SPRUCE PINE — A North Carolina wildlife official says a man and his dog were bitten by a black bear that was trying to defend her cub.
State Wildlife Resources Commission officer Jared Thompson told the Asheville Citizen Times a homeowner's Great Dane got into a fight with the mama bear Saturday in the yard of a Spruce Pine home.
Thompson says the man was bitten on his arm while breaking up the fight. The dog also suffered puncture wounds. Both were treated and released from hospitals Saturday night.
Thompson says wildlife officials took samples of the bear's blood and fur in the yard. They won't seek to euthanize it.
Another man helping tree a bear near Mount Sterling on Saturday was bitten and rolled down a slight cliff with that bear.