How to overcome my fear of dogs?

I had a huge fear of dogs as long as I can remember, when a dog comes near me I start to get scared and back away slowly, I really do like dogs, but I fear them at the same time, so do you guys have any suggestions I could use to help me get over this fear? If you do, I'll be very grateful

well, if you're really that scared of dogs, start with puppies. spend some times with the puppies. if your not afraid of puppies move up to a small bred of dog. if you feel scare have the dog's owner stay several feet away from you and YOU move towards the dog a little bit at a time when you're feeling comfortable with it.the graduate to a medium size dog and repeat the same process. move slowly toward the dog. then move to a large breed of dog. best to do is find a dog that's either very calm around people or is older so it won't be all hyper and jump all over you and bark.hope this helps. i've seen this done before with a man who was attacked by a pit bull. he just gradually introduced himself to a pup then a young one then an adult one until he over came his fear and he now has a pit bull of his own.

okay, i would start of by introducing yourself to smaller dogs and noticing that all dogs wont hurt you, then move on to larger dogs. Just remind yourself that dogs wont hurt you!

I think it helps to know and understand how dogs behave, so that you can't be taken by surprise when interacting with a dog. If you can recognize when a dog is afraid or about to attack, or when it is relaxed and being playful by looking at its body language and any signs they exhibit, it could help you relax around them. So first of all, I think you should do some research into dog behavior to learn these things, and there are a lot of resources online for this. You can watch videos on Youtube to see what a certain behaviors look like (I just typed in "dog behavior body language" on the Youtube search engine and a lot of videos popped up), and there are also lots of written guides all over the internet, too. Depending on how you learn, one or a mix of these kinds of tutorials/guides could help you understand dogs' body language better and prepare you for when you actually see and interact with dogs.Once you feel like you have a theoretical knowledge of what dogs are like, you should try actually being around one and see how you feel about that. Perhaps ask your friends or family members if they have a friendly dog you can try hanging out with - all dogs have slightly different temperaments, just like people, so if you ask someone you are close with, they can tell you what their dog is like, what their quirks are, and whether or not they are prone to attacking strangers (most family dogs, if socialized properly, do not attack).So yeah, I think it's definitely important to just be knowledgeable about dogs, and just do what it takes for you to obtain that knowledge. If I were you, I would just keep reading articles about dog behavior and temperament, and how to interact with them until I am confident that I can handle being near one. It really makes you feel more comfortable, if you have an idea in your mind of how dogs behave, what certain actions mean, how they like to be handled by people, what they like to do, etc. Most people are afraid only because they don't know, and they're afraid of sudden dog attacks and stuff, but if you know your stuff and what signs a dog may exhibit to show you they are frightened or angry, you won't be as scared yourself. Of course, there will be dogs that attack out of nowhere, but it should be the owner's responsibility to inform you of their dog's special behavior, which is why I suggest asking someone you know about their dog so you don't run into any surprises, especially if you are just starting to be around dogs.Good luck, and I hope you do overcome your fear! Dogs are a delight to be with, I'm sure you will just love playing with them once you get used to them.

I wouldn't start with puppies. Too frenzied. You need someone with a big old mature, stable hound, or golden or something. A dog who never gets rattled about anything, who will lie quietly in the corner while you visit. Just hang there for awhile, and gradually get closer as you gain confidence.Google "Turid Rugas calming signals" - she's a Norwegian behaviorist with some good info on how to greet dogs