What is the largest animal that you think you could beat in a fight?

[Muso]

I think it depends on the price in terms of injuries you would pay. No injuries or beat it but nearly dead?

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

FWIW, yesterday I watched a video of a guy who scared off- not beat, per se- two polar bears by throwing lumber at them.

He got very lucky. Pretty sure snowballs wouldn’t have had a similar effect.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

FWIW, yesterday I watched a video of a guy who scared off- not beat, per se- two polar bears by throwing lumber at them.

He got very lucky. Pretty sure snowballs wouldn’t have had a similar effect.

Remember that animals do not have the human capacity for threat assessment. Nor can they get medical aid if injured. From the point of view of the polar bears it is logical to retreat from the strange aggressive creature throwing projectiles at them. The only exception would be if the polar bears were on the point of starvation, and therefore had nothing to lose.

Humans almost much always have the upper hand, irrespective of the size of the animal, which is why in our RPGs the challenge is usually getting past the animal without harming it.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Remember that animals do not have the human capacity for threat assessment. Nor can they get medical aid if injured. From the point of view of the polar bears it is logical to retreat from the strange aggressive creature throwing projectiles at them. The only exception would be if the polar bears were on the point of starvation, and therefore had nothing to lose.

Humans almost much always have the upper hand, irrespective of the size of the animal, which is why in our RPGs the challenge is usually getting past the animal without harming it.

Oh, I’m fully aware of ALL that. He was deemed “too risky” for their level of interest.

Fortunately, they also couldn’t count. By my recollection, I don’t think he had any more beams to fling at them.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Oh, I’m fully aware of ALL that. He was deemed “too risky” for their level of interest.

Fortunately, they also couldn’t count. By my recollection, I don’t think he had any more beams to fling at them.

"Can't count" applies to almost all animals, even near-human primates.

And when it comes to comparing size, this requires a sense of self which most animals don't have. Domestic cats and dogs don't realise how small they are, which is why they will face down much larger creatures, such as bears, which will usually do the "not worth the risk" calculation and back down.

Animals that are less smart and more reflexive can be more dangerous to humans (and their pets). Badgers kill a lot of domestic cats. The cat pokes them, and they snap back, with a very powerful bite.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

"Can't count" applies to almost all animals, even near-human primates.

And when it comes to comparing size, this requires a sense of self which most animals don't have. Domestic cats and dogs don't realise how small they are, which is why they will face down much larger creatures, such as bears, which will usually do the "not worth the risk" calculation and back down.

Yep, aware of all that, too.

There’s a nifty little supercut of feral/stray cats smacking the bejesus out of much larger creatures, like seals and tigers. And another clip where a Canada Goose scares off a couple of curious tigers in their own enclosure.

Hell, I had Maine Coon cats as a kid, and when I went away to college, my mom bought a border collie. The power dynamic did NOT change; the dog was at the bottom. Same went for my friend’s Doberman, also raised by 2 cats.*




* BTW, in THAT house, “zoomies” were to be feared, because the 60+ pound dog could be found anywhere in the chase, and went everywhere the “other” cats went. Including running over you.