When rolling a kettle, drops can happen. Uneven ground, garden hoses, dogs, kids, cigarette butts - any obstacle to an even roll of the kettle can cause a kettle lid to drop off. This can cause tears, remorse, anger, and cursing in front of the children. And I don't know about you - but I prefer my kids to learn curse words the old fashioned way: from their grandfather.
Happily, there is a technique that can mitigate the risk when moving the kettle: The Thumb. Learning and practicing this technique can avert a great deal of heartache, and save a lot of porcelain.
Using your fingers to grasp the kettle handle, press your thumb firmly down on the rim of the kettle lid. This secures the lid, and enables safe movement of the kettle.
Once again:
It has been demonstrated that dogs cannot perform this technique:
The paw just keeps slipping off. The kettle lid is in danger of falling, the dog loses patience with kettle-rolling, and goes back inside to forage from the kitchen counters.
Perhaps this is what truly separates us from the animals.