Questions I never thought I'd have to answer

This evening my philosopher-son, after listening to my diva-daughter sing an old childrens' rhyme involving methods of detaining Panthera tigris said, "Dad, why do you catch a tiger by his toe?"

Needless to say, I was not stumped for long. "Well, JB, because that is where his claws are, and once you have him by his toe, his claw can't scratch you."

I thought I had him but again: "What is a holler?" For a moment I considered something about a small valley in the mountains, but resisted and told him it was a long, deep yell.

While he pondered, I posited this question: "What if he doesn't holler?" and his immediate reply was entirely logical: "Don't let him go!" But he was not done. "Well...why don't you catch him by the neck and cut off his head? Then he can't scratch you."

Alas, I had no answer.