[Brooke&Ryan]

Why not just put the dog up when Chloe is over? Or is that not possible?

Some people are just not "dog people" & to some extent you must respect that. If there were someone coming over to my house who was scared of dogs I wouldn't make them interact. Julius would go to his crate & hang out for a bit with a marrow bone. He'd be happy as a clam.

Your niece might come around if the next time she arrives Roxi is in a crate. You can explain that you respected her wishes & put the dog up while she is over. Probably by the end of the child's stay she'll be asking for the dog to come out but if she doesn't well then you know how she feels about dogs.

There are children at the pre-school where I work who choose not to interact with Julius when he comes for a visit & I honor that request. Children's fears need to be respected just as adult's fears need to be respected.

Just my opinion.

Edit: I agree with Sandi. It's sad when fears are passed down from parent to child. Hopefully this little girl will be able to realize that some dogs can be friendly.