seaweaver
Senior Member
Sure!
cw
http://helenair.com/news/546660e0-c157-11df-b1eb-001cc4c03286.html.
A Jefferson County man shot a black bear at close range Wednesday afternoon after apparently being inadvertently pinned down by the bruin.
The bear had been captured on Sept. 7 in the Meadow Village at Big Sky after rifling through garbage cans, but wasn’t considered to be aggressive or a danger to humans, and was released Sept. 9 in the Elkhorn Mountains.
“Basically, it was docile, a bear that really wasn’t doing anything wrong, so he got another chance,” said Ron Aasheim, chief of communication and administration for FWP. “Our first concern always is public safety, but the bear didn’t appear to be a threat and didn’t show any aggression, so he was moved.”
According to Dave Loewen, a Fish, Wildlife and Parks game warden, the unidentified mechanic was working in his boss’s garage near Corbin — west of Interstate 15 near Jefferson City — about 3 p.m. when he heard an odd rustling outside.
“He went outside to investigate, came around the corner and met a black bear face to face,” Loewen said. “The bear stood up on his back legs, the guy fell back on the ground and the bear came down on top of him with both his front paws on the man’s chest.”
The bear, estimated at about 100 pounds and 1 ½ to 2 years old, was easily pushed aside by the man, who scrambled into the garage through a side door. He rushed to close the larger garage door, but the bear already had followed the man in through the side door.
“He tried to spook the bear away and kept backing up, then the bear thought about leaving and headed to the door,” Loewen said. “But then it turned around and starting coming toward the guy.”
The mechanic recalled that the garage owner kept a .22-caliber rifle nearby. He grabbed it, pointed the gun at the bear, and pulled the trigger.
“He hit the bear in the side of the neck, near the spine, and dropped it,” Loewen said. “He shot it two more times to make sure it was down, then called us.”
Loewen said the man noticed that the bear had an ear identification tag, which was traced back to the incident near Big Sky.
Aasheim said he didn’t know if the bear was drawn into the village because of the paint ball course that was operating earlier in the season. Big Sky shut down the course after learning that bears were attracted to the vegetable oil used in the paint balls.
Loewen said he
wouldn’t characterize Wednesday’s encounter as an attack.
“It was more of a close, physical encounter,” he said, adding that the mechanic received superficial scratches on his chest.
Still, he ruled this to be a case of self-defense.
“He wasn’t a huge bear, but when he stands up, looking at you eye to eye, I’m sure it was a little scary,” Loewen said.
cw
http://helenair.com/news/546660e0-c157-11df-b1eb-001cc4c03286.html.
A Jefferson County man shot a black bear at close range Wednesday afternoon after apparently being inadvertently pinned down by the bruin.
The bear had been captured on Sept. 7 in the Meadow Village at Big Sky after rifling through garbage cans, but wasn’t considered to be aggressive or a danger to humans, and was released Sept. 9 in the Elkhorn Mountains.
“Basically, it was docile, a bear that really wasn’t doing anything wrong, so he got another chance,” said Ron Aasheim, chief of communication and administration for FWP. “Our first concern always is public safety, but the bear didn’t appear to be a threat and didn’t show any aggression, so he was moved.”
According to Dave Loewen, a Fish, Wildlife and Parks game warden, the unidentified mechanic was working in his boss’s garage near Corbin — west of Interstate 15 near Jefferson City — about 3 p.m. when he heard an odd rustling outside.
“He went outside to investigate, came around the corner and met a black bear face to face,” Loewen said. “The bear stood up on his back legs, the guy fell back on the ground and the bear came down on top of him with both his front paws on the man’s chest.”
The bear, estimated at about 100 pounds and 1 ½ to 2 years old, was easily pushed aside by the man, who scrambled into the garage through a side door. He rushed to close the larger garage door, but the bear already had followed the man in through the side door.
“He tried to spook the bear away and kept backing up, then the bear thought about leaving and headed to the door,” Loewen said. “But then it turned around and starting coming toward the guy.”
The mechanic recalled that the garage owner kept a .22-caliber rifle nearby. He grabbed it, pointed the gun at the bear, and pulled the trigger.
“He hit the bear in the side of the neck, near the spine, and dropped it,” Loewen said. “He shot it two more times to make sure it was down, then called us.”
Loewen said the man noticed that the bear had an ear identification tag, which was traced back to the incident near Big Sky.
Aasheim said he didn’t know if the bear was drawn into the village because of the paint ball course that was operating earlier in the season. Big Sky shut down the course after learning that bears were attracted to the vegetable oil used in the paint balls.
Loewen said he
wouldn’t characterize Wednesday’s encounter as an attack.
“It was more of a close, physical encounter,” he said, adding that the mechanic received superficial scratches on his chest.
Still, he ruled this to be a case of self-defense.
“He wasn’t a huge bear, but when he stands up, looking at you eye to eye, I’m sure it was a little scary,” Loewen said.
A .22 has always been my "meat gun."
