A dog with a reputation for barking at postal carriers has angered an entire Casper neighborhood after the post office recently stopped mail there.

Casper Postmaster Susan Gray said the dog on Navarre Road has gone after five different letter carriers on eight separate occasions since 2002, with the most recent incident occurring Jan. 8.

"This dog is very aggressive," Gray said. "Five different carriers have said the dog will come down the road to come get them."

"Butch has always had a problem with the mailman," said owner Jolene Whittle, who has lived with her husband at their house on Navarre Road for five years. "He got out last Monday and was supposedly chasing the mailman. According to the mailman, Butch tried to attack him."

Butch is a neutered shepherd/chow mix. On Friday, he was in the fenced yard barking at people who walked by and a utility worker, but was friendly to visitors.

The Whittles have two other dogs and a new litter of puppies. They also have two daughters, ages 2 and 4.

"Butch has never attacked anyone," Whittle said. "I have two little girls. I wouldn't have a mean dog in my house."

Gray said that last summer the post office stopped mail to the Whittles, but recently stopped mail to about 24 other homes on the street after the Jan. 8 incident.

She said the dog has not bitten any of the carriers, but dog bites are common enough in Casper that the post office doesn't want to take any chances.

"Dogs in this town are a major problem," she said, noting that two local carriers have had to go to the hospital recently to get stitches from dog bites. "Nobody should have to put up with that in their job."

Dave McKenzie, safety coordinator for the Casper Post Office, said in an interview last year that any time a dog bites a letter carrier, it has to be evaluated.

"You have to go to the emergency room for even the smallest bite and get a tetanus shot," McKenzie said at the time. "Metro gets involved every time a carrier gets bit. We're talking a $1,500 medical bill each time."

Rick Sulzen, director of Metro Animal Control and Welfare, said his agency has no records of Butch biting anyone and has four reports on him since 2002.

"Dogs in any town can be dangerous," Sulzen said. "Any dog has the potential to bite, depending on the circumstances."

Sulzen said Metro has been out to Navarre Road frequently since the incident, but saw the dog only once.

"The officer said as soon as he approached the dog, it ran off like a shot from a gun," he said. "They couldn't catch it."

Sulzen said Metro animal control officers need to witness a dog's aggressive behavior to start building a case against the dog. He said three violations are needed within a year before a dog can be prosecuted.

Sulzen said Metro is trying to work with the post office and has offered to have an officer escort the postal carrier on the route.

On Friday, Sulzen hand-delivered postal keys for temporary, community mailboxes to neighbors and explained the situation with the dog. He also visited with the Whittles and got to meet Butch for the first time.

"You don't seem like a mean dog to me," said Sulzen, scratching a playful Butch behind the ears. "In my opinion, this is not a vicious dog. It would have showed some type of aggression if it was."

Whittle told Sulzen she and her husband have caught their former mail carrier tormenting Butch, even after the carrier stopped delivering to their house.

Gray said that has never been reported to the post office.

In the meantime, the 24 homes on Navarre Road will have to go to the nearby community mailbox or get a post office box in order to get their mail. Several neighbors said they are upset about the decision, but Gray said it was made for a good reason.

"We have to look out for the safety of our carriers," she said.

Reporter John Morgan can be reached at (307) 266-0614 or john.morgan@casperstartribune.net.