'He just kept coming': Kamloops dog walker survives bear attack

Aprofessional dog walker from Kamloops, B.C. was stalked and attacked by a black bear earlier this month.

Ashley Gribble was walking five dogs, including her pit bull Bane,on a trail between McQueenLake and Isobel Lake, 16 kilometres northwest of Kamloops, on May 5.

Gribble and the dogs were returning from awalk when abear suddenlyappeared.

"We didn't hear him. We didn't see him. Just ... bam ... there was a bear just a few feet from us. I was shocked at how close he managed to get before any of us knew he was there," Gribble told Shelley Joyce, host of Daybreak Kamloops.

'Not perturbed by the dogs'

The bear followed them for 15 minutes before thedogs' barking appeared to stop the animal.But 25 minutes later, the bear showed up again. This timehe was running after them.

Gribble made her voice louder and yelled.

"He was not perturbed by the dogs or by me. He just kept coming."

Gribble used her bear spray on the animal, but it did not help. Thenshe tripped backwards over a rock. While on the ground the bear lunged at her.

Gribble's 80-poundpit bull, Bane, leapt in front of Gribble. The bearpicked up the dog with itsteeth.

"The image of the bear picking my dog up like a stick and just running with him is just really clear in my mind."

Eventually the bear pinned Baneon the ground. Gribble ran directlyat the bear.

"I was just pure adrenaline. All of a sudden I was in front of this bear with this log in my hand just beating him in the face."

Gribble says this was not a good decision and could have made the attack worse. Butthe bear eventually left after Gribble continued to make loud noises.

Aftermath

Bane suffered26 individual punctures from the bear's teeth and claws, and had to get stitches.

Conservation officers investigated the trail area tosee if they could find cubs, which would show the bear was acting defensively. They did not find anything, and concluded it was a predatory attack.

Conservation officers later euthanized the bear.

"I'm very upset about that. But I also know that the riskof public safety was just so incredibly high," said Gribble.

Listen to the full story here:

With files by Daybreak Kamloops.