Random lesson learned on a Tuesday morning

This morning Leo and I went out for our customary walk at the lake. We don't make it too far because Leo is very easily distracted by all the smells. 

We had turned around and were heading back towards home when I spotted some capybara by the lake for the first time since we've been here. 

These animals are like giant rodents that live all over Brazil (and probably other places, too, but I think I've only ever seen them in the wild in Brazil). 

(An image from Google of a capybara). 

We stopped to look at them. Or rather I stopped to look at them, but I'm not sure Leo even noticed them because they were so still. 

We walked on, but stopped a few seconds later because Leo was once again distracted. I turned back to look at the capybara and also saw two men with their large dogs that I see just about every morning. We were all up on a raised walkway a couple feet above the lake level where the visible capybara were. The golden retriever, however, spotted a capybara out of our sight line. That rodent was still below us but right up against the wall where we were walking. 

The owner of the golden retriever yanked the dog back and jogged away from the edge with the dog. 

He then explained to me that the capybara has three babies and the mother will attack dogs with her long fangs to protect the babies. He said there are stories of this capybara taking big bites out of dogs. 

What?

Now in addition to protecting Leo from the attack bird across from our apartment that squawks and buzzes the poor dog's back (and gives me a near heart attack in the process) if we dare walk too close to her tree, I now have to be on the lookout for killer capybara. 

Rio is literally and figuratively an urban jungle.