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Do you dislike or fear any specific animal?

I used to be terrified of horses because of a scary incident when I was a small child. Since then, I have mostly overcome this fear by visiting some nearby horses when I used to live in another state. We would go by and feed them bits of apple, or sugar and then I grew comfortable enough to pet them and allow them to take the bits of food off my palm. I am still frightened by large, hostile dogs, as well as large menacing spiders and millipedes. Wasps I have no pity for at all, since in my prior home they built nests all over our property and then would fly in our faces when we opened the door. Bees are cute and useful but can still sting if you get on their bad side.

An interesting side note: Last year, when we were traveling and staying at hotels, we encountered many hotel maids who were terrified of our cat, who was traveling with us. They refused to enter the hotel room and we had to put our linens outside the door.
I didn't feel comfortable with them coming into our room while we were out, so my kitty made a wonderful security cat!o_O:)
 
Dogs. I have sooo many childhood memories of being chased and attacked by "friendly" dogs. Even recently, a few months ago we went to someone's house for dinner after church, and they had a dog - I didn't know beforehand; I should have - and they refused to keep it away from me. It ran up to me, ran around me, tried to put its dirty paws on me, and the owner just stood there and watched. A few years ago we went to some relatives' house for Thanksgiving and the same thing happened. Their dogs had been to obedience school, but they were not civilized in the least. They all tried to jump on me.
Plus, dogs slobber and lick and pee all over the place. No thanks. Even when I see a picture of a dog in my Facebook news feed - and unfortunately I do every day - I get so grossed out.
Anyway, I refuse to go to other people's houses now in case they have a dog. I have a cat whom I love dearly (and I love cats in general), but if I had someone over who turned out to be afraid of or otherwise revolted by cats, I'd put him in the basement (my cat, not the guest, HAHA!). But that's just me. I don't believe in forcing my pet on someone, even if the pet lives here.
 
NothingToSeeHere said:
Small dogs really annoy me, but I don't mind big dogs so long as they are well behaved. I think my dislike may actually be displaced annoyance at their owners who don't keep them under control, which seems to happen a lot more with small dogs, and a sensitivity to their smell which makes me nauseous.

I'm scared of centipedes and millipedes, but find caterpillars cute.

I dislike pigeons., and find rats really gross.
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You might like my little chiuahua, it's really lazy and all it does is sleep all day, and you can put your face up to it and won't even hurt you :) so maybe that's an exception, but she's a really exceptional case - most chiuahuas are very feisty.
 
umbrellabeach said:
Dogs. I have sooo many childhood memories of being chased and attacked by "friendly" dogs. Even recently, a few months ago we went to someone's house for dinner after church, and they had a dog - I didn't know beforehand; I should have - and they refused to keep it away from me. It ran up to me, ran around me, tried to put its dirty paws on me, and the owner just stood there and watched. A few years ago we went to some relatives' house for Thanksgiving and the same thing happened. Their dogs had been to obedience school, but they were not civilized in the least. They all tried to jump on me.
Plus, dogs slobber and lick and pee all over the place. No thanks. Even when I see a picture of a dog in my Facebook news feed - and unfortunately I do every day - I get so grossed out.
Anyway, I refuse to go to other people's houses now in case they have a dog. I have a cat whom I love dearly (and I love cats in general), but if I had someone over who turned out to be afraid of or otherwise revolted by cats, I'd put him in the basement (my cat, not the guest, HAHA!). But that's just me. I don't believe in forcing my pet on someone, even if the pet lives here.
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I agree it's wrong to force your pet on someone - I was really afraid of dogs when I was little and I'm still afraid of other people's dogs.
 
it's weird i got attacked and bitten badly by the neighbours pig dog
when i was around 4, but i am not scared of dogs. i have known
a lot of people who have REALLY SCARY attack dogs n pit fighters
but i was always much more weary of their owners than their dogs.
 
