Protective dad Mel Gibson

Jan 25, 2010, 10:50 GMT

Mel Gibson thinks "all guys are dogs".

The 54-year-old actor is very protective of his daughters - married Hannah, 29, and baby Lucia with his girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva - because he knows what men are like and what they are interested in.

He told People magazine: "Oh, you get scared. We all know what dogs all guys are because we are guys."

Although Mel is distrustful of any man's intentions for his girls, the actor acknowledges that women are far smarter than guys give them credit for.

Mel - who plays a father who seeks revenge for his daughter's murder in film 'Edge of Darkness' - added: "We shouldn't despair, the truth is all women are smarter than men."

The Hollywood star is a very protective father and partner and last week revealed he keeps a gun "stowed away" in his house to protect against intruders.

The 'Edge of Darkness' actor - who lives with Oksana and Lucia - said: "I did have bodyguards for a little while but it's a drag. If your number's up, it's up. If I'm lying in bed and somebody comes into my room, I'll either wake up or I won't. And I'll either hit 'em with my big stick that I've got or my gun that I have stowed away... or they'll hit me."