To think if you are that scared of dogs you shouldn't be doing deliveries?

[MummySharkDoodoododoo]

I do totally understand that people don't all like dogs. I understand that some are terrified of them.

But 2 deliveries this week have been by people that are too scared of my dogs, who are always shut in the kitchen before I open the front door, as I do respect that not every body wants to meet them, which is fine.

Today, the woman knocked on my door. The dogs barked, I shut them in the kitchen and then opened the door, she was stood 2 doors away, at the end of the driveway, shouting that she had a delivery for me. I was in my pjs and had no shoes on, so was expecting her to come and give them to me. She asked if the dogs were ok, I said yeah they are fine and are shut in the kitchen and can't get out. She came closer but still wouldn't come down my drive, I ended up coming out in bare feet and getting the parcel and signing for it at the end of the driveway.

Similar happened last week although he did deliver to the door, but said he wouldn't have knocked if he knew I had dogs

For context, one is big and one small. Both never hurt anybody and live with 4 kids, including special needs kids. They just bark at the door like most dogs I've met.

If people are that scared of dogs, that they can't come to my door with a parcel, surely they are in the wrong job? If the dogs were on my doorstep with teeth showing I'd totally get it, but surely once I've said they are shut in the kitchen that should be enough??? My mum hates dogs and doesn't go near them, but I shut them in the kitchen and that's the end of that. She was bitten by a dog years ago and I totally understand it.

Aibu to think this woman is in the wrong job???

If you're a delivery driver your job is to deliver parcels to people's doors.

This. Not that I don't have sympathy for someone who may be hugely phobic and (possibly) forced to take the job by our dear Jobcentre Plus.

I wonder what the general opinion would be if you were disabled/housebound and couldn't just pop down to the end of the driveway to collect? (and she could have someone else living with her who walks the dogs, before anyone makes that point).

Unless you order parcels by on a very regular basis, I'd probably just chalk the experience up to one of the many eye-rolling moments that God sends to try us...

Were either of them apologetic?

dog owners should make sure their dogs are safe before opening the door to deliveries.

She did. She shut them in the kitchen before opening the door.

What do you expect her to do? Nail the dogs to the floor and then send a photo as proof to the delivery person's phone?

Seeing dogs as a potential risk is not the same as hating dogs. I don't hate dogs. I love watching videos of dogs and I would like to have a dog, but I am very anxious of other people's dogs, following a number of bad experiences.

A fraction of people may hate dogs, but I think these threads are mostly a split between people who, on a day to day basis, don't perceive dogs as a threat , and those who do. Given that, in my experience, dogs are dangerous, I'm in the latter group.

Sadly there are loads of irresponsible dog owners so the delivery person may have had a bad experience.
I think sometimes you just have to accept that people don’t like dogs and / or are nervous of the and go the extra mile to help them.

This. Not that I don't have sympathy for someone who may be hugely phobic and (possibly) forced to take the job by our dear Jobcentre Plus.
Or maybe they weren't phobic when they took the job but have developed a phobia as a result of an incident with an out of control dog in the course of their employment.

Or maybe they weren't phobic when they took the job but have developed a phobia as a result of an incident with an out of control dog in the course of their employment.

Perhaps so. But that doesn't make this OP unreasonable.

Perhaps so. But that doesn't make this OP unreasonable.
I disagree. Multiple delivery people are attacked by dogs every day. If you have a dog, particularly one that you've chosen to allow (or encouraged) to bark when people approach your door, one of the consequences is that you might not get packages delivered to your door.

We had a community nurse out who was very fearful almost phobic of dogs I also wondered why she was in that particular role although never voiced this, she was a brilliant nurse and amazing with baby DS. She later told us she had been attacked by a large breed whilst on a call. I was less ignorant more understanding afterwards.

My (smallish) dog always accompanies me to the front door - My house is set back from the road and I can't see who is at the door so I am actually more concerned about my own safety in my own home.

I can't say any delivery driver has been the least bit worried - they generally make a huge fuss of him which he loves being a hopeless softy. Maybe those with very rural rounds are made of tougher stuff?

If his presence in my home also stops unwanted leaflets from local councillors being shoved through my letterbox despite the large notice saying no junk mail then that is a huge benefit I hadn't actually considered.

I disagree. Multiple delivery people are attacked by dogs every day. If you have a dog, particularly one that you've chosen to allow (or encouraged) to bark when people approach your door, one of the consequences is that you might not get packages delivered to your door.

One isn't always able to stop the dog BARKING when someone approaches the door.

