A man was mauled by a black bear while walking his dog in a wooded area, marking the second attack in Anchorage, Alaska, in one week, according to local police.
Officials responded to a call about a bear attack at approximately 9:10 a.m. on Saturday at the Barbara Falls Trailhead, Anchorage Police Department said in a statement sent to ABC News.
Another person on the trail — who did not see the attack — found the victim, according to officials. He sustained injuries to his arm, they noted.
The man was walking his dog along the trail when a “black bear and her cub came out of the wooded area,” according to police.
His dog “gave him enough time to deploy the bear spray,” but he told officials the attack “happened so suddenly,” authorities said. It is unclear whether the dog was on a leash or not.
Officials said they believe the bear attacked the man to protect its cub.
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“Bears are very protective of their cubs,” Christopher Barraza, the deputy director of community relations for the Anchorage Police Department, told ABC News.
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game was at the scene looking for the bear on Saturday, but there have been “no updates on whether the bear has been located,” police said.
The male victim — who has not been identified by police — is in stable condition and was medically cleared to return home the same day as the incident, police said.
This follows a woman being rescued after she was reportedly attacked by a brown bear on July 22 while hiking along the Dome Trail in Anchorage, the local police department confirmed to ABC News last week.
The brown bear ran off after the incident and the hiker was hospitalized in stable condition the day after the incident. The woman’s condition as of Wednesday remains unclear.
Last week, officials said hikers in Anchorage are “encouraged to file trip plans with friends or family prior to trekking off into the great outdoors” and recommend people leave a copy of their trip plans underneath their vehicle’s windshield.
With both black and brown bears living within the municipality of Anchorage, the local parks and recreation department provides tips to keep in mind while recreating in any park or trail in the area. They include remaining in groups, making noise, carrying bear spray, leashing all dogs and to never run from a bear.
“Stop, group up, talk to the bear and let it know you are human,” Anchorage Parks and Recreation said on its website.
According to the National Park Service, the majority of bear attacks occur not because the animal is hunting a human, but when it feels threatened or is protecting the young. The only exception is if the bear is “suffering from very severe starvation,” the NPS said on its website.
