Sunday, September 26, 2010

One More Reason To Garden...!


Many things can be done with the goodies that come out of our garden.

I'm not sure that many of us would have ever thought of this particular use, but it seems to have worked out just fine for this lady!

I think next time I'm putting in some zucchini in my garden!


Montana woman fends off bear attack with zucchini

By MATT VOLZ, Associated Press Writer Matt Volz, Associated Press Writer – Thu Sep 23, 9:20 pm ET

HELENA, Mont. – A Montana woman fended off a bear trying to muscle its way into her home Thursday by pelting the animal with a large piece of zucchini from her garden.

The woman suffered minor scratches and one of her dogs was wounded after tussling with the 200-pound bear.

The attack happened just after midnight when the woman let her three dogs into the backyard for their nighttime ritual before she headed to bed, Missoula County Sheriff's Lt. Rich Maricelli said. Authorities believe the black bear was just 25 yards away, eating apples from a tree.

Two of the dogs sensed the bear, began barking and ran away, Maricelli said. The third dog, a 12-year-old collie that wasn't very mobile, remained close to the woman as she stood in the doorway of the home near Frenchtown in western Montana.

Before she knew what was happening, the bear was on top of the dog and batting the collie back and forth, Maricelli said.

"She kicked the bear with her left leg as hard as she could, and she said she felt like she caught it pretty solidly under the chin," Maricelli said.

But as she kicked, the bruin swiped at her leg with its paw and ripped her jeans.

The bear then turned its full attention to the woman in the doorway. She retreated into the house and tried to close the door, but the bear stuck its head and part of a shoulder through the doorway.

The woman held onto the door with her right hand. With her left, she reached behind and grabbed a 14-inch zucchini that she had picked from her garden earlier and was sitting on the kitchen counter, Maricelli said.

She threw the vegetable. It bopped the bruin on the top of its head and the animal fled, Maricelli said.

The woman called for help from a relative staying with her. They found the collie outside, unable to move, and took it to a veterinarian.

The dog appeared to be fine on Thursday, but the vet was keeping it for observation, Maricelli said.

The woman did not need medical attention for the scratches on her leg, though she got a tetanus shot as a precaution, Maricelli said.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials set up a trap in an attempt to capture the bear, the agency said in a statement.

Besides the nearby fruit trees, there wasn't anything on the woman's property that would attract a bear into the backyard, like garbage or livestock feed, wildlife officials said.

Maricelli interviewed the woman, but said the sheriff's office was complying with her wish not to identify her.

"She was very, very shaken, and it kind of took the humor portion out of it for me," Maricelli said. "She said it had this horrific growl and was snarling.

"(But) she can see the humor in it, and she wanted the story put out so the local residents can take precautionary measures," he added.

Now this woman has a LOT of good ol' pioneer spirit! Quite obviously she thinks fast on her feet! Gotta love anyone that can think this fast and do what it takes!

Now, my friends, let's get some fresh coffee and sit outside for a bit! No bears in sight!

14 comments:

The cottage by the Cranelake said...

We do have a shortage of bears here in southern Sweden, but sometimes they walk long distances down to us. So I´ll better have some Zucchinis in my garden next year too :-) :-)

Poor woman and poor old dog! I´m glad they managed to come through this without to much injuries!

Have a great day now!
Christer.

Mayberry said...

Yowza! My poor dog would barely be a snack, ha ha! Maybe she should swap that zuchinni for a 12 gauge?!

Mechanic in Illinois said...

The main reason I garden is to attract the deer,squirrels,and rabbits. Protein with the veggies. Thanks for another great lesson.

chinasyndrome said...

Hey Jim was that a magnum or field load zuccini?

China
III

Dizzy-Dick said...

Guess I will have to trade in all my guns on some loaded zucchini. . .

HermitJim said...

Hey Christer...
What if the bears in your country don't like zucchini? Better plant something else, just in case!

Thanks for coming by today!


Hey Mayberry...
I'm thinking that might not be a bad idea! Either that, or get the dogs a hunting permit and their own guns!

Thanks for coming by, buddy!


Hey Mechanic...
A little meat with the veggies is always a great idea! I would rather not have to clean one, though!

Thanks for dropping in today!


Hey China...
Judging from the thickness, I'd say a field load! Good thing the gal was quick thinking!

You just never know who or what will drop in, I guess!

Thanks for coming over today!


Hey Dizzy...
Might be a little harder to maintain for a long term storage!

Guess you just never know what will come in handy during an emergency, huh?

Thanks for the visit this morning, buddy!

Anonymous said...

Wow, a zucchini, huh? Not much one can say except, awesome. There's not a lot of people around who can say "I just zucchinied a bear."

AV

HermitJim said...

Hey AV...
Guess this is another reason to grow those green veggie's, huh?

Right you are about not being too many people being able to say that! I'm happy to NOT be one that can...!

Thanks for coming by today!

Marjie said...

I guess all the local residents will now keep their monster zucchini instead of hiding them in other people's cars?

HermitJim said...

Hey Marjie...
So THAT'S how you got rid of your extra zucchini's?

I figured that Thor would be a big help in getting rid of the bears! If not the bears, then maybe th zucchini...!

Thanks for coming by today!

Tatersmama said...

Bears have been seriously wandering around my sons place lately, so I'll be sure to tell him to grow some zucchini while the weather's still warm!
It would make the perfect back-up if the 12 gauge doesn't work. ;)

HermitJim said...

Hey Tatersmama...
Right you are! Never hurts to have a back up plan!

Good to see you again, my friend! Thanks for coming by today!

Phil said...

I guess that's one way to get rid of a zuchini.
I always thought you had to drop them off in the middle of the night to an unsuspecting friend...........

HermitJim said...

Hey Busted...
Good to see you again! I know of several olks that use that very same way to pass off their zucchini!

Maybe if they knew of it's history as a handy weapon against bears, the would hang on to a couple!

Hey, thanks for coming by, buddy!