Reminds me of a story at Pulau Ubin, real story with an NTUC Indian manager and a few lady executives. It was late pass midnight and we we walking along the pathway back to our chalet. A big dog suddenly jumped out of nowhere and barked at us. I couldn't tell the breed but it was quite big barring its fangs. The girls were of course shocked and frightened and started running. The Indian manager was in front facing the dog. I thought he'd scare the dog away but he didn't, he ran also. He was a very good manager on the job, one of my favorite managers and with his size, I didn't expect him to run.
Nevermind, I stood still and stared at the dog so that the ladies could run. The dog stopped and stared back, barking a little still. I was ready to kill it. Its owner came in time and apologized and leashed it back. My point is the fear factor. It's not about height or weight or fangs or skills. It's about fear. The one who fears, loses. Why could a 4-year old girl own and command a 6-foot long Alsatian? She's used to it and there's no fear. Dogs are like that. But don't try this with big cats.
The urban legend about having eaten dog meat has two versions. One is, a dog smelling you having eaten dog meat will be aggressive to you. The other one, a dog smelling you having eaten dog meat will be frightened by you. Both are bullshit. We're not what we eat. Our shit comes from what we eat and the dog can go check the shit pit if it likes too find out what we eat and if we still don't fear it, it'll yield and be your pet or guard or victim or food.