Bear beats up pit bull

imported
#1

A black bear beat up a bulldog in the GSMNP Saturday:

Black bear fights off dog in Smokies
2003-07-22
by Thomas Fraser
of The Daily Times Staff

If you ever wondered which animal would come out the winner in a showdown between a domestic pit bull and a wild black bear, an incident in Great Smoky Mountains National Park Saturday may be a good indication.

Black bear in a TKO.

Smokies rangers Monday were asking the public for more information following a bizarre incident in Cades Cove Saturday that saw a pit bull owned by a Georgia man attack a black bear and her three cubs while they were the focus of a ``bear jam’’ on Loop Road.

At 8 p.m., a crowd of visitors were watching the bear and her cubs near Hyatt Lane when the pit bull ran from the road and attacked a cub. The sow took offense, swiped the dog, and chased it into the crowd.

The bear only gave up when a visitor threw a camcorder at the bear’s head, said Park spokesman Bob Miller. The camcorder did not survive the ordeal.

After the incident, witnesses provided a description of the vehicle to Park rangers, who pulled over a Dodge truck driven by 46-year-old Danny Hollifield, of Villa Rica, Ga., ``a few miles from the Cove,’’ Miller said.

Rangers temporarily confiscated'' the pit bull inside the vehicle, which was examined and determined to haveclaw marks consistent with the bear encounter,’’ Miller said.

Hollifield was cited with federal charges of harassing wildlife, having an unsecured pet and creating a hazardous situation, according to Miller.

Park rangers want more information from witnesses to determine whether Hollifield ordered the dog after the bears, or whether the animal bolted from the vehicle.

He is ultimately responsible for the dog,'' Miller said, but rangers are seeking witnessesto corroborate the circumstances of the dog getting at the bear.’’

An attempt to reach Hollifield by telephone was unsuccessful.

Each misdemeanor count Hollifield is charged with requires an appearance before a federal magistrate and could carry penalties of a fine as high as $5,000 and/or six months in jail.

Last summer saw a series of unusual bear-visitor encounters in the Park, including an incident in which a man attacked a bear that was feeding on a fawn.

Anyone who may have witnessed Saturday’s incident is asked to call the Great Smoky Mountains National Park Communication Center at (865) 436-1230.

Bear Scared

#2

http://www.thedailytimes.com/sited/story/html/138090

Bear Scared

#3

I heard about last years incident with the man trying to help the fawn being eaten by a bear. I thought the punishment was too severe, a $5,000 fine. Some folks dont think it was enough. Because people can drive into parks there will be conflicts. The good people of this country spend most of their time outside of the parks during the year, and they are decent hard working people for the most part, but once upon entering a park, they find themselves often at the mercy of a value system foreign to them. Most decent Americans would not consider it a crime if the dog accidently got out of the vehicle. But if this incident was provoked by the owner, thats a different matter.
Perhaps parks should be for people. Wildlife preserves for wildlife. Or is the only why to preserve a park to make it a wilderness or wildlife management area?? That seems to be the current trend.
If NPS law enforcement officials get too severe in the punishments they want to meet out, then the remedy is in Congressional oversight.
I hope the individual charged in this incident treated fairly and that the dog and the bear are OK. Lesson learned, I hope. :slight_smile:

David Tosten