A bear mauled Ryan Beierman, 43, but he survived the attack thanks to the quick and precise actions of his 12-year-old son, Owen. The River Falls, Wisconsin man and his son were hunting near their cabin in western Wisconsin when the wounded black bear attacked him. Beierman told the Minnesota Star Tribune that he “distinctly remembers the bear’s hot breath as its fangs dug into his forehead.”
“The bear was fighting for its life, and I was fighting for mine,” Beierman said.
After the bear sprung on his dad and had the man pinned beneath it, Owen Beierman didn’t just stand around. The 12-year-old boy had his wits about him, and he was able to use his hunting rifle to shoot the bear dead, thereby saving his father’s life.
Minnesota Star Tribune reports the black bear was about 200 pounds. It left the elder Beierman with a nasty gash on his cheek, alongside other wounds on his face, arm, and leg.
Beierman calls Owen a hero, and we agree.
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Kudos to this young boy, who likely saved his dad’s life.