Biggest Fear/This Means War

I've recently encountered something that has always been uneasy for me. It's been one of my biggest fears because it is an unknown and I don't know how to fight it. It seems like no matter what I do, there is no deterring this fear.

It's crippling!

Yes, I'm terrified of The Birds.

Let me be clear, though. It's not just any birds, it's THE Birds. I don't remember having a problem with birds until I saw Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds". Since then, I've always been uneasy with wild birds, ya know- the ones in the parking lot of Wal-Mart. 

More recently, there has been one particular bird that has got me shivering with anxiety. 

It started when we did our yard work. Who would have thought that pulling up all your weeds would leave that many bugs exposed?? The moment we pulled all the crap out of our gardens, one very brave bird dove right in and took our garden in it's custody. Unfortunately, this patch of dirt is in our backyard, close to where my dogs run and play.

The first battle occurred on Monday morning. I let my dogs out to stretch their legs after they woke up and immediately, a bird flew down and started grabbing my dogs with it's little talons! As I ran to defend my puppies, it started trying to attack me. I ran inside, grabbed my broom and fought off the little monster! As I fought for my life, I realized that since we do not have a fence, the neighbors saw my valiant fight along with every car that passed by. 

Ugh. Fail. 

Since that horrible encounter, every morning I can count on this nasty little bird picking on me and trying to kill my dogs. 

What do I do?

I can't kill it! Even if it's a pesky little animal, I can't kill an animal. It's wrong. I was going to try to trap it and release it into the glorious canyon where it could live in peace, but what if it has baby birds that depend on it?

Am I destined to be wield a broom above my head for the rest of my life??

I'm stuck. I don't know what to do. Has anyone else ever had a bullying bird before?