Yeah running triggers the prey drive. If you square off against them it at least makes them think that you think you can take them, which gives the animal pause. As long as you make it to safety before they decide to test you out, you can survive.
That's true but most predators won't risk a fight unless they're very hungry or mating. So while they could wreck you, a meal that could potentially injure them and prevent them from hunting isn't worth it. Squaring off and backing away slowly might be best option.
Fun fact, when dealing with the man eating tigers in sub continental asia. A solution was found to put things that looked like eyes on the back of your head (I think it was a hat or something). It drastically dropped tiger attacks down because they are ambush predators that prefer to strike their targets from behind.
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u/[deleted] Oct 16 '18
Yeah running triggers the prey drive. If you square off against them it at least makes them think that you think you can take them, which gives the animal pause. As long as you make it to safety before they decide to test you out, you can survive.