12-Year-Old Boy Shoots Bear While Mauling His Dad During Hunting Trip in Wisconsin

In an incredibly heroic story out of Wisconsin, a father is recovering from injuries sustained during a bear attack that was miraculously thwarted by his 12-year-old son. 

Ryan Beierman, 43, was out hunting black bears with his son Owen, at their family camp in the Wisconsin woods. Located just outside of Siren, Wisconsin, roughly 90 miles north of Minneapolis, the pair had just climbed into their tree stand when a black bear appeared below them.

Placing a non-fatal shot on the bear, Owen and his father waited for about 20 minutes to pass before they decided to hop down and take a look for the bruin on the ground. Using the help of a neighbor's hunting dog, the trio headed to the area where they last saw the bear when suddenly they heard the dog yelp and pass by them in retreat. 

As quickly as Ryan could look up in the direction from which the dog came, the bear was on top of him. A fight ensued as the 12-year-old watched the bear clamp down on his fathers forehead, arm and leg. 

“The bear was fighting for its life, and I was fighting for mine,’’ Beierman said. “I’m punching and kicking and flailing around. That’s when I saw a flash from the muzzle of Owen’s rifle.” 

The attacking bear died moments after the shot made contact and the boy’s father was able to push the bear off of him and tend to his son. The two met up with a neighbor who helped get them to an ambulance to treat the lacerations to Beierman’s face along with seven puncture wounds and cuts on his right arm.

“Owen was a hero. He shot that bear and killed it on top of me,” the proud father said. 

It’s anybody’s guess how this situation would have turned out without the quick thinking of a boy who was simply looking out for his old man.