Doggy phobia

[MiaSparrow]

Hi all

2.4yo DD was chased in the park the other day by a very small but very yappy little dog - all within about 10 seconds before me or the owner could even get to them - but now she's frightened of dogs.

Any ideas on how to nip this in the bud? I'd hate for her to be scared of lovely doggies when she absolutely loved them before. It all happened so quickly there was really nothing I could have done, but I'm still annoyed.

Thanks!

Do you know anyone with a friendly and reliably quiet dog your dd could meet in a more controlled way?

Hmm, not really but that's a good idea. I'll have a think. She met a family friend's dog today and cowered away, but it was similar to the one in the park, so that was understandable.

Taking a quiet, well behaved dog on a lead can be a good way to help a child feel less worried. The dog tends to focus less on the child than if they are introduced in a room and the child's confidence can be boosted be the feeling of being in charge.

That's a great idea, thanks. I need to borrow a really well behaved dog!

You need to find a guide dog for a wooch or perhaps a service dog of some sort. (impossible I know). I think go down the route of introducing her to larger, quiet dogs 1st and perhaps explain that the little dog was frightened of her because she was bigger than him. Watching Tv with dogs in might help?

Thanks. All good ideas! xx

As other people have said find a friendly dog, when my nephew was small my brother put a bit too much emphasis on the fact he should stay away from dogs when they were out. He ended up with fear of them. It was cured when my other brother got a chocolate Labrador puppy

My dd is the same due to repeat occurrences of grandmas jack Russell jumping up at her.