Wasp spray often works better on bears (and people) than mace or pepper spray and is easier to find. I would have either screwed it in his eye or ear if I was going try to shoot a bear with a 9mm. By wounding him he's likely to become even more agressive.
what to do if im in this situation again?
- Thread starter Jswiney9
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ogilvyspecial
Member
J, would you happen to know if the berry or mast crops failed in that area this year?
Basically would a Bear be deprived of it's normal / natural food source in that area??
I have heard of behavior quite similar to what you described in the above quote happening before. In fact, I saw a video taken by a Michigander up in Canada dealing with a Bear that behaved in a somewhat similar fashion, although in the case of the Michigan man the "attack", which took place on the ground in very thick timber, ended after he backed down into a nearby Lake........
Here's the experts theory behind why a Black Bear acts the way in which you described, which they, the experts, describe as a "test stalk / attack."
Black Bears have been known to use people as a source of food if their natural supply isn't available, when they do they are usually hunted down and killed, so, because of this the trait of "people as food" isn't passed down from one generation to the next. When a Black Bear gets to the point that they have to eat something else, in this case us, they aren't sure if we are food or not, or aren't sure they can easily take us down. These "test stalks / attacks" are the Bear's way of testing us to see how we will react and are usually not the typical charge, or stalk and ambush they would normally use when after prey they are familiar with.
These "tests" are usually slow & methodical with the Bear closing the distance over time. In the case of the Michigan man he would yell at the Bear, which would then stop, look at him, sniff the air, then start to slowly move closer. As I mentioned that "attack" took place on the ground in woods so thick that the Bear was climbing over down tree limbs etc., which didn't help the guy backing away any I can tell you that. The guy who filmed this behavior probably saved his life because he kept doing all the right things, he stayed as face to face with the Bear as he could, made a lot of noise and most important, didn't try to run, which could have provoked a full out attack.
When a Bear starts acting like this around people, for whatever reason, there is a good chance someone is eventually going to get hurt. Picture what might happen if someone, who is unarmed, took a child, or grandchild out for a walk in the woods and came across such a Bear, one who is obviously unafraid of humans, once again, for whatever reason.
In one "Killer Bear" case where humans were used as a source of food the Black Bear was hunted down and killed and it was found to have some Porqupine Quills imbedded in the roof of it's mouth. Some of these Quills had worked their way up into the Bear's brain so not only couldn't it feed properly, it was probably a little angry at the world in general. You just never know..........
firearmsunlimited
Member
For at least the rest of this season you should consider a new hunting area where there have been no bear sightings reported. The local DNA and/or Fish and Game should be able to define those areas. Clearly you do not have the mind set required to do what may need to be done should you have a like same encounter. The next time you may be required to make a life or death split second decision. Predicated upon your comments it isn't clear that you can kill the animal without hesitation due to your confused moral convictions. Attempting to relay on your bow as a secondary weapon should your pea shooter 9mm fail is a poor plan at best. What type of shot angle to you think you may have once the bear has hold of one of your feet or pant legs? IMHO going into country where there have been bear sightings armed with a 9mm is irresponsible. Wounding an animal with an undersized weapon or wounding an animal to ward off and attack then not following up to dispatch the animal is again irresponsible. You never mentioned some important facts like: were you down wind, up wind or cross wind from the bear when it came in. Did he pace back and forth or swing his head from side to side before he climbed the tree? Was the bear grunting, huffing & puffing or snapping his teeth when he came up the tree toward you? It might be well advised that you speak with the local DNR bear biologist who can educate you in various bear behaviors exhibited during an encounter with a human. This would certainly help you to clearly understand the bear's intentions in the event that you do have another encounter. Do yourself a favor and purchase a .44 mag and some hard cast 240 gr. lead full power loads along with a good secure holster.
What if you shoot a deer? Old Yogi might slip up on you while you're occupied with your kill and you might be history. I doubt he's going to let you carry that carcass out of there. If an animal (or human) stalks you, it needs killing. It will stalk someone else. Carry a bit of Elmer Keith influence on your hip.
Sir, i really hope you dont think that i intended on letting that bear get close enough to grab ahold of me. Had he not turned when he did i would have gladly dropped him. for the record though the bear was making a "doof" sound the whole time he was watching me, he was also stalking two does and when they took off he must have smelled me in my tree. There are no moral convictions on my part I just felt bad that I had to shoot him, and its really hard to stop and think when you have a bear climbing up at you. Thank you for your insight and the criticism is happily taken. As an outsider looking in i would have probably said the same things you have.Thing is, these bears are usually just curious and like i said i am usually able to shoo them off pretty easily, they dont have MUCH human contact "despite this guy that has apparently been extremely busy" thats why i was so taken aback by his actions. Last year I took pictures of a sow below my treestand that was pretty much just trying to figure out what i was.
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I'm guessin there is a season for Black Bear and one for deer there. We have an early bear an they are huntable during any other regular season.
i hunt there out of state and am not allowed to shoot bear, well unless they are trying to eat me of course. They had just recently opened up a bear season there and i think in 2 years there have been maybe 5 bear killed.
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