Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi all,
I’ve been a bit hesitant to post this as we seem to live in a society where saying you’re not keen on dogs is viewed on the same level as saying you enjoy burning children’s Christmas presents, but here goes.
I’ve always been very wary around dogs, and have never understood the growing fascination with owning/taking pictures of/talking about them. It’s not a fear as such - I just don’t really get it and I find them unpredictable. Particularly when their owners have them off the lead, and think shouting “It’s okay - he’s harmless!” as their four-legged friend bounds up to you is a substitute for being in control. This is exacerbated by the fact that I like running, and whenever I’m running towards someone walking a dog off the lead I automatically get anxious because I don’t know if it will keep calm or suddenly bolt and get under my feet as I run past. I even under up slowing down as I approach these situations as it causes me to hesitate!
I always just figured I was a bit miserable, but in the light of my ASD diagnosis I thought I’d put it out there to see if anyone felt similar? I see a lot about autistic people having a love of animals but not too much of the opposite, so I don’t have high hopes!
You don't have to like or love them and certainly a large furry tooth-filled thing hurtling at you at full speed can be terrifying ...however I'm also a dog owner who has on occasion had my own dog a pup run up to people in the same manner...although he did flopover and insist on belly rubs. I was brought up with cats so getting a puppy was a huge learning curve.
If it helps you to feel more relaxed, maybe have a look online at dog body language so you can tell if a strange dog is friendly or not. Obviously you are not obliged to interact with dogs if you dont want to.