Cat attack and worries for children in home

Question
Our cat who my husband has had for 10 years somehow got outside. He's always been an indoor cat and rarely has even been outside. The few times he did manage to escape before he always ran back in to the house. Well, he escaped and we're unsire how. We had tried to get him to come in but he would hiss and run away. My husband was determined to catch him to take him to the vet. He caught our cat by the scruff to try to get him in his cage and the cat attacked very violently. He's an 18 pound cat. He did a lot of damage. My husband has taken him to the pet hospital. They have been there for an hour so far and Mojo is still attacking his cage so they have been able to sedate him. As I'm here waiting for news, I must confess that with a new baby in the home and three other children, I am very uneasy about Mojo returning. I don't want to take any chances at all. I witnessed the attack and am very shaken up.
Our baby is three months and will be crawling soon. I just don't feel it's safe. Even if there is only a 1% chance that the cat could attack my baby, I don't want him in the house. He is too large and dangerous and I would never forgive myself. Am I being irrational? Is there reason to believe it is unsafe for Mojo to return? Is there a chance that the cat will attack my baby when he's crawling and curious? If he were a normal sized cat I wouldn't be as terrified. Please tell me what you think of the sutuation...  

Answer
Hi Audrey.  This is a prime example of the fight or flight instinct and is a perfectly normal response to the trauma he's experienced lately.  A good percentage of cats DO become aggressive when outside their familiar environment and they feel threatened, just as other animals and humans do.  It's common for the sweetest kitty to show defensive aggression at a vet's office.  But it in no way indicates the kitty has a mean streak that would surface under any normal circumstance.

I would keep him isolated in a dim room for at least a week to let him calm down.  Once he calms down, I don't believe there's a reason to fear Mojo will turn on the children when he's never exhibited this behavior before.  I work with cats every day who react to terrifying situations the same way, but in a healthy environment, they're nothing but big teddy bears.  In ten years, I've never had one turn on me or anyone else.  In fact, by and large, cats, like many species of animals, recognize the young of other species and tend to be much more patient with them than they can be with adults.