Do Dogs Understand Your Fears?
First published in the Angel Animals Day Brightener Newsletter, March 27, 2004.
DO DOGS UNDERSTAND YOUR FEARS?
By Connie Chang, Singapore
By nature, I am absolutely scared of dogs. This situation improved after I had a vision appear before me to indicate that during one lifetime, I had been a trapper who was trapped by a wolf. As the trapper in that lifetime, I had accidentally kicked off the wolf's cage hook, and he attacked and devoured me. Dogs are in the family line of wolves, so this memory explained my fear of dogs.
Once, when I visited London, I was invited to stay at a friend's home in Richmond, which was accessible by the underground train from the city. My friend lived with her youngest daughter and a pet dog, Angus Scott, in the three-story building. My friend knew about my fear of dogs and warned that I would have to learn to cope with it if I were to stay with her.
Since staying with my friend would save me a lot of money on hotels, which are pretty expensive in London because of the difference in currencies between there and my home in Singapore, I knew I would have to try to overcome my fears.
My friend's daughter, Vivian, picked up my husband, Cher Min, and me from the airport. We arrived at their home, and Angus started jumping and barking like crazy. I spoke to the dog mentally and said, "I am scared of dogs. Just do not climb all over me." During the entire week of my stay, Angus did not once climb all over me but he did climb on Cher Min all the time.
Angus was so smart. He understood my fear and tried hard to make friends with me. And he succeeded! He always looked at me lovingly, but I dared not respond for fear he might interpret my acceptance as an invitation for him to climb all over me.
One evening Cher Min and I returned home after a day out. Angus ran to get my bedroom slippers, which I always wear at home. He held the pair of slippers in his mouth and looked at Cher Min and me for a few seconds. He was confused. There was only one pair but two of us. He then dropped one slipper in front of Cher Min and the other in front of me.
From that point on, Angus took his toys (bones, balls, etc.), and placed them in front of me. This was his signal that he wanted me to play with him. So I threw his bones for him to pick up. Then he'd put them in front of me again, and I would repeat the play.
I bought something for him to munch on one day and he looked at me with loving eyes. Yet he still kept to his promise not to crawl all over me. But finally I became brave enough to stroke him, and he loved it. He still took great care not to snuggle against me, though. He really could read my mind.
Angus has shown me that dogs are really smart creatures. Though I do not have experiences yet with cats and other animals, I am sure they all have the same ability to understand and love human beings. It is good to be able to communicate with animals. You can tell them all your problems, share joys and sorrows, and they will not
betray you but only give you plenty of divine love.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT:
When has an animal helped you to overcome a fear?
Hi
I am the author of Jay's Pawfect Pal, which won an award from in the 2007 contest. It was about the relationship between a service dog, Barney and his handicapped master, Jay.
Once we wondered if Barney would protect Jay if he was in danger, so we pretended to attack Jay. We roughed him up in front of Barney, but the dog just looked up at us like we were crazy.We couldn't be sure if he would really protect Jay in a real situation.
Then one day, a couple of thugs really tried to harm Jay. The dog sprung to action and scared the guys off. We determined that the dog knew when Jay was really frightened (maybe by some fear scent Jay emitted). Needless to say we felt more secure after that.
June Kempf
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Thirty years ago, pregnant with my third child, I worked part-time for a florist. Delivering a flower arrangement on my way home one day, I was trapped by a huge German Shepherd. I was not afraid of dogs so I wasn't alarmed when he bounded up to the car as I was removing the flowers. I spoke to him and proceeded to the door. He was fine until I opened the screen and knocked. Apparently realizing I was not supposed to be there after all, he began barking and growling menacingly. He sat at the bottom of the steps as long as I stood quietly, but if I knocked or made any move to come down the steps, he stood and growled. I had taken off my heavy coat and wore only a thin knit shirt which was no protection from him or the dropping temperature as the sun began to set. I was trapped there for more than 20 minutes, terrified by a dog large enough to easily rest his paws on my shoulders and look over my head.
At last his ears perked up and he raced to a car that pulled up. As I shakily made my way to my car, his owner took in the obvious relief on my face, the flowers gripped with white knuckles, and said "You're mighty brave! He's trained not to let anyone on the property when we're not here."
I handed her the flowers and left.
For the next several years I found myself uncontrollably terrified of dogs--even small ones that I knew! I would tense up and I guess they sensed my fear, reacting ferociously. It wasn't until a friend lent me his lake house to use as a study retreat the weekend before I was to take a tough professional licensing exam, that I overcame the paralyzing fear dogs now produced in me. My friend had a German Shepherd named Gretel who was also a large dog. I had met Gretel before the incident with the watch dog but had not seen her since, and did not realize she would be at the lake home while I was there. Gone when I first arrived, she came to the door an hour later and scratched to get in. Terrified, I called my friend. He apologized for not having time to come get her and told me the next door neighbors cared for her when he wasn't there, if I didn't want to be bothered.
Scared, but telling myself it would be all right, I let her in and fed her. When she was finished eating she sat down beside my chair and we discussed the situation. I told her my story and tried my best to explain how uncomfortable dogs now made me. I would swear she understood, because for the next three days, Gretel seldom left my side. She slept by my bed, curled beside my lawn chair while I studied, and brought me toys to throw when I took a break. When her trusting eyes met mine, I felt she was telling me to forget what happened, the other dog was just doing his job, as she was now doing hers.
When I left after that weekend, I was not only ready for my exam, but (thanks to Gretel) also over the unreasonable and uncontrollable fear of dogs triggered by the earlier incident. Her gentle patient intelligence guided me throgh it.
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