Parental Instinct

Recently, a cat named Tara became famous for saving a little boy from a dog attack. A video clip of that incident has been posted on youtube and it has attracted almost 2 million views so far. Dogs—even the well-behaved ones—may sometimes become aggressive for no apparent reason. 

Of course we have had our own cases of dog attacks here in Malaysia; and some have resulted in the loss of lives. This is one such example; and this is another.  I'm sure one can search online for at least a few more similar dog attack cases in Malaysia. It is so easy to forget that dogs, though sometimes commonly referred to as a man's best friend, can kill.

Elsewhere in this blog, I've posted on how hard Mia and I tried before we finally had JJ. And then we tried again for a second child, but it was never meant to be. JJ is our only child, and she is very precious to us. I'm not a paranoid parent as Mia is—I'll probably allow JJ to start dating when she's 30. I'm just waiting for someone to invent and then legalize that micro chip thing that was implanted in Agent Dana Scully's neck in the X-Files so that I can track JJ all the time.

But anyway, the point I'm trying to make here is that, as a daddy, I would do all that I can to protect my child. If I'm convinced that she is in danger of being attacked by an aggressive dog, although I'm not sure if that attack will really happen, I would rather err on the side of caution. I'm not going to take chances and wait until the attack really happens before I start reacting, because it may be too late by then. I know that I will never be able to forgive myself for the rest of my life if I lose my child that way. All it takes is for the dog to show a little sign of aggression, and I will react! If you think I'm being paranoid, then I guess that's what it is!

I'm thinking maybe I will call for help, and then while waiting, try to shoo the dog away first, perhaps by making loud noises or throwing something at it. Failing that, I may resort to a more aggressive approach. If necessary, I will use whatever weapon that I can get hold of. If I have a baseball bat, that would be nice. But unfortunately, I don't have one.

Sometimes, people may not have the luxury of deliberating an issue thoroughly before reacting. Sometimes, the circumstances call for immediate action; and sometimes, our actions are governed by the parental instinct rather than a well thought-out consideration of all the pros and cons.

Am I prepared to kill an aggressive dog to protect my family? Of course I am! As I said, I will use whatever weapon I can get hold of—I will use a baseball bat if I have one; I will use a gun if I have one; and I would use a bow and arrow too.