Your friend’s mother is afraid of squirrels. while she knows squirrels are basically harmless, she cannot control her anxiety when she sees either a real squirrel or a picture of a squirrel. she never took your friend to the local park when he was a child because of the numerous squirrels. your friend’s mother probably has:

Your friend's mother probably has a phobia of squirrels.

Explanation:

A phobia is understood as an irrational fear towards a specific stimulus, which does not convey a real danger. It can even generate physical responses on the individual. Usually it develops because the individual had a bad experience with the object of his/her fears which left a mark in the unconscious.

In this case, the mother is afraid of squirrels most likely because she had a bad experience with the animal. When she sees them, she suffers anxiety even though consciously she know they are basically harmless and she even tries to avoid them by not going to parks.

She has a phobia of squirrels.

the branch of biology that deals with the normal functions of living organisms and their parts.

the way in which a living organism or bodily part functions.