But hey ho, agree to disagree.

They should be issued with a dogdazer, so they can protect themselves.

Delivery people are probably among the most likely people to suffer dog bites, so it's not surprising that some develop phobias. I get that it is a mild inconvenience for you, but many people are rightly and understandably fearful of dogs and, as a dog owner, you should have to put up with the mild inconveniences that brings

Agree.
If loud barking dogs behind doors are to scare off unwanted visitors, no surprise they will scare off some posties and delivery people.

One isn't always able to stop the dog BARKING when someone approaches the door.

One isn't always able to train a dog to have perfect recall. The consequence is that it should be kept on a lead.

If you're not able, or inclined, to train your dog to not bark at people, that can have consequences too.

Unfortunately OP, your delivery driver is not telepathic and has no way of telling you apart from the irresponsible fuckers who will say yeah yeah yeah they're shut away but who actually haven't bothered to make sure they are fully secured. And who won't give a flying fuck if she ends up losing her job and home due to a dog attack.

If they were a regular, and got to know you (e.g. rural round) then it might be easier.

But in the meantime, she's taking reasonable precautions.

I don’t know how this post went to discussing dogs recall and irresponsible owners. Which isn’t the case here.

I don’t know how this post went to discussing dogs recall...Which isn’t the case here
It was an analogy, I thought that would have been obvious.

If you tolerate or encourage certain behaviours in your dog, there may be consequences.

If you train or permit your dog to bark at visitors, then not all delivery drivers will deliver to your door. It's your dog, you are responsible for its behaviour and you deal with the consequences - including, in this instance, the mild inconvenience of having to go outside to collect a package.

Her job is to feel safe when she delivers to your door. If she does not feel safe, she can't do her job.

But in the meantime, she's taking reasonable precautions.

She was overreacting and it was affecting her job. The op reassured her that the dogs were secured, and yet she still made the op come out to collect the parcel. There’s precautions and then there’s been silly.

We have the same issue with a postwoman. She is petrified of dogs and we have three, including a large German Shepherd, the German Shepherd doesn’t bark but he will jump up on the fence. He’s behind a fence though, I am standing outside the fence to take the parcel, she’s in her car and can’t manage to open the car window to give me the parcel. Clearly she is petrified but I don’t think she can do her job with that level of fear, especially her round which is in the countryside in a country where a lot of farm dogs are loose.

They should be issued with a dogdazer, so they can protect themselves.

I had to google that. It would probably be open to abuse by trigger happy types though. does this technology work for kids?

Her job is to feel safe when she delivers to your door. If she does not feel safe, she can't do her job.

"Safe" is extremely subjective.

What if she didn't "feel safe" because OP had a pair of hollering toddlers and the delivery person has misophonia?

We have the same issue with a postwoman. She is petrified of dogs and we have three, including a large German Shepherd, the German Shepherd doesn’t bark but he will jump up on the fence. He’s behind a fence though, I am standing outside the fence to take the parcel, she’s in her car and can’t manage to open the car window to give me the parcel. Clearly she is petrified but I don’t think she can do her job with that level of fear, especially her round which is in the countryside in a country where a lot of farm dogs are loose.
If postal workers don't feel safe because of loose dogs that present a risk, the postal service generally supports the worker and allows them to suspend deliveries to the address (so the resident has to collect their mail from the post office).

So the postal worker can choose not to deliver and their employer can support them - they are still doing their job to their employer's satisfaction. It's the person with the loose dogs who has the problem, and its of their own making.

So if you’ve got a dog that barks to protect you when someone knocks the door or tries to enter your property etc, even though it’s safely locked away and you’re a responsible dog owner that would never allow your dog to approach a stranger anyway and have also explained they’re locked away you should still have to come to the door, regardless of personal situation? Just trying to clarify/summarise what some people are trying to imply here.

FYI I don’t encourage or tolerate my dogs barking but my terrier will happily disobey me and do it anyway. Also, I am lucky enough to of never had this problem as I have porch so delivery drivers tend to just stand outside the porch if they are wary of dogs.

What if she didn't "feel safe" because OP had a pair of hollering toddlers and the delivery person has misophonia
Again, postal workers are attacked by dogs every day - no doubt many more are put at the risk of attack. Their employer has a duty of care towards them. That duty of care likely extends to not putting their workers at risk of dog attacks (particularly given that dog attacks are an identified risk).

When screaming toddlers start causing actual injuries to postal workers, you'll have a valid point.

We had a driver that wouldn't get out of his van because of my geese Never had a problem with the dogs though