Last Friday night, Kristen Savage of Seminole County, Florida, used quick thinking and a bag of cookies to protect her dog, Ringo, during a bear attack. While out for a walk in the Sylvan Lake Reserve neighborhood, they were approached by a bear from behind. It started attacking Ringo, biting and grabbing him while Savage tried to intervene.
During the struggle, Savage fell to the ground and momentarily panicked, but she managed to stand up and shout at the bear to back off, which caused it to briefly retreat. Then the bear charged again, but Savage remembered she had cookies her mother had just given her. She hit the bear with the bag and threw the cookies, which distracted it long enough for her and Ringo to escape.
The pup was unharmed, though Savage sustained some minor scrapes from the fall. She believes the bear was protecting its cubs, as she had seen it before, nursing cubs in her backyard. Savage doesn’t feel any anger toward the bear, and she says the experience taught her the importance of carrying something like an air horn or spray and staying alert outdoors.
Source: WESH
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