Not too many i dislike except for yellowjackets, they are jerks and will sting you without provocation and they hurt! They build their nest in trees and in underground holes!
 
umbrellabeach said:
Dogs. I have sooo many childhood memories of being chased and attacked by "friendly" dogs. Even recently, a few months ago we went to someone's house for dinner after church, and they had a dog - I didn't know beforehand; I should have - and they refused to keep it away from me. It ran up to me, ran around me, tried to put its dirty paws on me, and the owner just stood there and watched. A few years ago we went to some relatives' house for Thanksgiving and the same thing happened. Their dogs had been to obedience school, but they were not civilized in the least. They all tried to jump on me.
Plus, dogs slobber and lick and pee all over the place. No thanks. Even when I see a picture of a dog in my Facebook news feed - and unfortunately I do every day - I get so grossed out.
Anyway, I refuse to go to other people's houses now in case they have a dog. I have a cat whom I love dearly (and I love cats in general), but if I had someone over who turned out to be afraid of or otherwise revolted by cats, I'd put him in the basement (my cat, not the guest, HAHA!). But that's just me. I don't believe in forcing my pet on someone, even if the pet lives here.
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I HATE this attitude from dog owners, the amount of times I have asked an owner to keep their dog away from me in the park (I often eat lunch there) is ridiculous. It seems obvious to me that stopping your animal jumping at someone who is eating and clearly doesn't want it near them is simple good manners. And then I normally get the response "he won't hurt you!" I'm not worried about it hurting me, I just don't want mud and slobber and dog smell all over me, and if I was actually scared then the reassurance obviously wouldn't help :rage:

I have a neighbour who doesn't like cats, so I always lock Smokey outside when they come over. Do they return the favour and put their dog outside when I visit them? Oh no, I have to put up with it sticking it's nose in my crotch and scratching my legs in it's "friendly greeting".
 
Zarazai said:
Wasps mainly because they're hateful little things
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That....is a pretty weird reason though.
Robby said:
I HATE bugs especially spiders. But bugs of any kind that crawl I despise. I do like butterfiles though but I don't consider them a bug.

I also hate rats, mice, and gerbils anything rodent-like, yuck. Not fond of birds either, epspecially people who keep birds in the house, yuck. Worst smell ever.
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Wow you basically hate anything that's small.
 
NothingToSeeHere said:
I HATE this attitude from dog owners, the amount of times I have asked an owner to keep their dog away from me in the park (I often eat lunch there) is ridiculous. It seems obvious to me that stopping your animal jumping at someone who is eating and clearly doesn't want it near them is simple good manners. And then I normally get the response "he won't hurt you!" I'm not worried about it hurting me, I just don't want mud and slobber and dog smell all over me, and if I was actually scared then the reassurance obviously wouldn't help :rage:

I have a neighbour who doesn't like cats, so I always lock Smokey outside when they come over. Do they return the favour and put their dog outside when I visit them? Oh no, I have to put up with it sticking it's nose in my crotch and scratching my legs in it's "friendly greeting".
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The funniest thing is I recently complained about this issue in the comments of a relevant Facebook post, and someone replied saying dog owners shouldn't have to keep their dogs away from me and if I don't like their dog, then I'm being a jerk.
Right. So a stranger forces their dog on me when they know I'm uncomfortable with it, and I'm the jerk who's being rude.

Ooh yes, someone else mentioned centipedes. I hate those too. I recently moved to a new house and every once in a while I spot a centipede on my wall or ceiling. I've had like 5 or 6 of them so far. I always call one of my brothers to come kill it. *shudder*

Same for spiders. Any bugs. Anything creepy-crawly, or flying around my room.
 
Many people seem to have an aversion to arthropods. I have never shared that fear unless I knew they could sting me. I used to play with insects and arachnids as a child, and would rather catch and release invading creatures than kill them.

I have seen so many people (especially women, for some reason) scream at the sight of a spider or mouse. I don't understand this visceral reaction.
 
I hate sharks and certain insects like spiders and cockroaches and for some reason I don't like moths with those feather like antennas they creep me out.
 
