What can I do for my 7yr daughter that is terrified of cat and dogs?
Thanks everone for your advice. I would definitly try all this good idea. In the pass I have bought little pup to help her out but having one stops her of doing activities at home she only wants to be on top of the sofa and not move at all. I guess I would have to be more persuasive and help her. Thanks again everyone.
I had a friend whose son was, turned out his grandparents who he was living with while she was finishing college, told him they carry disease and if he touches them he will get sick. Your daughter may have gotten some scary information, or had a bad first impression. I would find someone who has a very gentle cat and see if it would help her..puppies and kittens play bite, so becareful of that.
visit the pet store a lot. visit friends that have well behaved pets a lot. Exposure to well behaved animals will help her lose her fear. Exposure to animals that are not well behaved will increase her fear. Read stories that have cats and dogs as characters. Cat and dog stuffed animal play might be a good thing too. Some people have animal phobia their entire life tho, its kind of a psychological issue really... my mom is very afraid of cats, always has been. We all have our vices. Just respect the fact that she is afraid of them and dont force them on her. How would you like for someone to put a tiger on your lap? Thats how she sees it, so dont scare her further. Let her observe well behaved animals and she may come around. Making a huge issue of her fear just makes it deeper for her and gets her attention.... she could be doing it for attention reasons only, ya just never know.
Behavioral psychologist. They will make her face her fear vs talk about it.
Hello!
Do you know why your daughter is terrified of the animals?
What is her fear - fear of being bitten? fear of being jumped on and knocked over?
If you know this answer - you can put her in a "safe" setting - around animals that you know are good with people and SLOWLY let them come to her.
I personally wouldn't let her around PUPPIES - as puppies generally "jump" and you don't want her scared even more. My puppy - 8 months old is a Boxer and it's a Boxer trait to jump - we've been working on him with this - but overall - he's a VERY good boy and does NOT bite/nip at people when playing. he's a talker - oh my - to hear him talk is hilarious!! :)
With cats - maybe you have a friend who has a mellow cat that slowly help her get accustomed to cats...
You can also take her to place like PetSmart and PetCo where they have animals to look at so she can SEE the animals and learn about them.
We all have fears of some sort. The only way sometimes is to face that fear. Maybe explain that they are ok, reassure her they won't harm her, let her touch one and if it's too traumatic, then keep her away from cats and dogs. In her own time she will get over it.
Is there a reason she's afraid? Did she have a bad experience before w/a dog or cat or see someone or know of someone who get hurt by a dog or cat? Did she just watch a movie w/a mean dog or cat in it? If it's a movie, just let her know that was make-believe & those animals were trained to pretend to be mean. If a movie wasn't the reason, try letting her know there's something you want to show her & either drive by a dog park or public park where there would be someone playing w/their dog(s) & just sit in the car w/her & just let her watch them play & interact & just let her know that yes there are some dogs that may be mean but that's because they either just don't know any better or was treated badly by someone & they're scared too! As far as cats, what about going to an animal shelter or petsmart, someplace they let you play w/cats or kittens (or even dogs/puppies too) & just sit w/her & let her watch you play w/the cat/dog or kitten/puppy & just let her know there's nothing to be afraid of. Just like dogs, there are some cats that may be mean (for the same aforementioned reasons) but not all of them are mean & remind her that as long as she respects animals, they'll respect her. You can also watch videos on YouTube of cats & dogs that play & she can see there's something wonderful & magical about animals & to show her there's nothing to be afraid of. Be careful abt puppies though because they're usually pretty rambunctious but kittens are great to start out with b/c they're tiny & less intimidating plus their totally cute & cuddly. Hope this helps!
