Chihuahua Mix Halts Mail Delivery to Iowa Neighborhood

Apr. 2, 2014— -- Neither snow nor rain can stop a mail carrier from completing his rounds, as the old postal adage goes, but a small Chihuahua just might.

Dozens of homes in a neighborhood in Cedar Rapids, Iowa are missing out on their daily delivery after a mailman said he felt threatened by an unleashed dog on the block.

After the fifth time the mail carrier saw the Chihuahua mix off the leash, USPS took action, sending out letters to announce it would halt services until the dog is restrained, ABC News affiliate KCRG-TV reported.

"The dog has interfered, on a number of occasions with the delivery of the mail in that particular neighborhood," said USPS spokesman Richard Watkins. “Once we know that the dog owner has taken responsibility and making sure that dog is not running free in the neighborhood, the mail delivery will continue."

Neighbors have since been forced to go to a nearby post office to collect their mail -- and some are not happy.

One neighbor, Alyssa Taylor, said she and her family have also had encounters with the dog next door.

"We got chased a couple times just bringing in our groceries into our house in our own driveway,” Taylor said. “We called animal control at that point and they did come and seize the dogs because it did not have its vaccines up to date.

“Two weeks later my five year old was bit in the back of the leg in our own backyard,” she added.

The dog’s owner, Guillermo Tellez, maintains the dog is actually friendly with children.

"It’s a nice dog,” he said.

Another neighbor, Elmer Kasey, said he doesn’t care if the dog stays as long as mail delivery returns to normal.

"I don't really care what they do,” Kasey said. I just want my mail back.”

Last year, 5,879 postal employees were attacked by dogs across the United States, according statistics released by the U.S. Postal Service.