We recently reported on a Yorkshire Terrier who fought off Sasquatch for his owner, but it turns out Yorkies are great at fighting real threats, too. A 66-year-old combat veteran of Vietnam, Larry Yepez, was attacked by a 200-pound black bear as he stepped outside of his house. The bear was rummaging through his trash when he turned on Yepez.
The bear pinned Yepez and bit his face while Yepez kicked at it. Eventually he managed to push the bear off of him, but the animal kept coming back and bit him several more times. Benji the Yorkie then came to the rescue. He nipped at the bear and distracted it long enough for Yepez to get away.
He managed to drive himself to the hospital, and even though he was in bad shape, he’s stitched up and recovering. Benji got away too, without injuries. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is now tracking the bear and will likely put it down due to the ferocity of the attack.
Yepez is a Native American and joked that his new Indian name would be “Man who fights bears and wins.” We think Benji’s new name should be “Dog who nips at bears and saves owner’s life.” Way to go, Benji!
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