The incident unfolded in Mammoth Lakes, located about 260 miles east of San Francisco in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, when the woman resident went outside to investigate when she heard one of her dogs barking around 6 a.m., authorities told news outlets.
She discovered one of the couple’s dogs in an altercation with a 70-pound black bear, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW).
The situation became more volatile as her other dog also ran out and got involved in the battle, according to Mammoth Lakes police.
When woman decided to intervene, the situation went from bad to worse.
“She attempted to break up the fight between the two and was yelling, and the bear turned on her and ended up attacking her,” said Kory Collins, assistant chief with the CDFW law enforcement division, told the Los Angeles Times.
Meanwhile, her husband heard the commotion and emerged from the home and also tried to stop the attack, only to have the bear turn on him.
“His wife used the opportunity to retrieve a water bottle and got the bear off of him,” the Times reported. “The man then ran inside to grab a weapon.”
He returned with a hatchet.
“He fought the bear off with [the] hatchet, and ultimately they both got away,” Collins said.
The husband’s defense reportedly inflicted critical injuries to the bruin. The CDFW euthanized the 17-month-old bear, believing it was a threat to public safety.
The couple was hospitalized with serious injuries, mainly bites and claw marks, officials said.
While the bear was young and far under the more than 300-to-400-pound weight of a mature black bear, it still can pose a threat to humans during an attack.
“A bear that is 70 pounds can cause significant damage,” Collins said. “Wild animals are very strong, very resilient and this could have been a lot worse.”
A guy I know has a ranch in the pines outside of Red Bluff. He swears there are more bear than deer in that country.
Here's one that the hunters got on his place. I don't think you could fight that beast off with a water bottle and a hatchet.
Black eye to the dog community.
ReplyDeleteShould have had one of the lever actions that CW frequently posts pictures of.
ReplyDeleteAl_in_Ottawa
.458
ReplyDeleteOr, 454 Casull, brain shot
Delete.45-70 with a 405 grain Kodiak over 47 grains of N133. Works every time. Steve_in_Ottawa
DeleteI second Steve in Ottawa. Those are very good bullets. Norma N133 is a good powder choice too.
DeleteI wish I had the money to register a “.45-70 Modern “ with SAAMI. Set the pressure standard at 52,000psi, the OAL at 2.8”, give the chamber a 1/4” long parallel throat, and make the rifling twist 1 in 12 or 1 in 16. It may not be the best with cast bullets but it will work wonders with jacketed ones.
The problem is that bears dumpster dive the restaurant trashes and people feed them; they have been dangerous there for decades because they look at humans as food dispensers. I used to dogsled that area and snow camp as well as hike, and you always had at least a .45 on you for that reason.
ReplyDeleteSince he was black.............. He felt entitled to a free meal.
ReplyDeleteThat’s racist, but accurate.
DeleteMy daughter and family live in a remote area and are occasionally visited by black bears that insist on hanging around. To the point that she sometimes can't leave her house for work. The forest service says they can't do anything until "the bear does something threatening". Having a 250 pound bear between you and your vehicle seems threatening to me. I gave her some bunny buster arrows, but she is a little nervous about going out where she could be threatened. No (legal) resolution until something bad happens. This being California the state is to be feared more than the bear.
ReplyDeleteA hatchet would be a fine choice of weapon if you were Benjamin Martin
ReplyDeleteA 70 pound bear? Our Blue Heeler would've had that headed outbound in nothing flat.
ReplyDeleteWhat species of dog? Pekineses?
ReplyDeleteMy 140 lb Malamute would have had it pinned by the throat in 10 seconds.
ReplyDeleteI am a California native from SoCal and my wife from NorCal both born in the 50s. When we were engaged I took her to Kings Canyon in the Sierra to hike and camp. During the time we got visited at night by a black bear looking for food, which we had sealed up in the trunk of our car. She freaked. I calmed her down and the bear left. After that trip she was very hard to convince on camping. Most bears are not violent and are just looking for eazy ways to get food.
ReplyDeletePicture shown is a nice sized brown bear far out weighing 70lbs. Would have looked like a med-sized dog if only 70#. My calves weigh 60lbs at birth so I think someone’s off on his weights and or, his meds.
ReplyDeleteMF
So instead of staying inside and keeping her dogs in the house, these two morons decided to let the dogs out out, then confronted it and killed it. Yeah, that sounds like how people in California would respond. And you people sit here and recommend which gun to use. You're all as fucked up as these idiot Californians.
ReplyDelete