Believe me, bravery had nothing to do with it. If you love your dogs like I do, you don't think, you react. My pit, Stella, didn't get bit, thank goodness, but if I had hesistated, she probably would have. The shepherd wasn't going to live whether I did anything or not. Stella is a big, young dog and she adores those dachshunds, she would have killed the shepherd. I'm glad she didn't though, she's too sweet a dog to have the killer dog reputation. She keeps people from coming into my yard just because of her looks, but will run away if you so much as raise your voice. She'd rather die than do something bad such as threaten a person. She thinks anybody who comes by is there to rub her belly or play fetch. I love her dearly as I do all of them.