Help Your Child Overcome Their Fear Of Dogs
I remember walking through the park with my dog Bailey one Sunday. It was very quiet and I’d let her off the leash to have a little run around. We were in the middle of a large green area when I noticed a small boy, probably aged around 7, walking down the path alongside with a lady I presume to be his grandma. As soon as he spotted Bailey, he burst into tears and ran round the back of this lady’s skirt to bury his face in her skirt!
I actually looked round to see what had upset him so much and could only arrive at the conclusion that it was Bailey he was afraid of!
Bearing in mind that Bailey is about 12 inches tall, was miles away sniffing at something or other and wasn’t in the slightest bit interested in this child, I was dismayed that a child could be so afraid of dogs already. I called B back and put her on the leash straight away but even that didn’t seem to calm him down.
Of course a certain amount of caution round strange dogs is a good thing and I don’t know the reason for the young boy’s fear, but no matter how bad his experience, I really hope that his parents do something about it – to be screaming and crying at a dog a few hundred metres away from you is awful. Find a friendly little dog for him to get to know gradually, take him to a child psychologist, but do something!
Kirstie Alexander, a clinical psychologist, wrote an article about helping children to overcome their fear of dogs on the Babycenter website and it’s well worth a read if your child has become overly anxious about dogs.
Feb 15, 2008 | 0 | Care & Training
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