‘Hero’ 12-year-old boy shot and killed bear as it attacked his father in Wisconsin, report says

A 12-year-old boy saved his father, who was pinned down by a 200-pound bear while legally hunting in the “super thick” woods in Wisconsin earlier this month, according to a report.

A Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources conservation officer confirmed the gut-wrenching bear encounter involving 43-year-old Ryan Beierman and his son, Owen, with the Minnesota Star Tribune.

The incident occurred on Sept. 6 by their cabin located near Siren, a village about 93 miles from Minneapolis, during an afternoon hunting trip for the father-son duo. Ryan detailed his account with the newspaper.

While in a tree stand over a bait station, Owen spotted, shot, and struck the bear. However, it reportedly fled the area. About 20 minutes later, they started to track it down, using their neighbor’s chocolate Labrador for assistance. During their search into the night, the dog saw the bear and retreated.

“I reached for my sidearm initially hoping to scare the bear away with a warning shot,” Ryan said in an interview with the Tribune. “He was only 5 to 6 feet away, point blank. As he charged, I shot to kill. I shot eight times but missed. I had no time, and I never got the gun high enough to use the sights.”

During the struggle, the father said he started pistol-whipping the bear. Ryan noted that he and the bear were fighting to survive. The animal bit his arm and forehead with its teeth.

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12-year-old son killed the bear, report says

At one point, Owen grabbed his rifle and fatally shot the aggressive animal, the report said.

“I was flat on my back and could feel the bullet go through the bear,” Ryan told The Tribune. “Owen was a hero. He shot that bear and killed it on top of me.”

“Owen had been incredibly composed and helped me find my glasses. I can’t really see without them and they were under the bear. I was confused about our location, so I pulled out my phone to look at my compass,” he continued. “My left cheek was sliced open and blood was oozing out of the flap. There were two fang marks in my forehead and my face was smattered with blood. My phone didn’t recognize my face so I punched the code to open it.”

Neighbors helped him out of the woods and took him to a nearby hospital, where he received 23 stitches. He suffered several injuries to his face, right arm, and leg, according to the report.

After the entire ordeal, Ryan described the experience as “a wild ride.” USA TODAY reached out to Ryan for comment.

Taylor Ardrey is a news reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her at tardrey@gannett.com.