Workshop on safety around dogs for workers visiting homes

On Mon 8th July 2024 we held a workshop in the School of Veterinary Science, University of Liverpool. 

Hospital admissions for dog bites have been rising across England and areas of Merseyside have the highest incidence in England. Workers visiting homes to make deliveries or conduct work within the home are at risk of being bitten by the family pets. At the University of Liverpool we have conducted and published extensive research into dog-related workplace injuries and their prevention, for example with data from the Health and Safety Executive, Royal Mail and dog shelters. The Merseyside Dog Safety Partnership was established in 2016 after experts at the University were asked to assist Royal Mail with their dog bite prevention policies, and then wider stakeholders including Merseyside Police, Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, animal charities and some local authorities, also came on board. We have a website, www.merseydogsafe.co.uk, which contains details of our research, and serves as a hub for resources for both professionals and the public around dog safety.

Attendees

Suitable for all organisations and workers that have to visit or enter homes with dogs. Examples include community nurses, care workers, deliveries (mail, parcel, food), midwives, cleaners, service providers such as plumbers, handymen, housing providers.

Content

• During this event we provided training on the scientific evidence around dog behaviour, dog bites in the workplace and their prevention, law relating to dogs, and the AVOID and ATLAS animal safety approaches at Royal Mail. 
• Speakers included representatives from the University of Liverpool, Royal Mail, Merseyside Police, Dogs Trust, PDSA.
• We also presented Dog Assisted Virtual Reality (DAVE) which was developed through funding by Dogs Trust and the UoL so that participants could experience interacting with a virtual reality aggressive dog and be more informed about dog behavioural signs of potential aggression.
• The participants then spent time discussing and drafting their own workplace guidance relating to preventing dog bites in their specific context. 
• Dogs Trust Community Team were also be present to provide resources and discuss interventions that they can support cases with.

 As a result of this training day, we have created a short summary recording (30mins) that organisations can use to inform and design their own policies and training regarding safety around dogs when workers visit homes. 

The video can be watched in high quality at the following link https://liverpool.cloud.panopto.eu/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=c4e6d034-862c-499d-9e49-b2e300910ca8&start=0