Why are some people genuinely frightened of dogs?

[WanderingStar26]

Not a TAAT but kind of inspired by one.

I adore dogs, I have my own dogs, I work with dogs, and my hobby revolves around dogs. I had dogs growing up and with the very odd exception, I’ve never felt any fear towards any dog.

But I understand that some people are terrified of them, and I’m really interested to understand why? Is it an instinctive fear, which now I think about it would make sense as dogs are descended from wolves, or is it based on a past negative experience? It seems to be more children that have an obvious fear, so do people grow out of feeling scared, or just learn to conceal their fear as they get older?

I’m not talking about just not liking them, I realise dogs aren’t for everyone, but an actual fear. My dogs are tiny and not at all aggressive but I still don’t let them approach people unless the person wants them to. I’m honestly not trying to mock or judge, just genuinely intrigued to know more about this fear and whether it’s rational or irrational, and whether it’s something people can overcome. It must be hard to live with either way as dogs are everywhere!

My brother can compare them and dogs will always come out on top, he's gay!

I also recall being in a playground with my 3 year old who was on the side of the climbing frame. Two people let their big dogs on the loose and the dogs did a rotation of running through the nearby river and then circle, running through the park getting within a less than metre of us every loop and on one their momentum knocked my toddler over. I was using my body as a shield as much as I could. The owners were standing together and talking not noticing anything and it wasn’t this huge distance either. I shouted at them to move their dogs and they finally did. I think should have been more aware to not allow their dog to run through a playground. This dogs-run-the-world behaviour is very typical where we live.

A truly dangerous dog could turn on them or people / dc in the house, as has been in the press, so I suppose if that risk doesn’t deter the rest of your post won’t.

Possibly as they were badly bitten as a child by a dog they trusted. You can never trust another dog after that, nor should you.

Dogs can be unpredictable. My own dog bit my lip off. I was 19. It traumatised me.
he had been my dog for 6 years.
I see pictures on Facebook of dogs next to sleeping babies and I’m horrified.

Dog owners need to realise that not everyone loves their dog like they do. I don’t want to make a fuss of anyone’s dog, nor do I want them around me without a lead.

My ds is scared of dogs even though I love them because when he was a toddler walking back from a playpark some arsehole had his off the lead, and it came bounding up to my ds barking like mad and of course had its mouth open to do so. Its teeth were on the level of my ds’s face. It was not friendly barking either, it wasn’t growling but it was aggressive. My ds was maybe a metre in front of me, of course I ran over and picked him straight up while yelling at the arse to get it under control but the damage was done. Unfortunately he has met another animal since that reacted nervously to my ds being a bit nervous and it rapidly spiralled into a similar encounter so what progress had been made by nice owners with soft dogs was undone.

Many thanks (not) to that first man, naturally it was a man, with an aggressive dog loose near a playpark. Typical male arse.

Because they can be unpredictable. Because they sense when people are nervous of them.

I’m wary of dogs, And I’m a dog walker. I’m also in my sixties, fit, but have fibromyalgia, so my strength isn’t always great.

I will only walk dogs that I feel comfortable and in control of. Certain breeds I refuse, because they’re stronger than me. I always meet new dogs and their owners a few times before I agree to walk them, we gel or we don’t, and if we don’t I decline working with them. I walk a lovely docile lab, two spaniels, a Westie, two sibling pugs together, and a poodle. They are well behaved, all on lead. The only ones off lead are on our local beach, the lab and spaniels because they love swimming in the sea. And I only take them out individually. It’s about minimising risk for them, me, other people.

Exactly. I'm not saying that we shouldn't take injuries seriously, but statistically speaking, serious injuries from dogs are startlingly rare.

Dog attacks look far more common than they actually are because the media loves to feed on the fear around this issue.

Why does the bite have to be "serious" to matter to you? 'Minor' bites are nasty and not recorded or reported. I remember leaning into my car, strapping my 2 year old daughter into her car seat when a small dog being walked by a teenage girl sank its teeth into the back of my leg! It didn't break the skin because I was wearing trousers but left teeth marks and bruised my calf.
It gave me a real shock. If it had been my daughter's bare leg it would have been extremely nasty.
Events like this aren't recorded so how do you know how "rare" they are?

It's not ok, but of all the issues and dangers we face, bites that don't break the skin are right at the bottom of the list of national priorities.

Who mentioned "national priorities"?
It's about attitudes. Dog owner attitudes that dismiss reasonable anxieties based on daily experiences. Minimising totally unprovoked events because (thanks to my clothing) it didn't break the skin feeds the problem. The OP seemed incapable of understanding things from other people's perspectives and posters like you minimising the impact of out of control dogs on the basis that unless it's a mauling, they don't really matter, impacts large numbers of people on a daily basis.

