How To Overcome The Irrational Fear Of Animals

The irrational fear of animals is a phobia known as Cinophobia. Immanuel Kant said that “we can judge the heart of a person by the way he treats animals.” Unfortunately, many people cannot be tried under this sentence, because they suffer a terrible and irrational panic when being around these beings, especially dogs.

It should be noted that the fear of animals is usually irrational and disproportionate, which constitutes a phobia. As a general rule, and with the exception of very few situations, a person who fears a dog is not in a situation of real danger and the dog is very far from carrying out any type of attack.

The phobia of animals usually appears already in childhood. Also the fear of contracting certain diseases, especially rabies, is usually the reason for the development of this phobia, although this elaboration is more elaborate and more characteristic of adults. Finally, many of the children’s fears of dogs come because some adult, more with his behavior than with his words, has also implied that they are dangerous animals.

On the other hand, cynophobia can be overcome if you know how. To discover scientific methods, we will base ourselves on the postulates of specific phobias that psychologists MA Antony and DH Barlow have described in different studies, especially those of the year 97 and 2002.

Bases to overcome the irrational fear of animals

According to Antony and Barlow, any effective treatment that works well for phobias goes through exposure. Like it or not, a person with an irrational fear of animals will have to repeatedly cope with the stimulus that causes fear. This fact is effective by:

• Psychological studies regarding this phobia indicate that the effect develops in a similar way to what happens with odors. The greater the exposure, the easier it is to stop noticing it. 
• The fear of a feared stimulus ends up assuming negative reinforcement. Now, if this negative reinforcement is weakened until its total elimination, the fear of animals will eventually disappear.

Techniques to eliminate fear of animals

At this point, when we are able to realize that there is an irrational fear of animals, it is time to go to a professional who uses the appropriate techniques to combat this irrational phobia that causes so many problems for thousands of people.

The first and essential thing to keep in mind is that the person who faces this phobia knows that it is irrational. The psychologist will explain to you how repeated exposure to your fear will help to weaken the negative reinforcement and will get you used to living with this situation naturally.

In this sense we can clarify some basic points:

• A good technique to end fears of the animal, especially the dog, is reiteration. It is necessary to be clear that no dog goes down the street happily attacking passersby. If any canine or other species behaves aggressively, there are a number of logical and natural reasons for its action that have nothing to do with the image etched in the mind of the person with fear.

• Animals, especially pets, are very social beings. In general, every dog, cat or other species that is observed on the street is accustomed to humans. So there is nothing to fear from them.

• The beginning of the exhibition must be progressive. The individual who suffers from the phobia will have to start with simple goals, such as getting close to a puppy, for example. Later you can try to caress and touch. This will progress little by little until reaching larger specimens.
• Observation of animal behavior is also an important step. You can start with videos, to later view a park with dogs, for example. Of course, always keep a safe distance, especially at the beginning of treatment.
• Finally, dog-loving friends and family can act as positive reinforcement to weaken the negative reinforcement brought on by bad experiences. Getting close to your pets, observing their behavior can be two good ideas. That is to say, that the animal lover acts as a kind of ambassador between the subject who suffers from fear and his own animal.

In reality, the irrational fear of animals is not only unfounded in most cases, it also causes a person to lose all the psychological and physiological advantages that accompany living with a pet. That is why it is important to face this phobia and go to a specialized professional as soon as possible.