Your own anxiety starts to rise and you briefly consider putting off getting his nail's trimmed for another week. Sharp whistle : Cyclists recommend a safety whistle to stop a chasing dog. No. When it grabs your forearm, with your other arm reach around its head and shove your fore arm deeper down its throat and hold it … You need to accept the fact that your fear is probably not based on rational thought, and as such, means that you can train yourself to think differently. Stay relaxed for 15 seconds, then select another muscle group and repeat the same steps. A phobia, in general, is an uncontrollable, irrational and persistent fear of something (an object, situation or activity). Puppies are not well-trained and can be quite unpredictable. ", generally look cute, and I like them on leashes. Take some time at home to practice by taking one slow deep breath in through your nose while counting to 4, holding your breath while counting to 7, then exhaling through your mouth and counting to 8. It’s time for that monthly drama that you both dread. Pay close attention to how these muscles feels when tense and when relaxed. They will also vary in length, so you can select the ones that work best for you. Cynophobia, specifically, is the irrational and uncontrollable fear of dogs. While this may sound easy, this is going to be the hardest step in your process to overcome your fear of dogs. All of us have things that scare us, but for our four-legged friends, loud noises, new situations, and changes in the weather can be daunting. Gently pet the dog’s back or side instead. Use your journal to record each event you can remember, and anything you can remember happening leading up to that event. Once you’re better at deep breathing, develop an exposure plan that will slowly put you in contact with dogs. This article was co-authored by Tasha Rube, LMSW. Use games and training to build her confidence. Once your dog is comfortable around you, start using basic training exercises and games to build her confidence. In reality, it was just a movie, and there was no truth to it and if you think about it, you’ve never actually seen a dog attack anyone. Remember, the energy you project with your dog has a profound affect on him, so the more relaxed and calm-assertive you are, the more relaxed he’ll be. As such, your pet may feel encouraged to continue displaying this type of … Nonprofit organization dedicated to providing free, evidence-based mental health and wellness resources. Absolutely! Remove your shoes. Is there something I can wear so that I can't feel a dog touch me? without leashes. If you practice patience, invest your time, and shower him with love, your scared dog has the potential to become a much happier dog. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. HTML-code: Copy. Then turn around and walk away without interacting with the dog. Add this game to your profile’s TOP 3 loved list. If you’re a really logical person, can you find any scientific proof to back up your beliefs? Analyze your beliefs and thoughts to determine if they include any of the following: Continue writing in your journal. Start by patting your knees to call the dog over (pat). Write down specific past memories that you have about dogs, and how you felt during those experiences. An animal in a high state of fear or anxiety is generally unable to learn new things. Don’t get me wrong, he may not be the picture of a happy go lucky dog, but your scared dog DOES have the potential to live a life free of much of the burden of fear. When your dog is calm, either before it can start panicking or after the panicking ends, give it a small, yummy snack. This is a great place to start a journal where you can record all the information about your fear of dogs that may be helpful for future therapy and analysis. If the dog is barking, don't move or walk away until it stops; otherwise it will learn that its barking made you go away and it will continue to do that. 0:10. Use your journal to keep track of your progress. To take care of a dog, make sure you're feeding it a high-quality dog food twice a day and giving it access to water at all times. Now I can be around dogs, "I liked how you said to analyse what part of dogs scare you, and to me it's the barking and running. Make a safe place for the dog, like a dog house or covered dog crate in a quiet, secluded area. Continue writing your memories and thoughts in your journal. Find a quiet place where you can sit comfortably with your eyes closed. If you are approached by a vicious dog, remain calm and still, avoid eye contact, try to remain motionless until the dog leaves, then back away slowly until the dog is out of sight. Tweet Share on Facebook. Tasha is affiliated with the Dwight D. Eisenhower VA Medical Center in Leavenworth, Kansas. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Not so much. Be patient and take your time. After you watched that movie you started to fear dogs based on the assumption that the movie was 100% accurate. A piece of food, such as a slice of cheese or a pet treat, could help the dog get over that fear. Then gently pet her under the chin, on the chest, or on the butt (pet). First, you need to learn how to relax when your fear or anxiety occurs so you don’t set yourself back. Allow all the tension to leave the muscles you’ve selected while exhaling. Different people will have different levels of fear towards dogs. Feeling like what is happening is unreal. Spray Shield: citronella spray that if needed you can unload in a dog's face and it will scare and annoy but not hurt. Dogs dislike the noise, so this can act as a deterrent. Not really; but rather than searching for something that will prevent you from feeling a dog's touch, look for solutions that will help you overcome your fear. