if you encountered a bear or cougar, would an aggressive dog help or hurt you?

Question

if you were jogging in a national forest and surprised a bear or a cougar, do you think that an aggressive dog (rottweiler, rhodesian ridgeback, boxer, etc.) would scare the animal away, or would it escalate the situation?

i've heard that hiking with dogs can attract cougars, but i dont know if this is true.

Answer 1

That would all depend on the Dog involved, and the Cougar, and bear involved and under what conditions and circumstances... All animals are unpredictable as to how they would react with certainty, both the Predator or the Prey whether it be man or animal... TOUGH QUESTION > TOUGH ANSWER.

Answer 2

Jim Bridger has some good points. Most likely, a cougar would be scared off by the dog, as would a black bear - they typically don't want to fight. HOWEVER, a grizzly or brown bear would be another story altogether. A grizzly would kill the dog pretty quickly and then come after you. So i guess you could use the dog as a decoy (which is pretty craven), or just not run in grizzly territory.

on a different tack, please be careful when taking dogs into wilderness settings. i believe most public lands require dogs to be leashed at all times. also, i hike with my kids and the last thing i want to encounter on a trail is a large, aggressive dog running right at me. i would immediately pull out my knife. a friend of mine always packs heat while she backpacks, and there's a situation you don't want to get started! if the dog is not well-trained and isn't under your control, it could kill & maul other animals, which would then be on your conscience and could also get you fined if you are caught. ultimately, if your sole reason for bringing a dog is your own safety, then it's not really necessary and has the potential for extra troubles.

Answer 3

Generally, the dog would be more help then hindrance. People tend to "tiptoe thru the tulips" when walking in the woods. They walk up on a bear or cougar before they realize the critter is even there. The dog would at least warn the person of the animal's presence.
A charging, barking dog would startle the cat or bear into running. . .most of the time.
The biggest problem with dogs in the woods is they do not tend to be very bright about what they stir up. My buddy was walking the woods out back of his place when the dog POUNCED on a skunk! Neither the dog or my buddy, stinky, were happy with the outcome. My own dog seems to have a real talent for finding foul tempered porcupines; had to haul is prickly butt to the vet three times last year.

Answer 4

They will help either way.

Mountain lions are hunted using dogs. They are usually treed by the dogs until the hunting party arrives. Never been my kind of hunting, but to others it is. The cats run away from the dogs -- they can attack when cornered but the cougar will not intentionally tangle with dogs. Mountain lions do not attack for reasons other than being hungry. They will try to hunt easier prey, but if you are the only food in the woods that they can kill, they will do so. The dog could delay the attack, or the dog could give fair warning. Cats in general are surprise hunters. They stalk and pounce on their unwary dinner. A dog's senses (primarily hearing and smell) could potentially detect the possible threat.

Also remember that both bear and mountain lion attacks are extraordinarily rare. I hunt, and usually alone, in the Rocky Mountains -- where there are big cats and bears. I've never seen a mountain lion (have seen tracks). I see bears often enough, but they just don't bother people much. I have never encountered a grizzly, only black bears. All the same, I stay armed and cautious all the time.

The dog would be more of a help in this kind of situation.

Either way you would need to be prepared to lose the dog if the situation arose. A 250 lb mountain lion or a 300 lb black bear will kill a dog in a fight. And you would need to be "un-assing the area of operation" while that was going on.

Answer 5

This could be a dangerous situation. Do you know where the dog is coming from? It would be ideal if you could talk to the dog owners, or call animal control. Running will only make things worse. And, depending on what the dog's motives are (just because it's barking/nipping, it doesn't necessarily mean it's aggressive)- the type of reaction she has can make it worse.

Answer 6

Well, they are going to have the flight or fight instinct kick in. It might help if the bear or cougar has been hunted by dogs. It might be scared by the dog and run away. On the other hand, it could attack the dog for it "tresspassing" on its territory. Cougars have a reputation for following its prey for a while before killing it, and it is going to know you are there before you realize its there. you might not realize its there until it pounced on your dog from the tree above you. bears will probly hear the noise, check it out and run. Whatever it is, and it decides to fight, you are going to have to bury a dog no matter what breed it is. A bear or cougar will kill a dog with ease. It might be a different story if you have two or three dogs though. Bears will kill a dog with one swipe from it monster paw, and a cougar can kill it with one bite.
really i dont see a way of it hurting you, besides you losing the dog, or the bear or cougar turning on you after its done with the dog.

Answer 7

Consider the dog dead, but while it is fighting, you might have enough time to get somewhere safe. Cougars and bears are not afraid of dogs.

Answer 8

Hunting bear or cougars with dogs is done with multiple dogs. One dog will be killed rather quickly.

According to the state of Alaska, dogs have a habit of stirring up trouble with large, dangerous animals and then running back to the owner for protection. You want a pissed off bear chasing your dog and you ending up between him and the bear when he runs behind you?

Answer 9

Hurt for sure.

First off, bringing a dog to a national forest is looking for trouble. You are in the wild, on the perdator's turf. Do not provoke them....and bringing Rover there is very provacative to wild predators, much more than you being there.

Really, really bad idea. Keep dogs away from wildlife areas.

Answer 10

Well Cougars and bears are afraid of dogs , As far as having a real agressive dog like a pitbull it will get killed easily by a bear because they tend to want to grab the bear and then they get killed with one swat. The best dogs are dogs that are agressive but are smart enough to keep a distance from the bear or cat.

As far as you being hurt or helped , yes the dog would be much more of a help than a hurt if you were attacked . Bears and cats get hunted by dogs and are instinctively afraid of them and will run if they can.

As far a provoking and attack you need to keep the dog on a leash in the woods when hiking etc , You dont want it to wander up on a mother bear with cubs or start a conflict with a bear or cat.