It’s funny as I’ve got older I’ve got more scared of them but mainly large ones.
Lots are poorly trained and can bite and some can even kill it’s almost as if why wouldn’t you be scared of them.

A problem is dog owners allowing their dogs to roam around parks off lead where there are young children. One tried to jump into the pram when I was pushing my 1 year old dgd. The owner was really annoyed when I asked her to put it on a lead! Another problem is owners allowing their off lead dogs to run around on bridle paths (near horses therefore).My daughter asked an owner to put her dog (who was yapping around her pony's hind legs), on a lead. The owner said why, he's friendly! My daughter replied ' well, you see, if my pony kicks out at your dog, your dog will be dead' .

I have come to realise that to a large extent, it isn't that I dislike dogs as that I dislike dog owners

I'm not frightened of dogs, but they have a different basic threat response to say, a cat. A cat has a lot more immediate weaponry, but a much smaller inclination to use them anything but defensively, and are avoidant of danger.

A dog's psychology makes it far likelier to deviate from normal behaviour in respect to unexpected stimuli, and because people take them everywhere, they are more likely to encounter unexpected stimuli. A cat, cow, ferret, chicken etc is unlikely to be outside it's usual territory (chickens can be pure psychotic).

I've trained my toddler to ask before he strokes a dog, and owners always praise me for having trained my child - completely oblivious to the fact that I've done this because too many dog owners allow their dogs to approach toddlers! I don't want my son to be afraid, but the dog owners need to understand that their dog is a risk that THEY need to manage.

My BIL has a rehomed lockdown puppy Rottweiler that my son is never going to meet. When they experimented with shutting it away at ILs house this "gentle" dog lost it. And they wanted us to see it there at Christmas -unfamiliar lights, smells, sounds. Now BIL is expecting a child too, and I worry about it.

I only dislike bad dog owners. Everyone I know who has a dog is a good owner. They love their dog but don't expect other people to, and they are mindful of their dog's impact on other people.

Tbf some of the cases are horrific. I’d not risk those dogs. Usually it’s the person sharing the house taking the risk but sadly sometimes dc or strangers.

For those breeds that is.

I think one of the most scary things about dogs is the number of owners who don't understand why other people are scared of dogs. Some even suggest that there is some moral failing in being scared of dogs and that people should take steps to stop their children being scared of dogs.

Dogs are unpredictable. They can bite. They can knock someone off their feet which, especially for older people, can have life-changing consequences. A ridiculous number are not under control out in public or even in private when there are visitors present. Often their owners are sure they are and 'don't need to be on a lead' until something goes wrong and the dog ignores them. Having a healthy fear of them seems very reasonable response, and to be encouraged.

87 reported attacks a year is by no means 'vanishingly rare' and the fact that even one person can suggest it is demonstrates the problem.

The size is also irrelevant. I have been bitten without provocation to the point of drawing blood twice: once as a child by a boxer, when I was visiting a friend and it entered the room and came straight over to me and bit me, when I wasn't engaging with it in any way. The second was a Yorkshire Terrier which sunk its very sharp teeth into my foot and wouldn't let go when I walked past on a public path. I didn't report either attack.

Correction: 87 attacks a day.

At the bottom of your priorities but the rest of us would like to live our lives without that risk. If dog owners took their responsibilities seriously, we could.

It's also the fact that everyone panders to them, from businesses to councils.

I saw something on a local Facebook group about a new SANG in the area (suitable alternative natural green space - ie a new park when they build a new housing estate) and it actually said it was aimed at dog walkers! The rest of us just don't matter.

And when a business or park doesn't, it just gets ignored.

People are now bringing their dogs into playgrounds, into the school for pick ups, etc.

Agree.
I like dogs that I know. If I don't know an individual dog, I don't want it anywhere near me. Even if it doesn't bite, poorly behaved dogs can get your clothes/skin covered in mud, drool, and hair, or steal your food in a cafe. All I want out of unknown dogs is for them to ignore me. It's not much to ask.

Some people are scared of cats and I really don't understand that...

I'm devoted to my cats but I'm aware they can injure people. My now-DH had to have stitches after he unwisely over-stimulated the nervous rescue cat I had when we first met, and she scratched his arm very deeply.

Cats are less inclined than dogs to bite, but a cat bite does a lot of damage because their teeth are so sharp and their mouths a hotbed of germs. Plus cats can be very skittish, creep up on you and so on. I've never been afraid of them - I've never met a cat I didn't like - but I can see rational reasons to fear them.