A man fought off a bear to save his beloved pet beagle

Encountering a bear is definitely one of the scarier things that can happen in the wild. And when that bear gets aggressive, all bets are off. But one brave Michigan man stood his ground when he encountered a bear. And in fact, when the bear attacked his dog, he successfully fought it off in order to save his pet.

Afterward, the man reported the incident to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Their account of what happened sounds pretty terrifying.

According to their report, an unidentified man walked out of his home near Boyne Falls, Michigan at 4:30 a.m. to find a black bear running toward his dog. The bear began to swing its claws at the beagle, and the man tried to pull his pet out of harm’s way. That’s when his leash got tangled. The man resorted to kicking the bear, which bought him just enough time to get the leash untangled. However, the bear came back with a vengeance and bit the dog. Running out of options, the man punched the bear in the nose, and he was finally able to escape back into his home with his dog. The dog did require some stitches, but was otherwise OK. What a scary close call!

The conservation office who responded to the man’s complaint told him to remove his bird feeders and clean up any sunflower seed husks. He was also advised to stop feeding corn to the deer and turkeys in his yard, and to spread some moth balls.

Removing food sources is good advice for staying safe from black bears, and the Michigan Department of National Resources also offers other tips and advice, including what to do if you come face to face with a bear.

“When bears stand their ground, people should do the same thing,” Kevin Swanson, wildlife specialist with the Michigan DNR’s bear and wolf program, advised in an online statement. “In these kind of encounters, you should make loud noises and back away from the bear slowly, giving the bear plenty of room to leave the area. Do not run from a black bear or play dead if one approaches.”