This story is about Teresa Hwang from Oakville, Canada, who was very afraid of dogs but found a special way to overcome her fear.
Dog Fear
Teresa Hwang, 51, teaches kids with special needs in Oakville, Canada. She tries hard with her students but says it’s tough. Her main issue is being really scared of dogs because she was bitten twice as a kid, once at 10 and again at 20. This fear is so strong that she avoids dogs by crossing the street and might faint if she hears loud barking.
But not all hope is lost. Teresa can get along with her friends’ dogs until they start playing and barking, which scares her again. This is why she asks for playful dogs to be kept away in another room.
Teresa’s fear was really tested when her sister needed her to take care of her small mongrel while she was away. Despite being scared, Teresa agreed to help. It was very hard at first, especially when the dog ran up to her. But as time went on, she found herself getting less scared of the small black dog and decided to work on overcoming her fear of dogs for good.
Together with her man, Teresa began to execute a plan to find the dog. They searched a huge number of shelters on the Internet, but they did not choose the right pet. Some puppies were too big, others were too active, which still scared the woman. The couple spent several weeks looking until they came across a Texas kennel. On its website, they found that a dog called Patch was up for adoption.
From the photograph, a black-and-white mongrel dog looked sadly at Teresa. But the most important thing was that his questionnaire indicated that he was not suitable for noisy houses: where there are children or in which many people live, since the pet is afraid of them. After know that, Teresa chose to adopt Patch.
Special Connection
Teresa went to the shelter and saw Patch, who looked really sad. While talking to someone who worked there about Patch, the dog licked Teresa unexpectedly. This was surprising because Patch had never done this to anyone before.
This moment helped Teresa stop being afraid of Patch. She decided to take him home and call him Boo. The start was difficult because Teresa and Boo were both scared of each other. Boo would hide and not eat for days. However, Teresa worked through her fear and helped Boo.
Eventually, Boo began to like people more and started playing, although he would stop if the toys made loud noises.
Fear Gone
One day, Teresa came home to find Boo happily barking and playing with a ball in the backyard. He was shy at first but then licked Teresa on the nose, just like when they first met.
Over time, Teresa and Boo became very close. Boo liked being with Teresa, and she was happy about it. They even went to the park together. Having Boo helped Teresa do better at her job too. She understood her students better, knowing that their tough or quiet behavior was often because they were scared.
Teresa and Boo completely healed each other, and now the woman does not panic at the sight of dogs, and the dog is no longer afraid of people. And how do you feel about dogs? Are you afraid of them or not? Write your comments.