Did I miss something here? mg357 is talking about 4 legged animals not 2 legged ones.
To answer your question mg357. The 500 mag is too heavy, way to much recoil for fast follow up shots if needed and way to difficult to accurately shoot in a hurry if you were surprised by a bear or mountain lion.


When hunting in the deep woods of Maine and Vermont, I started out carrying a Ruger Blackhawk 44 mag with 6” bbl. After some thought and use of that gun in this situation, I down sized to a Ruger 41 mag with 6” bbl (it also comes in a 4.6” bbl). It had less recoil, faster follow up shots and only a minimal downsize in power (with the right loads). It would handle any Black Bear, Mountain Lion or Bob Cat! JMO

In the 41 mag I shot 210gr vs 240gr in the 44mg (Below specs for Underwood ammo).
The muzzle energy is around 1135 ft/lbs for the 41mag.
The muzzle energy is around 1199 ft/lbs for the 44 mag.

Be SAFE and Shoot Often !