We don't need to hear any odd stories to know that Montanans are an extremely tough group of people. We endure harsh winters, hard work, and all kinds of situations that force us to be resourceful. However, every now and then a tale comes along that reminds us that we are, as a whole, extremely brave. And the story of the Montana woman who fended off a bear with a zucchini does just that.
This completely true story takes place near Frenchtown in Missoula County in the year 2010.
And miraculously, everyone involved survived the incident.
It was just before midnight, and the woman decided to let her three dogs out before going to bed.
Two of the dogs sensed the bear, which was about 25 yards away eating apples from a tree.
The two dogs that had sensed the bear barked and ran back into the house... but the oldest dog, a 12-year-old collie, stayed by the door with his owner.
Before the woman knew it, the black bear was on top of her collie, batting it.
The woman kicked the bear as hard as she could, but the bear pawed at her and scratched her jeans. She retreated into the house and tried to close the door, but the bear stuck its head and part of a shoulder through the doorway, blocking it open.
While holding the door shut with one hand, the woman used her other hand to grab... a 14-inch zucchini she had picked from her garden that day. She threw it as hard as she could at the bear's head. The confused bear ran away.
The woman then called for help from a relative who was staying with her at the time.
They took the collie to the emergency vet, and he survived the incident. The woman emerged from the incident with only a precautionary tetanus shot for her scratches and perhaps the greatest story of her life.
While we do not recommend using a zucchini (or any produce) as a weapon of choice against such an attack, we admit this woman was "beary" resourceful.
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