Herder brutally mauled as he tried to save beloved sheep, losing two
Colorado recorded its first bear attack of the year after a herder was mauled by a black bear that also killed two of the sheep lounging in by a reservoir near Durango.
The unidentified herder required emergency medical treatment and surgery after he was woken up in the middle of the night by a bear in his encampment. Reportedly, the victim heard a disturbance in the camp between a sheep and the bear.
He was able to get up and get his rifle, dislodging a few rounds aimed at the bear - but instead of becoming scared and backing off, the bear attacked.
Black bears are rarely aggressive, but will attack humans on occasion and are especially dangerous to herders, farmers (Getty Images)The victim was severely bitten on his arms and head, with severe lacerations to his back and left hip. Two of the sheep were mauled to death.
“This is an unfortunate incident and we are thankful the victim was able to contact help to get emergency services deployed and that he was able to be extracted to receive necessary medical care,” said CPW Area Wildlife Manager Adrian Archuleta.
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According to Parks and Wildlife, the victim was able to crawl to his tent and contact his cousin following the attack. Emergency services were summoned to airlift the victim to Mercy Regional Medical Center. After the victim received initial treatment, the victim was flown to Grand Junction for surgery.
Backcountry camps like this one located in the San Juan mountains of southwest Colorado are used by sheep herders and other animal caretakers are extremely attractive to predators like bears (Getty Images/Cavan Images RF)At the hospital, CPW was able to collect DNA samples from the victim so that they could begin a search for the bear.
"CPW was notified of the attack at 4 a.m., and three wildlife officers were at the Transfer Park trailhead and on the scene of the camp near the Burnt Timber Trail by 8:30 a.m. They quickly discovered a blood trail, the victim’s rifle and collected multiple DNA samples from the attack scene. CPW also discovered two dead sheep at the site with wounds consistent with bear depredation," says the official blog.
Authorities were able to take this information and begin hunting for the bear. An agent from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) was able to assist on this trek and the team obtained trained dogs to help track the beast.
“The dog team arrived at 5 p.m. and began to work the scene. Soon after, the hounds alerted a scent trail on the south side of the creek drainage and were immediately in pursuit of a bear suspected in the attack,” CPW said. “The hounds pursued the bear to the Florida River, and CPW officers followed in steep and treacherous terrain following the GPS signal from the collars of the dogs. At 10:53 p.m., the APHIS agent shot and killed the bear. Because the bear made contact with a human, it is classified under CPW policy as an attack and the agency’s policy is to euthanize the bear.”
An area near Weminuche Wilderness is the site of the first recorded bear attack of 2023 (Getty Images/500px)Experts identified the bear as an eight-year-old male weighing 250 lbs. Authorities fired several shots, killing the bear. Its body was then examined and it was determined that it is mostly likely the correct bear who attacked the herder, as its stomach contents contained pieces of sheep wool.
“Until we get results back from the lab regarding DNA testing, we can’t 100 per cent confirm that this is the offending bear,” Archuleta said. “But based on the information we have at this point, we feel confident that it is the offending bear.”
This is the first reported bear attack in Colorado in 2023 and the first in La Plata County since April 2021.
“This is a difficult part of the job,” Archuleta said. “But when it comes to injuries to humans as a result of a predator attack, human health and safety is our top priority.”
According to the World Animal Foundation, there are 40 bear attacks worldwide every year.
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