Tiny dog protects owner, chases away large black bear in Vinton

Dog owner caught the chase on camera

VINTON – Some of the bravest creatures come in the tiniest of packages, and that includes an eight-pound dog that chased away a black bear to protect its owner Thursday morning in Vinton.

Jessie Morris said, that while taking her dog Maci out for a walk in her front yard, she saw a large black bear that had been rummaging through her trash. Despite a drastic size difference between the malti weenie, a Maltese and dachshund mix, and the bear, it was frightened away by the tiny lapdog.

Morris even captured the quick chase on her camera phone. She admits the bear looks scared.

“And Maci wasn't (scared)! She wasn't scared at all. I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to get in between the dog and the bear. And Maci, she took care of business. She was protecting her family and she did,” Morris said. “She's my little hero.” 

Morris said Maci was not upset by the ordeal, and acted normally throughout the day.

This was the first and hopefully last time they've ever seen a bear in their neighborhood.
 


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