Bear sought after attacking family's dog
JUNEAU: 11-year-old Dalmatian was dragged from its doghouse.
The Associated Press
(Published: June 12, 2003)
JUNEAU -- A Mendenhall Valley black bear is being targeted for extermination after it dragged a dog out of its doghouse and left it with fatal wounds Monday morning.
The attack happened about 5 a.m.
"I've already cried buckets about this," Tish Forrest, 42, said. "I've got a 6-year-old son, and it's pretty scary."
The Forrests' daughter, Veida, 20, woke to desperate yelps coming from the family's 11-year-old Dalmatian, Freckles.
Veida Forrest saw a large black bear drag Freckles out of the doghouse, between the entryway to the home and a wooded area nearby, Tish Forrest said.
She said her daughter began screaming, "A bear got Freckles! A bear got Freckles!" as the bear pulled the struggling dog into the woods.
The bear shook the dog by the head and neck, but Freckles escaped and limped back to the house. The family rushed the dog to a veterinarian, but the wounds were too severe.
The family's 14-year-old black Labrador retriever, Elvira, also was in the doghouse at the time but was not injured.
Neil Barten, a Fish and Game biologist, said the agency is working to capture the bear and have it killed.
