I Used to Be Afraid of Dogs

A look into Cynophobia, fear of dogs, and canines in general.

Luna Lovegood, A family photo

Do you have this phobia? Cynophobia (from the Greek) is exceptionally debilitating because an estimated 62 million pet dogs are in the United States. Dogs are everywhere. Thirty-six percent of the people who seek treatment to cure their phobias fear dogs and cats, according to Timothy O. Rentz of the Laboratory for the Study of Anxiety Disorders at the University of Texas. Although arachnophobia (fear of spiders) is the most common phobia, the fear of snakes and heights comes close. Fear of dogs is right up there, near the top.

So, if dogs are your problem, you are not alone.

Here are some of the diagnostic symptoms of Cynophobia and other phobias:

1. Experiencing a persistent fear of an object,
2. Feeling an immediate anxiety response when exposed to that object,
3. Realizing your fear is irrational as an adult,
4. Coming into contact with the feared object is avoided or endured with dread.

I can relate to most of them. I remember crossing the street if I saw a dog coming toward me. I must have been about nine years old or more since I crossed the road alone to eliminate the risk of passing too close to a dog. It was obvious that dogs…