How to Deal with a House Guest Who's Afraid of Your Dog

Having a house guest who's afraid of your dog can create a very uncomfortable situation. I've experienced this on a few occasions. So here's some advice from the school of hard knocks.

Let first-time visitors know that you have a dog. There's nothing worse than someone jumping out of their skin because they weren't expecting a dog to greet them at the door. One time a delivery man came to our door and I said, "You're not afraid of my little dog, are you?" When I saw that he clearly was afraid, I felt like such a jerk. The moral of this story is: Try to be a little more sensitive than I was.

Inform your guests beforehand about how your dog reacts to visitors. My dog goes wild when the doorbell rings. She gets so excited. She barks loudly, runs to the door, and her whole back end swings because she wags her tail so hard. Sometimes she even starts crying. That's a lot of noise and commotion, so it's good to prepare your guests ahead of time. I also let them know that she usually won't jump, but if she does, she'll get down if you push her away.

Teach your guest about the difference between happy dog noises and threatening dog noises. Most people know enough to stay away from a growling dog, but my dog makes all kinds of crazy noises. Most of the noises she makes are just "dog talk," but people who aren't familiar with dogs, or who are afraid of dogs, are put on edge by her strange sounds.

Make your guest aware of your dog's body language. Usually people who are afraid of dogs don't have a lot of experience with them, so they don't know the difference between a play bow and an attack stance. Tell your house guests about happy dog body language like tail wagging, head cocking and nuzzling. Likewise, let them know to stay away from a dog who's baring her teeth, on point, or has raised hackles.

Talk to your guests about dogs and food. Dogs are very protective of their food. I always tell my son's friends to stay away form the dog when she's eating out of her dish. (She's a very gentle dog, but she doesn't like anyone coming near her food dish.) Wagner loves table scraps, and it's fine for our guests to feed her, but it's best if they cup their hand or present a flat palm. I always tell them not to pull their hand away too fast -- it makes Wagner suspect that she didn't get it all.

See if your guest is willing to make friends with your dog. My son had a friend who was afraid of dogs, but loved swimming in our pool, so this was quite a predicament for him. He finally decided that he would try to make friends with Wagner. We started out with me holding the dog and Seth lightly and quickly touching the dog's back. This progressed to Seth actually petting the dog while I was holding her. Before long, Seth was able to greet and pet the dog without anyone holding her. Three years later, he actually looks forward to seeing Wagner!

If locking your dog up during the visit isn't an option, use these pointers to help your house guest become more comfortable with your dog.