He frowned harder, which made him look even younger, like a serious five-year-old who just happened to tower over me. "Why not?"
"They're afraid of them," I said.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
Edward smiled, and it was a good smile, not condescending at all, just cheerful and sharing information. "Dogs get a whiff of a shapeshifter, especially one that's partially or completely form shifted, and they're afraid of 'em."
I explained, "Dogs can be around humans who shift form, but there's something about once the change takes place that freaks out most dogs unless they've been trained to it."
"Why would that make a difference to a hound? They track any scent."
I glanced at Edward, but he just kept smiling at Newman. "The dogs are afraid, Newman. They're just afraid of them, that's all."
"But why?" he asked.
"Have you ever seen a shapeshifter in animal or half-man form?" I asked.
"I've seen pictures, film."
I sighed, and said, "They didn't even bring in a shapeshifter to shift in front of your class?"
"It's too dangerous," he said.
"Okay, why is it too dangerous?" I asked, and I had his full eye contact now. He wasn't worried about me being petite or a woman, he just wanted to understand.
"Because once they shift they have to eat living flesh. They'll kill anything near them."
I shook my head. "Not true, not even close to true of most shapeshifters."