I pretty much love all animals, if for no other reason than the fact that they are animals. For instance, I don't really "like" small dogs, but I'd never hurt one, and would beat the daylights out of anyone who did because it is an animal. I even like mice, rats, lizards, snakes and some insects. Wasps and hornets piss me off with their attitude. I love bees though. Oh, yes! I hate, hate, hate earwigs. Creepy little suckers. I learned just recently that they (at least some) can fly, which really didn't go over well with me. Still, most bugs I will relocate to the outdoors rather than kill, with the exception of the aforementioned wasps/hornets and black widows. If they present a clear and present danger to me, and they are in my house, they must die. I do feel rather badly about it though. Oh, and my cat, Tony, handles any flies that get into the house. Not my job, man.
 
NothingToSeeHere said:
Small dogs really annoy me, but I don't mind big dogs so long as they are well behaved. I think my dislike may actually be displaced annoyance at their owners who don't keep them under control, which seems to happen a lot more with small dogs, and a sensitivity to their smell which makes me nauseous.

I'm scared of centipedes and millipedes, but find caterpillars cute.

I dislike pigeons., and find rats really gross.
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Yeah, centipedes are pretty freaky.. Too many legs.
 
I've always had problems with farm animals (allergies), but in general, I do have issues with centipedes, wasps, hornets, yellow jackets (with the exception of the bumble bee), ants (like carpenter, fire, and the small sugar loving ants), wolf spiders and any other large spider. I do have a mutual fear and respect of sharks. And then there's horses which I am allergic to, but for some reason does scare me intensely, and I am not too sure as to why.
 
I'm irrationally afraid of spiders and insects. It's probably social conditioning because I know it's irrational but I am TERRIFIED.

On the flip side, I have pet rats. They're super smart, affectionate, and clean.
I don't mind snakes, but wouldn't own one because of their eating habits.
 
I'm a bit timid around small dogs, especially if they bark sudden, makes me jump... Otherwise I don't mind dogs in general having grown up with them because Dad goes to dog shows (He's been going to Crufts every year for a long time)
 
I generally like animals more than I like people. I have suffered from an irrational fear of wasps but I am getting less reactive to them as I get older.
 
Well, this will most likely be the most unpopular reply on here, but you did ask, and I am only being honest... Small dogs, ( most small dogs ) - I absolutely LOATHE them:mad: I'm not really a "dog person", in general, but some larger dogs, I actually like. But small dogs - NO. Why? It's the horrible, spoiled "princess personalities", but it is also the yapping. The endless, shrill yappingo_O More than the dog itself, though, I find it is usually the "owners". The stupid, irresponsible owners, that think regular dog rules/etiquette don't apply to their dog, because it is a "toy breed". So, they let it yap constantly, not to mention, piss and **** EVERYWHERE, and never clean up behind it. I have that issue to deal with where I am now, and it is a real problem.
 
Spiders! Good lord i'm terrified of spiders. I'm the one that growing up would run terrified at even a baby spider. Never seen a snake IRL but I fear them too. And large dogs. We had a large Dalmatian when I was a small child and although I don't remember him ever biting me, he was an outside dog so I don't know that my parents ever trained him. I just remember him being very overbearing and that I was terrified of him cause he'd get up in my face all the time. Even if nowadays I figure he probably was just playful, it left a lasting impression on me. I also have a fear of wasps/bees/hornets but that's cause my mom's allergic to ants and bees. Growing up I never got bitten even once so I was always scared that if I got bit/stung i'd have a reaction to it like her.
 
Datura said:
Many people seem to have an aversion to arthropods. I have never shared that fear unless I knew they could sting me. I used to play with insects and arachnids as a child, and would rather catch and release invading creatures than kill them.

I have seen so many people (especially women, for some reason) scream at the sight of a spider or mouse. I don't understand this visceral reaction.
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Phobias aside, I think its probably at least in part due to social conditioning. A small child might fear a spider because its new, its unknown, and its moving but their parent might be the one to reinforce that fear by jumping to the rescue and killing it so it can't bite them. An entire childhood full of such incidents only reinforces the idea that spiders are to be feared, and killed.
 
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