jill@ghostbear.org / Depositphotos.com
SIREN, WI (WSAU) – In a recent incident in the woods near their hunting lodge in northeastern Wisconsin, a 12-year-old boy shot and killed a wounded black bear that was attacking his father.
According to the Minnesota Star Tribune, Ryan Beierman, 43, was attacked and pinned beneath the over 200-pound bear when his son Owen shot the bear with his hunting rifle during a hunting trip near Siren, Wisconsin, which is less than 100 miles northeast of Minneapolis.
“Owen was a hero. He shot that bear and killed it on top of me,” Beierman recalled, needing stitches to close a ripped skin flap on his cheek that had been torn during the attack, among other injuries he sustained that included a wide variety of bites to his arm, leg, and forehead.
“Before I knew it, I was flat on my back. I started pistol-whipping him, and it felt like I was striking a brick wall. I tried hitting him between the ear and mouth with a blunt edge of the pistol,” Beierman continued as he detailed how he and his son were able to track the bear with the help of their neighbor’s hunting dog after wounding it with an initial shot that was taken from their nearby tree stand.
“The bear was fighting for its life, and I was fighting for mine,” Beierman added. “I’m punching and kicking and flailing around. That’s when I saw a flash from the muzzle of Owen’s rifle.” By that time, Beierman had pushed the bear off of him; he estimated that the attack had lasted for over 45 seconds.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources confirmed that their hunt and pursuit of the bear were within the legal requirements of state law, and in total, Beierman required 23 stitches to close the wound on his cheek, and his right arm had suffered seven puncture wounds.
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