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 Thursday April 29 2004
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Dog scares off bear in Norwegian wood
Outdoors enthusiast Arild Johannesen and his dog had a close encounter of the uncomfortable kind recently. While out with his seven-year-old Elkhound Kira, Johannesen came upon a bear eating off the cadaver of a moose. But it was Kira who went on the attack
It was just as if she was trying to protect me," Johannesen told newspaper Aftenposten when it was all over.
Johannesen and Kira were out hiking in part of Hedmark County's forest, several kilometers north of the town of Rena. Neither is a stranger to predators, as the area is known for both bears and a fledgling wolf population.
Kira, in fact, has encountered bears before, while accompanying Johannesen on annual moost hunts. But this time, she really asserted herself.
As they strolled up a forest road, they suddenly surprised a bear who was lying in the road eating off the cadaver of a dead moose. Johannesen immediately realized how dangerous the situation was and let Kira go, while quickly retreating into the woods.
'Man's best friend'
But Kira wasn't about to retreat herself. The dog trotted right up to the bear and started barking incessantly. The bear made several attempts to swat at the bold, relatively little dog, without success.
Kira finally headed into the woods herself, but the bear followed. Meanwhile, Johannesen was calm enough to get out his camera and headed back out to the road.
Then the bear started coming after him, approaching as close as 40 meters (about 120 feet), and rising up on its hind legs.
At that point, Kira reappeared and resolutely got between them. The bear ignored Kira and stared Johanessen straight in the eye, before going back down on all fours, sniffing a few times and lumbering off.
Close call
Experts suggest Johannesen had a close call. They recommend immediately lying down and playing dead in such a situation. Bears, claims Caroline Lehmann of the Vassfaret Bear Park in Norway, don't like fresh meat.
"If you're lucky, they'll only kick some dirt or grass over you and won't come back to eat for a few weeks," Lehmann said. The worst thing to do is run. That, she says, awakens their instincts and they'll run after. Much faster.
Aftenposten's reporter
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