OK, the OPs question was 'What is your favorite self-defensive revolver?' But then in a later post he specified that it had to deal with four-legged threats as well as two legged ones, which makes it an entirely different question. I call shenanigans! In normal day-to-day life defense against dangerous wildlife never comes up for me or, I suspect, most of us. When I do go into the woods I carry a very different gun than I do the 95-98% of the time I am in (so-called) civilization.
My favorite defensive revolver for EDC is a custom 3" S&W Model 1902 in .38 Special. It's a good compromise between capability and concealment, has an amazing trigger and I shoot it very well, meaning I can likely put 'em where they need to go in a hurry.
---
I'm with you on that! Back when I was young and adventurous - and was paid to do such things legally and rightfully - I killed men with many a variety of weapons. The most impressive and effective which was hand-held by me was the M60 LMG in 7.62m/m. It did horrible things to human flesh. Next up is the 12ga. scattergun loaded with the old military 00 shot. From a Winchester Model 12, at close enough range, it was a right proper defensive weapon. And kind of good at being offensive, too. For handguns, I've only ever used the .45ACP in the 1911A1, .38 Spl. from the S&W Model 10 and a picked-up 7.62 Tokarev dropped by a Cuban Regular who no longer needed it after I emptied the 1911A1 - into him - and struggled to clear the M60. That Tokarev was very impressive from behind the muzzle end but it was hard to control and the fellow I hit twice with it ran off. I been shot twice by 9m/m's and I'm still here - I did shoot a home invasion robber with a 9m/m in my apartment back in the 80's when I foolishly thought the 9m/m was good for personal defense, and he did die, but it took 6 rounds to the chest to bring him down. Lord only knows what drugs he was on but the 9m/m went up for sale and I brought out the .45 again. None of the fellows I shot with a .45 or that old, clunky, .38 Spl with plain old 158gr. lead are so, I think that settles the 9m/m vs. .38Spl debate. I keep a 1917 Smith by the bed loaded with .45 Auto-Rim handloads. 240 grain Sierra JHP's over 9 (thereabout) grains of Blue Dot. It's a hot load I don't recommend to anyone else so I won't post the exact recipe. I shot a wild boar to test it (ate the boar - mighty tasty critters, they are!) and will say there won't be anybody walking away if I do my part and hit them. Somewhere. The Smith's like me - ugly, old, rusty, pitted, and just plain nasty if you aren't used to it - but it's as reliable as anything you'll find new in the box.
To me, .45AR is the best all-around nasty-critter-fixer, two legs, four legs, no legs... if it bleeds, you can kill it with a properly loaded .45AR.
My desk gun is an old Colt DS .38Spl. It's been phosphate finished and has some odd markings that tell me it may have been an OSI or air-crew issued substitute standard USAAF or USAF gun at some point. Or, maybe it just belonged to an OSI retrieval expert.
Could be either/or. I load up Hunter's Supply 200 grain HCLFN over a mid-range load of Unique to duplicate the old "Super Police Special" load. I'ts not too stout, not too weak, and at close range makes a nasty wound channel.
So, really, to answer the OP, my favorite self-defensive revolver is the one that's to-hand and loaded. Given time and Hershey bars, I'd prefer a 12 ga. over any handgun and a good rifle in at least 30-caliber over the scattergun. But when needs must, a sharp stick is better than a mean look.