I bring you Gabriel Callahan, the were-panther. Despite his size, he is more then capable of taking care of himself (he's a bouncer), and you might take mind to not have your characters touch him. He has a lovely little aversion to touch. He's slightly anti-social but he's working on that, so if he's awkward while talking to your kiddos, it's expected.
If you'd like plot, check out his history and lemmie know! You can catch me on yourrockofages (can get texting on this one) or caitsauce on aim.