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Have you ever heard of zoophobia? It is a medical term for a general fear of animals, from the roots zoo, meaning animal, and phobia, meaning fear or fear. About six percent of all people suffer from some form of zoophobia during some period of their lives. Most of them are afraid or disgusted with a particular animal. We have compiled a list of the most common animal phobias, as well as some lesser known animal phobias. How many of these fears have you heard?
# 15 animal fear: arachnophobia
This is probably one of the most common forms of specific zoophobia. Arachnophobia is the fear of spiders. This fear affects nearly 100 million people in the United States alone. Globally, it is estimated that between three and a half to six percent of the population suffers from a fear of spiders. Unlike some other fears, this one is usually not associated with a specific case of spider-induced injury. This fear was perpetuated in the 1990 film, and many people actually believed this film to be the cause of their arachnophobia!
# 14 animal fear: ophidiophobia
Ophidiophobia is the fear of snakes. While some instinctive thrill when you see an unknown snake in the wild is normal because many species are venomous, some people cannot even bear to see the snake in photographs or in safe cages. Even an image of a snake can cause an ophidiophobe to have heart palpitations, tremors, and shortness of breath, among other symptoms.
# 13 animal fear: sphexophobia
A very common fear is sphexophobia, the fear of wasps. This phobia often causes people to go into fight or flight mode. In some people, this is caused by an allergy to the bite of this insect. For others, it may be caused by the somewhat alien and threatening wasp species and their aggressive nature.
# 12 Animal fear: melissophobia / apiphobia
Another stinging insect that humans fear are bees. Melissa or apiphobia, from the Latin api, which means “bees”, can occur on its own or be combined with sphexophobia. Like the fear of wasps, it can be caused by some event or nothing at all. Most bees will not sting unless they or their hive are in danger, but few apiphobes care about this distinction.
# 11 animal fear: ranidaphobia
Some people suffer from a fear of frogs, otherwise known as ranidaphobia. With a few poisonous exceptions, frogs are quite harmless, but in some cases this phobia can be so severe that sufferers even worry about leaving their homes for fear of meeting frogs on the street.
# 10 animal fear: entomophobia
Another common phobia that can keep people in their homes is entomophobia, the fear of insects. This fear is not hard to understand. Errors are called “creepy crawls” for a reason. People who do not flinch at the sight of another, more dangerous creature can go into a panic attack at the mere thought of being near small insects.
9.Fear of animals: bird phobia.
Another common phobia, immortalized in films, is bird phobia, or fear of birds. About a third of people reported suffering from this fear. Some people may be afraid of live birds, while others are only afraid of stuffed animals or their images.
# 8 animal fear: musophobia
Musophobia is the fear of mice. It is believed that this phobia occurs even more often than the fear of flying or injections. A person screaming while jumping into a chair to avoid colliding with a mouse is a commonly used image in cartoons and films, and it is believed that many people developed this fear as a conditioned reaction to seeing this image, and not out of a real fear of the mice themselves.
# 7 Animal fear: helminthophobia / scoleciphobia
Are you scared or have a strong aversion to worms on the sidewalk after the rain? If so, you may be suffering from helminthophobia, also known as scoleciphobia, or fear of worms. While a phobia is usually directly related to a fear of parasitic worms, the sight of any worm can cause anxiety.
# 6 animal fear: kinophobia
Dogs are often referred to as “man’s best friends,” but for filmophobes they can be considered “man’s worst nightmare.” Kinophobia is a fear of dogs, usually, but not always, as a result of a traumatic event during childhood. For some people, fear may only apply to dogs of a certain size. For others, size does not matter at all, and they are equally wary of all dogs.
# 5 animal fear: lepidopterophobia
One of the less common phobias is hard to believe, but lepidopterophobia is a fear of butterflies. Although most people find butterflies to be soothing and beautiful, and in some places, having one land is considered good luck, the person suffering from this phobia disagrees. Landing a butterfly on them can be very unpleasant or even terrifying for these people.
# 4 animal fear: ostraconophobia
In many parts of the world, lobster is considered an excellent delicacy. In many restaurants, they are stored in tanks where visitors can collect them themselves before they are cooked. While lesser-known ostraconophobia sufferers may be pleased to know that a lobster is being cooked, they won’t want to look at it and definitely won’t want to eat it. These unfortunate people are afraid of lobsters.
# 3 animal fear: alektophobia
If a person is afraid to do something, children sometimes call him a “chicken”. What if they are afraid of chickens? Alectorophobia is a relatively rare form of zoophobia, but it is no less frightening for those who have it and are forced to see or be near chickens. For some people, this fear can even extend to not wanting to eat chicken.
# 2 animal fear: equinophobia
Equinophobia is a fear of horses. Although many people adore these creatures, people with equinophobia may even be afraid to be around them. Fear of horses is often associated with some kind of traumatic event, such as being bitten by a horse thrown or watching it happen to someone else.
# 1 fear of animals: agrisophobia
The fear associated with wild animals is known as agrisophobia. People with this phobia usually avoid activities where they might encounter wild creatures, such as hiking or visiting aquariums and zoos.
Do you suffer from any of these animal fears? If so, know that you are not alone! The good news is that most phobias can be treated with cognitive behavioral therapy or other therapeutic treatments.
Next: 10 Incredible Coral Reef Animals
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