Originally Posted by
flyingSquirrel
Christina, I am sorry that my advice led to an animal attack!
The closer you are to the creature when you move from a standing to a prone position, the more they will feel like it is a predatory movement. Also, if you are in a location where the animals are accustomed to standing people, then getting low could cause an adverse reaction (it will depend on a variety of factors of course, such as what species, what you are wearing, proximity, etc). And then, as you found out, when there are parents with young, extra caution needs to be taken.
I try to think the way the animal would think (which is why it’s good to research your subjects). Therefore, I tend to do things like avoid eye contact, face slightly away from the animal, move parallel sometimes instead of always directly toward it, stay low, move slowly and smoothly, occasionally waiting for several minutes before making any movements, etc. Basically, try to give off a feeling of “not caring about the animal,” like you are there for some other reason. Animals can sense this. Their survival depends on them paying attention to body language and overall sense of what is happening.