Okay, just to show you that I didn't just pull this advice out of thin air, here's and article from the American Physchological Association on fighting childhood fears...http://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug05/fighting.html and an excerpt from it..."At the end of the session, the children face their very worst fears, perhaps petting a dog or even walking one on a leash." Just to let you know also, that I have helped some children over their fears of dogs or cats in my home by gently introducing them to the animal and modeling behavior (petting or hugging the cat to show it won't hurt me). Parents have been impressed that their child actually pet the cat- never had before. I've been a nanny for many years. The worst thing to do is let your child live with the fear and comfort or hold them- just makes it worse because you're encouraging the fear. I'm not saying don't comfort your child when he's crying hysterically, but if they're afraid of something and you immediately pick them up or something, they just get worse over time.
Earlier post:
Well, from what I've learned, the best way to get someone over a fear is to face it head-on. Saw a show on childhood fears and they worked with kids to show them slowly over time that whatever they're afraid of is not really scary. They made the children do or face whatever it was they were afraid of. My suggestion to you (I hope this doesn't sound outlandish) is to buy a pet spider- usually a tarantula. They can make good pets, as they don't require much maintenance and don't bite or anything. I would just take him with you to get it or something- hype it up as "you're getting a pet- just for you" and give it a name. If he's deathly afraid, just keep it somewhere he doesn't have to go and slowly over time, help him to see it's not bad or mean or scary. I hope this helps!