Redcar man claims his post was stopped after rescue dog El barked at a postman

A man claims he hasn’t had any post delivered for almost a month after his dog barked at the postman.

Antony Simmonds Sergent was fetching coal from his car on February 7 when the usually “nice” postman turned up.

But when pet pooch, El, excitedly ran up to him and barked, Antony claimed the postie dropped his back and then got into a heated argument with him.

El had made headlines in 2017 when she was found dumped in a tied-up Sports Direct plastic bag in woodland near Ingleby Barwick, aged only nine-weeks old.

“She’s the most loving, adorable dog anyone could ever meet,” said Antony, 45 who adopted El with his husband Karl.

“Whenever we pull up onto the drive, she runs out and barks and wags her tail, there’s no viciousness at all.

“We have a caravan by the side of the house and we were bringing in coal on that day.

“El ran out as she thought we were going out in the car and she jumped in the boot.”

But Antony said when the postman – “usually a nice and polite guy” – turned up and El ran up the drive and barked.

Antony claimed the postie had said that El was biting his bag, so dropped it.

CCTV shows the moment El ran out to the postman – and Antony claims he was then involved in an argument with the postman.

“He then said he wasn’t delivering my post anymore,” Antony continued.

And since the incident last month, Antony and Karl say they still haven’t had any post delivered to their Easson Road home – although Royal Mail dispute this, and say there’s an agreement to deliver mail to a box on the home’s gate.

But Antony added: “This has been going on for a while now and this is getting tedious and boring.

“It feels like it is personal now.”

Royal Mail said it takes dog attacks “very seriously” and that suspending deliveries is a “last resort”.

A spokesperson said: “Royal Mail treats all dog attacks on our postmen and women very seriously, and our first priority as an employer is to ensure the welfare and safety of our people who provide a valuable service to our customers.

“In this case, there is a mutual agreement in place with the customer that we will deliver mail to the box on the gate, provided the gate remains closed. 

“It is very distressing when one of our people is attacked or worried by a dog while carrying out their job.

“Suspending deliveries is often a last resort, as we recognise the vast majority of dog owners are very responsible and keep their pets under control.”

They added: “We continue to appeal to dog owners and their families to help reduce the numbers of attacks, particularly at the door and in the garden.” ​