There was a dog at Jonathan Rhodes Kindergarten and she made her fear known, loud and clear.
The 2-year-old is one of several preschoolers at the kindy who find it terrifying to be in the same space as a dog.
So the kindy invited dog safety advocate and children's book author Pauline Blomfield and staff from the Dunedin City Council and the SPCA, to help familiarise and educate children about how to be safe around dogs.
``It was very noticeable,'' Mrs Blomfield said.
``As soon as Zara had to walk a little bit closer to the dog, she put her arms around herself and her whole body language was quite fearful.''
She said it was not known why some children were so scared of dogs, but when both were placed in safe environments to get acquainted with each other, the fear could eventually be overcome.
It could take up to a month or longer for children to feel comfortable interacting with dogs.
While Zara was able to get to the stage where she felt relatively safe sitting near golden retriever Marley yesterday, Mrs Blomfield said that did not translate to other environments.
As soon as she went out on to the street, her fear would return. It could take a long time to overcome it, she said.
``People walk dogs around the streets in the area, so we want to teach children how to be safe with those dogs.
``We don't want children overly confident.
``We want them to be aware of the danger and learn those basic keep-safe ideas.''
She advised to ask the owner for permission to pat their dog and then let it sniff you.
Most importantly, she said if a dog was running towards you, do not turn and run.
``Otherwise the dog will think it's playtime. Just stand still like a tree.''