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. Step 10 - look at a dog (who is on a leash) in the next room. If your dog starts to dig, throw the can near him. This will help you in almost every stage of your dog’s life. That said, some breeds tend to have more docile temperaments: basset hounds and bulldogs are two examples. ", "I'm 14 and I'm deathly afraid of dogs this has helped me overcome that fear. Your neighbour has a dog that they let into the backyard to play, so you never go in your own backyard in case your neighbour’s dog is outside. Learn relaxation and meditation techniques to help keep your calm and help control your anxiety. Damn, That's A Long Tongue! You can stand up for her/him and tell the bully that many other people have a fear of dogs. For instance, you might want to pet him or put him on your lap. Rate your level of anxiety and fear before and after each attempt. Fear of Children. Being afraid of dogs is very common, and you can overcome your fear by learning relaxation techniques and undergoing exposure therapy. Yes. Your plan should be customized for your particular type of fears, and the fearful situations you personally experience. After 3 seconds of petting, stop for a moment and put your hands in your lap (pause). If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. Maybe your belief is based on the fact that you saw a movie when you were 7 (that you shouldn’t have watched) that had dogs attacking and killing people. your left foot) and focus on those muscles. RIPbailey Subscribe Unsubscribe 0. % of people told us that this article helped them. At this stage you’ll want to include your reactions (both internally and externally) to the events that triggered your fear, and the beliefs that contributed to that fear. Take your time on each step of your plan until you feel comfortable moving onto the next step. Repeat these steps until you feel calmer and relaxed. Tasha Rube is a Licensed Social Worker based in Kansas City, Kansas. A confident dog is able to shed anxious behavior because she can better control her emotions. X For example, you have the belief that all dogs are going to attack you no matter what. Consider searching for a therapist in your area using the Anxiety and Depression Association of America's (ADAA) website at. Suggest that she read this article and then see if she wants to come try some of these techniques with a dog you know is calm and friendly. ", "I will try these techniques to overcome my fear of dogs. The anxiety distress scale can also help you decide when it's time for you to move to the next step of your exposure plan. Add. Consider writing about your fear in a journal. You may have been scared, cornered or even bitten by a dog… The more you visit your friend the safer you will feel! For example, start by reading about dogs, then once you’re comfortable with that, move on to looking at photos of dogs. Dogs may like this smell and then they are more likely to follow you. Try to help them using the tips in this article. This article has been viewed 306,661 times. Show the food to the dog, and then drop it to them as you walk by. You may have had a bad personal experience with one or more dogs in the past. While there is no one cure or one-size-fits-all solution to minimize sounds that scare dogs has or even make them disappear altogether, you do have plenty of tools at your disposal. Please help us continue to provide you with our trusted how-to guides and videos for free by whitelisting wikiHow on your ad blocker. 80.0% Did you like this video? If you see your scared dog in distress, your natural reaction may be to comfort him. You were walking down your street and encountered a dog in the yard of a specific home. How To Scare A Dog. When someone visits the house, or … If you experienced one of the following when you were younger, it may be the reason for your current fear of dogs. However, if you have an extreme fear, you might want to talk it over with a therapist first. Step 7 - look at dogs through an open window. After all, your irrational beliefs may have helped you avoid bad situations, so what’s wrong with them? Just put a stuffed dog in front of it, and let the natural course take its path. Try … ", "It's very helpful for me to analyze what the real problem is.". Have faith in yourself that you will get over your fear of dogs and accept any mistakes you make along the way. If this happens, try to distract yourself from the dog by looking at something else and not standing there staring at the dog. Consider your personal history with dogs. Have you been attacked by every single dog you’ve ever encountered? Now I have to help my mom overcome her fear of dogs. 2 A pet may sometimes show fear because you’re simply around them. This article has been viewed 306,661 times. 5. Last Updated: July 10, 2020 Use a scented diffuser near your dog’s bed, so that he comes to associate a particular scent with relaxation. This is also the key to how to make a dog-friendly to strangers. When you have gotten over some of your fear, you may want to try. Hold your breath while counting to seven. Will going to a friend's house who has a dog help? They might think that dogs shouldn't be feared. She received her Masters of Social Work (MSW) from the University of Missouri in 2014. The best thing to do is approach slowly. This way, we can better empathize and support a dog who experiences fear. [1] Trimming your dog's nails! This can cause them to do something unexpected in your presence which may only exacerbate your fear. Eventually, work your way towards petting a real dog. Watch Later; ... Dog Wearing A Tiara With Real Butterflies discoverweb. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. This means the hand on your stomach should move downwards, and the hand on your chest shouldn’t move very much. Being in control of the dog may further help you to alleviate your fears once you realize you have the ability to direct their actions. For more help from our co-author, like how to relax your muscles when you’re afraid, read on. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 306,661 times. Select a specific muscle group to begin with (i.e. Since our puppies can’t speak, they try to tell us as much as they can with their bodies. Our beliefs can be entrenched in our minds so deeply that it can take some time (and convincing) that they make no sense. Where does it come from? So first, we are going to talk about the body language of a scared dog. 22 Jan 2007 2 401. Don’t feel you need to rush. ащитить себя от бродячей собаки, consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. Five-year-old Carly is fascinated by dogs.She loves them. Favourited. Some common body languages for a scared dog are the following: For these dogs, appropriate medications to reduce anxiety can be helpful. Tasha Rube is a Licensed Social Worker based in Kansas City, Kansas. If nothing else, when you are learning more and more about your dog, you want to learn as much as you can about their body languages. Unfortunately, in your dog's eyes, this type of reaction may seem like a reward. But they, "This article has made me believe that it is possible to overcome my fear of dogs. Share Video. Some may need to be in the presence of a dog to feel the fear, others simply need to be thinking of a dog. Put one of your hands on your chest and put your other hand on your stomach. Take one slow deep breath in through your nose while counting to four. What can I do to help a friend who is teased for her fear of dogs? "I used to be scared of dogs without leashes but my friend has a dog that I got used to. Dogs may become scared for many reasons, some of which are rational and some not. Remember, fear is natural and you should do whatever you are comfortable with. This is also a chance for you and your therapist to determine if there is an underlying medical or mental condition that may be exacerbating your phobia. There are 27 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. Share channel. Remember that your exposure to dogs should be planned, prolonged and repeated. This will not only help ease the dog’s tension when walking in what seems to be a stressful environment for him; it will ease your tension as well. Your dog expects you to adhere to the same code of body language as another dog. Don't be mean to it, if it is sleeping let it sleep. Eventually, if you’re able to, have your friend teach you basic commands for the dog so you can control the dog yourself. Forcing a scared dog to accept an unknown person can very easily lead to a situation where the animal becomes aggressive. In searching for the answer, you can look back at your childhood and see if you remember any case in which a dog maybe attacked you or did something traumatic to you. Now if a dog attacks you, chances are it will try to bite your head or throat. Use your journal to write down each of your beliefs and the associated evidence you have as to why that belief is reasonable and rational. Since dogs can't tell us what scares them, the behaviorist will read a dog's body language to see how they react to certain situations. There's no breed of dog that's guaranteed to never bite: a dog from any breed can be trained not to be aggressive. This will keep it handy for sounding … Hope it'll work. Well, she loves the thought of them.. Keep a soda can or tin can filled with pennies outside. Animal phobias fall into a category known as specific phobias, as opposed to social phobias. In this case, 85% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. Plus the dog will likely be devoted to you, giving you positive associations with dogs in general. Heart racing, sweating, trembling or shaking, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, dizziness, or chills. To help yourself calm down when you’re near a dog, try breathing deeply from your abdomen, which can help reverse hyperventilation. You weren’t able to find any evidence to back up that belief, so why do you have it? Many people tease those with a fear of dogs because they have a fear themselves. Do you avoid speaking to certain people because they talk about their dogs? Underlying causes may be an anxiety disorder, depression, or maybe even a specific, yet unrelated, event that started the phobia. If you go into this type of treatment pessimistically or with the belief that you’re being completely reasonable in your fears, you will make the process much harder to overcome. By using our site, you agree to our. The rattling noise may scare off the dog. All mammals have the ability to feel fear. Step 11 - look at a dog (who is on a leash) in the same room. A fear of dogs, also known as cynophobia, is a very common animal phobia. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/b\/b3\/Overcome-a-Fear-of-Dogs-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Overcome-a-Fear-of-Dogs-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/b\/b3\/Overcome-a-Fear-of-Dogs-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/aid168366-v4-728px-Overcome-a-Fear-of-Dogs-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"