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!
I don't really like dogs. I've been on the receiving end of aggression from them a couple of times. One even tried to bite me, although thankfully just ended up with a mouthful of trouser. I can admire them sometimes from a distance, but I'm always surprised that so many autistics seem to think them preferable to humans. I've spent years studying humans "in the field" (so to speak). I don't claim to be an expert, but I have some understanding of what humans do in different situations. I can't predict what dogs will do at all. Humans don't usually come up to me, block the way, and bark at me, or bite my legs. Dogs do!
As for dog owners -- don't get me started! Some seem very irresponsible. The park near me only allows dogs on a lead, and in some areas, no dogs at all. Needless to say, virtually no dogs there are on a lead and you can usually find at least one in the "no dogs allowed" area. I stopped running in that park because of this and stick to pavements instead. Even the responsible owners don't seem to realise that some people get very nervous around these predatory animals. As my sister says, "A dog is a domesticated wolf!"
Pretty much everyone in my family is at least mildly phobic of dogs, generally as a result of bad experiences. My fiancee in particular was attacked by her parents' dog (a dog purchased sight unseen during COVID, which turned out to have behavioural issues probably caused by prior abuse). She won't go near it now. We're both nervous about what will happen if we ever take a baby or toddler to stay with their grandparents.
In fairness, I should mention a dog that used to live near me that would see me walking down the road and placidly follow me down the street, much to the owner's embarrassment and my amusement. He was docile enough that I even petted him once. But he seemed to be the exception.