[WV Mountain Mama]

My mom and dad had a german shepherd when they were first married. One night, he got a chicken bone stuck in the roof of his mouth and was going nuts. My dad was scared to death to not help it and scared to death to help it. His dog did not recognize that he was trying to help him and it took quite a lot of manpower to keep the dog wrestled to the ground and my dad getting bitten while dislodging the bone.

[Don W]

Your dad was probably nearly as panicked as the dog, and that was part of the problem.

Bottom line is: dad lived, dog lived, no serious injuries even though there were a couple of lives momentarily in danger.

No hit, no harm, no foul.

[solosmoke]

Exactly. And I will bet the dog was a great dog, too. Dogs definitely think differently than we do. Having said that, I can't help but think of some of the hospital documentaries I have seen where people, so confused from their injuries, have lashed out at their doctors.

It's all a matter of perspective, I guess. The lesson, though, is that no child should be handling a distressed dog, and a large dog needs the utmost respect and care when panicked and in pain in order to eliminate or reduce the probability of human injury.