Why Does My Dog Go Crazy Whenever the Mailman Arrives?

Pity the poor mailman who braves through heavy downpour, icy roads, and under a scourging sun to have your mail delivered promptly to your home only to be confronted by your insubordinate, barking, and snarling dog. And even after the mailman closes the mailbox’s lid or drops off the mail through the door and walks away, your dog seems to keep up his excitable behavior and continue barking as if someone is breaking into the house.

This episode will repeat day after day for weeks, months, and years if nothing is done to correct your dog’s behavior. Why? Think about it from your dog’s point of view. The mailman comes up to the door. Your dog barks and/or chases. The mailman retreats. In your dog’s mind, it was the barking or the mailman’s “cowardice” that made him go away. The next time the mailman comes, the dog will do it again.

To some extend, small dogs have a greater tendency to bark at any intruders and larger dogs who couldn’t wait to bear his fearsome teeth if the subject (mailman) draws near. The true is, not all dogs are born with equal determination to defend their territory against the daily intrusion of mail. There are several explanations to this territorial aggression behavior towards mailman.

Why Is My Dog So Aggressive Towards the Mailman?

Here are some possibilities.

Self-Defense: As the dog owner, you are usually seen as the leader of the pack, responsible for the pack’s defense. If the mailman is accepted without aggression by the Alpha dog (you), the mailman will generally be accepted by your dog. In absence of the Alpha dog (you), the dog takes over the role and behaves quite differently. Even a small, quiet female may show territorial aggression.

Protective: It is a basic instinct of dog to protect the home and his occupants from human or canine trespassers. A dog regards humans and other dogs as its own kind, so unknown members of these species are viewed with suspicion. Even the mail that is left behind is suspicious to a dog because the mail that is dropped through the slots of your door contains all sorts of unfamiliar smells. This makes your dog very anxious and he will go through an awful lot of trouble making sure that their territory is marked with their scent—either by piddling on them or shredding the envelopes into pieces!

Fearful: Dogs, especially those that have been ill-treated or encounter similar experience in the past will show fearful aggression. Your dog doesn’t have to experience the exact situation to be fearful of mailman. For example, it could be the hat or the color of the uniform that makes your dog feels frightened, threatened, or in pain (psychologically).

Boredom: Many dogs seem to eagerly anticipating the mail delivery as if it were a peak form of entertainment. What type of dogs view this as such? Dogs with very few or no exercise and intellectual stimulation activities will be more likely to overreact to events throughout the day. And the arrival of the mailman is truly a high point of their day.

Understand why it drives your dog crazy is one step closer to problem solving. Be sure to catch the next issue on tips to stop your dog being a menace to the mailman and your mail so you won’t be the one who’s going crazy whenever the mailman arrives.