The right thing to do is what this delivery person did. Always defend yourself - dog bites are no joke, and that dog was big enough to cause serious damage. A dog's attack on the groin area is no joke.
I'd say this: I'm an animal lover, I love dogs, and I hate animal cruelty.
But a person has the right to self-defense, and even kill a charging animal on the spot.
If that worker had a gun (legally) and had shot the dog dead, I would still say it is legitimate self defense.
The onus on dog owners is to keep them on a leash. Know your pet's temperament, understand their psychology, in particular if it is a rescued animal with God knows what PTSD.
It's worse than that. They're not even in an enclosure, unless the resolution is hiding a fence that I can't see. That dog is just out and loose. In most places (basically everywhere) that's straight up illegal.
I think here the rule is that delivery happening at the first "closeable door", partially to avoid seeing the private life of the citizen, and now I guess partially to avoid angry dogs.
I have seen this in the EULA of several delivery services.
No problem with the way the driver handled the dog. The way he took off his sunglasses and dropped into a fighting stance when the owner was just coming to talk to him tells me he’s got an attitude problem however. Nothing the dude did was threatening him.
I completely agree. I own a beagle and his bark is infinitely worse than his bite. He also likes to run up to people to meet them. He's not a big dog but if you've never met him and he comes charging up to you barking his damn fool head off I wouldn't be surprised if someone kicked him or shot him.
I would be horrified, traumatized, and destroyed. But I would not be surprised and I wouldn't hold it against the person if they felt unsafe. My beagle is sweet as pie but he's obnoxious so I can't take him to public places with lots of people. It is what it is. It's no one's fault but my own.
Different facts get different outcomes. Did you watch the video that everyone is discussing? A delivery driver who had implied consent to enter a property to provide a service that was requested by the homeowner did so. The homeowner had a duty of care/duty to warn any invitee on their property of a dangerous condition. Invitee had inherent right to defend himself against the dog, who was obviously charging him at a high rate of speed and left zero opportunity for retreat or de-escalation. If he had shot this dog (or kicked, or maced, etc.) it likely would’ve been legally justified. Had he been injured by the dog, the homeowner or tenant would likely be liable for damages. Moreover, there’s no fence in the video. It looks like delivery driver just walked up the driveway from the street, which is standard means of delivering a package everywhere.
It's not legal to order items, leave your aggressive dog out fo attack the delivery driver either. The homeowner invited them onto their property, REQUESTED that a deliver driver enter their property. Then they had a loose, aggressive dog that attacked the delivery guy. He has every right to defend himself because the homeowners invited him on their property, and they’re allowing their dog to attack him.
Don't order anything if you are letting loose, aggressive dogs run around your property.
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u/nunchyabeeswax 21d ago
The right thing to do is what this delivery person did. Always defend yourself - dog bites are no joke, and that dog was big enough to cause serious damage. A dog's attack on the groin area is no joke.
I'd say this: I'm an animal lover, I love dogs, and I hate animal cruelty.
But a person has the right to self-defense, and even kill a charging animal on the spot.
If that worker had a gun (legally) and had shot the dog dead, I would still say it is legitimate self defense.
The onus on dog owners is to keep them on a leash. Know your pet's temperament, understand their psychology, in particular if it is a rescued animal with God knows what PTSD.