| abstract
| - Some characters are frightening enough to scare some people. Some characters are frightening enough to scare most people. Some characters, though, are frightening enough that they can reduce even fierce or aggressive guard dogs to whimpering, cowering puppies, just by looking at them, or even just by being there. It may be that the character is big, or mean, or evil, or scary-looking, or simply Badass. It may be any combination of those qualities. It doesn't even have to be a person, although it usually is. It cannot be a case of a supernatural evil leaking through a failed shield or glamour, though; that's Glamour Failure. This trope isn't limited to dogs, either. The critter that backs down may be any critter, as long as it's established it's a badass in its own right. Not related to the Tropey the Wonder Dog family of tropes. Contrast with Glamour Failure, when the scary one is supernatural in some way, and Evil-Detecting Dog, which covers the normal ability of dogs to tell whether some one is nice or not. Also compare with Animal Reaction Shot. Often used together with Animals Hate Him. Examples of Scare the Dog include:
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