Posted on 12/28/2020 11:23:55 AM PST by SJackson
A black bear attacked a woman and her two dogs in Collier County on Christmas Eve morning.
Kathleen Boyle said Friday that her two dogs, one ironically named Bear, and her other pup, Robin, helped save her from a bear they ran into on their morning walk in the Fiddler’s Creek community.
“It wasn’t until probably 11:30, 12 o’clock that I stopped shaking,” Boyle said. “Because it was that trauma, ‘I can’t believe this just happened.’”
Boyle’s two Westies are show dogs, but they didn’t worry about manners when a bear approached them and their owner.
“So here you’ve got an 18-pound terrier who’s going to defend his master against a 400-pound bear,” Boyle said.
She was walking her terriers on their leashes down her street when she saw two bear cubs. She knew that meant their mom wasn’t far away, so she ran.
“I only made it 20, 30 paces,” Boyle said. “[Bear] turned around and starts going back toward the cubs. I turned around and realized that the mama bear was coming after us.”
During the 15-minute attack, both dogs fought. First, it was Bear who put up a defense.
“He went into her belly and bit her belly and started attacking her, so she came after him,” Boyle said. “She on all fours picked him up in her mouth and drove him to the ground, bit him.”
Then, Robin stepped in.
“The bear was up on her hind legs and so [Robin] ran into her legs and bit her belly,” Boyle said.
And then Boyle fought back too.
“I started punching her and she, distracted, looked at me,” Boyle said. “It was just a fight or flight, and it just kicked in, and it was just my own mom bear came out like, ‘Not on my shift. You’re not taking my dog away.’”
Eventually, both dogs ran off.
“So now the bear only has one person to go after, and it’s me,” Boyle explained. “I would back up five paces and move forward a little bit punching at her. She just didn’t stop.”
That’s when Boyle was saved.
“A biker was coming this direction. He saw it was happening,” Boyle said. “He yelled, so between the two of us yelling, she got scared and ran away.”
Boyle credits the bicyclist and her two pups for saving her life.
“If it weren’t for the biker, I don’t know what the outcome would’ve been,” Boyle said. “They’re just heroes; if it weren’t for him responding, the bear would’ve come up behind us and taken one or all of us out.”
Bear, the terrier, did have some injuries.
“He has puncture wounds on his neck; he was in extreme pain yesterday,” Boyle said. “He has a lot of soft tissue damage, even though he looks fine.”
Kathleen and her husband, Donald, hope what everyone takes away from this story is that you have to be careful around wildlife, especially baby bears.
Meanwhile, tiny heroes will be getting a lot of love for the remainder of Christmas.
“So very spirited and getting lots of hugs,” Boyle said.
S&W Mod 29 with 300GR .44mag BearBusters. Don’t leave home without them.
Another dog and bear story. Sometimes the 4 legs save the 2 legs, sometimes 2 legs save the 4.
It’s nothing short of a miracle that this lady and her dogs were not killed, especially when the bear actually lifted that little dog up in its mouth. Just WOW.
Two years ago, almost to the day, I moved up to the Colorado mountains and wondered when I’d finally see a bear. I couldn’t hardly wait! At this writing, I’ve seen more bears on my back patio than any other wildlife - short of the big Bobcat that frequently hangs around outside. It’s now just a matter of time before I finally bump into one, walking around the house...
+1
You got to watch those bears that lay in the woods nx to houses. They are like dogs and can tell time; they know down to the minute when you come and go. Can knock a wooden door right off hinges or go thru window, then they set to tearin up.
In Alaska, we shoot every bear we see; not suppose to be around people. Twice I've had to shoot blk bears crawlin in on me; front quarters down, butt high just like a cat on a rabbit in cut hay field. They come in real slow, their ears moving independently all over. Both those bears were within 6 foot of me when I killed them. Most run when you yell and way arms.
At least from 1949, no bears had been seen in the 500 acres of woods near me. Last summer, I got a neighbor’s call saying, “You’ve got two bears in your back yard!”
Their two dogs barked, and both bears instantly jumped up huge pine trees. Wouldn’t think they could move so fast...
A 400-lb sow black bear? That would be a real whopper for a black bear sow.
They look bigger when they want to harm you.
Collier County is deep SW Florida, BTW.
I'm sure that's true. This lady had a problem with an aggressive adult black bear regardless of it size. Even a 200-lb black bear is more than capable of messing up any human being if it decides to do so.
My B.O. saved me from one. An old Black bear who had gone silverback from age thought I was lunch. Approached with his fore feet doing a goose step, a sign of aggression. I hollered, opened my shirt, still coming. Finally smelled me, tossed his head and ran like hell until he was out of sight.
I really doubt that the attack happen for 15 minutes or that the bear was 400lbs.
I seen bear hounds ripped really bad with just short contact with a bear.
Doesn’t look like the bear made contact with the dogs owner ether.
The amount of damage a bear can inflict in seconds is amazing.
They all look really good for having fought off a bear.
She is in FL no reason for going unarmed.
Bear Ping!
A blast from the past:
Man (Freeper kanawa) stabs bear to death
The Record.com ^ | Jul 22, 2006 | MELINDA DALTON
Posted on 2006-07-22, 9:30:03 PM by kanawa
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1670661/posts
These hiker democrat women sure seem to get themselves into a lot of jams.
Note to self: When in Bear Country, pack Yorkies!
“It’s now just a matter of time before I finally bump into one, walking around the house...”
I hope you’ve been checking under your bed every night! ;)
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