Do we know the dog even has an owner and isn't a feral or starving stray? I've been attacked by dogs... 5 different times, 4 of them were feral on an isolated loosely populated native Indian reservation, and one was in the projects area of buffalo and charged me in the middle of the night. Had my skateboard so I kicked it up and smacked it with it and called animal control once it ran away. First 4 never got close enough to bite(thank you roman candles).
Dogs are predators, simple as that. If the owner couldn't train the dog to NOT think of humans as prey then its 100% owners fault. If it is a long time stray, feral, or starving then its on the dog, but it's really on whoever let the dog get away in the first place or the parents of the dog.
I LOVE cats, that's just another reason to add to the list (that it defended the child). I've met some mean cats that will totally attack unprovoked. My buddies cat was just evil, it would lurk high up on furniture the stairs or bookshelf and just latch itself on the top of your head and dig its claws in. It did stop once it got older though. I currently have 3 kitties, one is a chausie x siamese (the most beautiful cat ever), one is a black rescue from some abandoned house (his head is like tilted permanently, so when it tilts its head its like straight sideways haha, other then that happy and healthy) and the other is a feral who I domesticated when I was like 10. She had kittens in my garage and I started feeding her and hanging out with her since my N64 was setup in the garage.
If the cat likes you they can become docile very very fast. She's ancient now but can still take down a bunny and bring me the head haha. Shed totally attack to defend me, I've saved her from a big ol raccoon that took half her ear off (thank you pellet rifle).
Moral of this story, to me at least, is keep a damn good eye on your child. The way that dog sauntered up clearly gave the parent who was nearby time to react, and that random dogs are dangerous until you know more about their personality.
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