Wild deer dad was afraid of (7)
I believe the answer is:
dreaded
'was afraid of' is the definition.
'wild deer dad' is the wordplay.
'wild' indicates an anagram.
'deer'+'dad'='deerdad'
'deerdad' anagrammed gives 'DREADED'.
(Other definitions for dreaded that I've seen before include "Anticipated with fear" , "Greatly feared" , "Was fearful of" , "Regarded with great apprehension" .)