How to Help Your Child Overcome A Fear Of Dogs

Puppies are often less intimidating to children.

Dogs are everywhere, and this only makes having an unhealthy fear of dogs harder for a child. Fear also makes children more susceptible to dog bites. Dogs sense fear, and a more fearful animal is more likely to lash out. Respect your child's fears, but help her overcome them so she can learn to enjoy these furry companions.

Instructions

1. Address why your child is fearful of dogs. Have an age-appropriate discussion with your child regarding the reasons for her fear. If it was a dog aggression or overly assertive dog, point out to your child that the incident could be traced back to irresponsible ownership and that the dog was not behaving as dogs with responsible owners would have reacted. If the fear-causing incident was the result of provocation on the part of the child, educate your child about why his behavior was inappropriate and what the dog may have been feeling at the time.

2. If possible, take the child to the home of someone with a litter of young puppies at around 6 weeks old (before they are too terribly hyper), and ask permission for your child to interact one-on-one with one puppy (without the mother or any other adult dogs around). Point out how this puppy has all the potential in the world to be someone's best friend someday if the person who takes it home loves it and takes care of it correctly.

3. Take your child to a dog obedience class. Be sure to get prior permission to attend and let the instructor know why you wish to attend. Chances are, some of these very well-trained adult dogs will have owners who would be more than happy to slowly introduce your child to how wonderful a dog can be. Allow the child to observe at first with no pressure to interact until the child shows signs of interest in progressing, even if it takes a couple visits to the class before your child feels comfortable.

4. Look up other dog-related classes such as agility or freestyle dance classes. This will allow your child to again experience and observe adult dogs who are very much in tune with their humans and well trained. This will help boost your child's confidence level.

5. Read books such as "Where The Red Fern Grows" to your child, or rent the movie. Be sure it is a positive experience and shows the bond that is possible between a dog and a person, especially if that human is a child.

6. Teach your child the proper ways to handle themselves when approached by dogs and how to properly interact with any dog, stranger or not. A life-sized toy could come in handy for this process.

Tips & Warnings

• Never, ever, ever expose a fearful child to untrusted dogs, untrained dogs, hyper dogs or situations where dogs are not under complete control (such as dog parks, etc).

• Never encourage your child to approach any strange dog without first asking the owner's permission (and only if the dog is on a leash).

References

• Purdue University: Helping Children Overcome Fears