People often choose to have dogs as pets because they are some of the most wonderful creatures on the planet. They always greet you with a wagging tail and never shy away from giving sloppy kisses when they want to show you how much they love you. They are man’s best friend, and most would never want to hurt another being.
However, there are some breeds that people are less friendly towards and will avoid at all costs. Certain types of dogs have been known in the past to sometimes attack humans and act aggressively. What people need to understand though, is that the way the owner treats a dog will impact the dog’s personality.
Children and Dogs
When people decide to own a large dog breed that is often portrayed as being aggressive, they need to decide if it’s safe for them to be around children. It is the number one concern some people have when adopting or buying a dog, but one woman decided she wouldn’t let prejudice stop her from getting the breed she wanted.
Catherine Svilicic decided that she wanted to rescue a dog in October 2007 and chose Khan, who was a neglected Doberman. This breed of dog often takes on the role of guard dogs due to their size, territorial nature and strength. Catherine had only adopted him for four days when an incident occurred.
Not What It Seems
One day, Catherine’s 17-month-old daughter, Charlotte, was outside in the backyard playing by herself and enjoying the good weather. Catherine made sure to stay close, overseeing the interactions between her daughter and their newly adopted dog, Khan. This is something that most people do, especially when the dog has a sad and difficult backstory.
Khan was rescued from a home where the owner used to beat him and didn’t feed him enough food, so Catherine wanted to look after him. But when they were out in the backyard, she realised that he was acting aggressively towards her daughter. Khan kept nudging Charlotte with his nose repeatedly, before he grabbed her by biting onto Charlotte’s nappy and threw her a meter away. Catherine was extremely shocked and rushed over to see if her daughter was alright. That was when she noticed something even worse.
A Hero
When Catherine looked down on the ground, she noticed a poisonous snake slithering from under the house. Everything happened quickly, with Khan making a loud sound and recoiling away as he yelped. As it turned out, Khan wasn’t being aggressive towards Charlotte. Instead, he had saved her life by sacrificing himself to protect her from the king brown snake, which is one of the most poisonous in the world.
Realizing this, Catherine rushed Khan to the vet where he was able to receive the antidote to the venom. If it wasn’t for this courageous dog, Charlotte would have been the one that was bitten instead. It goes to show that even though he was only part of their family for four days, he was ready to protect them from any danger in a moment.
Despite what most people think of Dobermans, they should never judge a book by its cover or their past. Khan showed just how loyal dogs can be to the humans that they love, and it is something we all should aspire to be like.