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Black bears are just one of a number of potentially dangerous animals that boast a sizable population in California. Attacks involving humans are relatively rare, but one couple that resides in the state is recovering from injuries they sustained after harnessing a water bottle and the handle of a hatchet to fight back against one that got into a scrap with their dogs.
You probably know California’s state flag features an image of a grizzly bear, but that particular species has been extinct within its borders for over a century. It does have plenty of black bears, as the Department of Fish and Wildlife estimates it is home to between 49,000 and 71,000 of those mammals.
Those bears tend to be more of a nuisance than a threat as far as humans are concerned. There have been a number of stories concerning animals that have turned a crawlspace into a den or raided someone’s home or car in search of some food, but there had never been a documented attack resulting in a fatality until a woman was killed by one in 2023.
That still remains the case, although one couple (and their dogs) were wounded during an incident that unfolded on Monday.
A couple successfully fended off a bear that went after their dog near their home in California
Mammoth Lakes is a former mining (and current resort) town located in central California near the eastern edge of Yosemite National Park, and locals tend to be pretty well acquainted with the many wild animals that roam the forests that surround it.
That includes the black bears that have a page devoted to them on the town’s tourism website, and according to The San Francisco Chronicle, one of them managed to cause quite the scene after showing up near a home in its Old Mammoth area on the morning of June 8th.
The outlet reports a couple that resides at the house in question spotted a 70-pound black bear engaged in a “skirmish” with one of their dogs on Monday morning, which escalated when a second canine decided to get involved. The unidentified woman rushed over to try to break things up while getting clawed and bitten in the process, and the man got the same reception when he joined in.
The former subsequently began to pummel the bear with a water bottle as her significant other ran to fetch a hatchet before battering the animal with its handle. Those blunt objects ended up doing the job, as they continued the assault until the bear “was unable to stand” before driving themselves to a nearby hospital for treatment.
The couple is expected to make a full recovery, and the same can be said for their dogs. The bear, on the other hand, was euthanized by wildlife officials in the name of public safety after being “severely injured” during the incident.
Hell hath no fury like dog owners trying to defend their pets.