Man 1v1's a Bear in Order To Save His Dog

Often in my life, I've heard pet owners describe the lengths they would go through to keep their animals out of harms way. Reciting grand stories of how they would bravely fight off a legion of Spartan troops to keep their six-pound chihuahua safe. While everyone wants to believe that they would be the hero when the time comes, most find out the hard way that they are cowards. No one ever wants to believe they would choke, but it happens more often than not. That’s why I’m always so impressed when I see someone who jumps into action without a second thought. Most people saw the story recently of cigar-man saving his pooch from a baby gator, but the stakes were low for that man. The crocodile was the size of a house cat, not exactly a formidable foe. That brings me to Kaleb Benham, who was walking his dog near his California home when a 350-pound bear snatched his dog. Without a moment of hesitation, Kaleb sprung into action, saving his dog’s life.

“I just ran down there, plowed into the bear, tackled it and grabbed it by the throat and started hitting it in the face and the eye until it let go,” Benham said.

Jesus Christ, the set on this guy. The dude went buck-wild when he saw his baby in harm’s way. As a pet-owner, I have nothing but respect for Kaleb. I’m not saying I’ve run from geese, but when they hiss at me I certainly speed up my pace. A stark difference from the man who just tackled a bear before choking it out. The bear was probably so shocked it just put some space between itself and the true apex predator. The dog needed some stitches after the attack but he is back home and safe with Kaleb. While everything has been fine, Mr. Benham has reported that the bear has returned to his house several times since the attack, lingering around the property.

The bear’s ego is hurt and he’s back to redeem himself. The only way I see this war coming to an end is in a ring of fire. Kaleb has to beat this bear into oblivion. The creature was emasculated, and it wants revenge. This is the hill the bear has decided to die on, and can you blame him? Millions of years of evolution just for something half its size to defeat it and steal its dinner. Some will call it instincts, others will call it malice, I call it destiny. If I had to guess, Kaleb will have a new bear rug in his master bedroom within a month.