nearby, while an orange indicates that there is a dog living at that home.
“The yellow sticker goes on the house prior to where the dog is to inform the carrier that there is a dog coming up. The house where the dog actually belongs will get an orange sticker, and this is where the carrier will know to proceed with caution,” said Kim Porch, with the U.S. Postal Service.
Last year, 5,300 mail carriers were the victims of dog attacks nationwide, 311 of those incidents occurred in Ohio.
Jeremy Tanner with NewsNation contributed to this report.
