In all of his books recounting his decades as an English country vet, james Herriot said that the only time he ever felt truly threatened by a dog was when he inadvertently got between a female great dane and her newborn puppies.
Wow! I do not have any experience with Great Danes outside of admiring one at the vet, though I did not approach it.
Only time I ever felt threatened by dogs was as a 12 year old boy walking a lonely road between my step uncle’s house and my step grandfather’s house in South Carolina. There was good two miles between houses and nothing but woods in between.
About halfway was when the three dogs came out of the woods and began to menace me from behind. I turned and stared down the lead dog with the meanest look on my face I could muster.
They did not charge so I began to walk again, but they still followed. So I turned and stared it down again, then walked away again. The second time they did not follow any longer.
If they had charged, or if I had run I think it would have turned out badly for me. There was nothing else but me and them.