Vanessa Chaput, 24, from Canada, needed more than 30 stitches after she was attacked by a grizzly bear in late June. She came across the animal while jogging in the evening. She told Today.com about the dangerous encounter.
– I was in the wrong place at the wrong time – says Vanessa Chaput, referring to the bear attack she recently fell victim to. In a Monday interview with Today.com, the 24-year-old said that it happened on June 30, in the evening. The woman went for a run with her German shepherd. She was near the Pine Lake Campground in Ontario, when she suddenly saw three bears in front of her.
– I was the first to notice the male that attacked me. Two other smaller bears were standing about three meters away from him. There was also a fourth smaller bear behind me, which (at first – ed.) I didn't notice – describes Chaput. The 24-year-old adds that when she saw the animals, she started to back away slightly. However, her dog jumped up and started to chase away the two smaller bears. Then the largest individual attacked the woman.
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Bear victim describes attack
“You feel like a rag doll and there's nothing you can do,” the woman says, recalling the attack. “I remember the bear throwing me around,” she adds. Recounting the incident, the 24-year-old recalls trying to “go into survival mode” during it. “I thought, 'I'm not ready to leave my daughter and husband,'” she says. According to her account, the attack lasted about five minutes. It ended when the bear suddenly let go of her head and ran away. Chaput speculates that what may have scared it off was the sound of a hair clip she was wearing snapping or the sound of branches breaking underneath her.
When the animal left, the woman hid behind a tree. After a moment, the bear started toward her again. “I didn't think I could withstand another attack,” the 24-year-old admits. To her relief, the bear didn't run to her a second time. Instead, it hit the ground with its paw and turned around. And because it went in the direction of the barking of the German shepherd Chaput, the woman credits the dog with saving her life. After waiting another moment, the 24-year-old left the scene and called for help. She was taken to hospital, where she received over 30 stitches. Doctors also diagnosed her with a broken arm.
The woman's dog was not injured. A nearby campsite was temporarily evacuated. Authorities identified the three bears the woman encountered. Two of them were euthanized. The search for the fourth is ongoing.
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