Imagine being a child, riding your trusty scooter in the wilds of Canada, and suddenly finding yourself face-to-face with a formidable black bear.
This is the tale of seven-year-old Huxley, who, in broad daylight, fearlessly faced off with a black bear that had found its way into his neighborhood in British Columbia, western Canada.
Seven-year-old Huxley displayed extraordinary courage after encountering a black bear while riding on his scooter
Image credits: Inside Edition
Video footage shows the wild beast approaching the boy. Keeping a calm attitude, Huxley stared the bear down and never took his eyes off it.
Fortunately, the young hero received a little help from a neighbor, who witnessed the situation and stepped in to aid the boy.
The boy, who resides in the Canadian province of British Columbia, got into a stare-down with the wild beast
Image credits: Inside Edition
Huxley’s neighbor can be seen coming close to the animal with his arms raised high, forcing it to run towards a car. He continued to pursue the bear until it fled away.
When confronted with a bear, wildlife experts recommend making yourself look as big as possible by waving your arms, just like this man did. This helps to appear more powerful and scare off the beast.
It’s also advised to move slowly and sideways and, above all, avoid running (the bear will outrun you!).
Residents of the B.C city of Prince George have recently encountered numerous black bears, CBC Canada has reported. The animals are seen wandering into people’s backyards or front porches, or crossing busy highways in the middle of the day.
Fortunately, a neighbor stepped in just in time to help, raising his arms to spook the animal
Image credits: Inside Edition
What used to be a rare sighting has now become a “daily occurrence,” a resident said. The area is full of greenbelts and is surrounded by forests.
According to Bowinn Ma, B.C.’s minister of emergency management, bears tend to come to the city due to droughts affecting different parts of the area. Desperate to eat, the animals look for people’s fresh fruit trees as an alternative food source.
She also lists the increased development of green spaces in the city over the past few years, which has former wildlife spaces turned into new homes and offices, as an additional factor.
The black bear then moved towards a vehicle, leaving the boy unharmed
Image credits: Inside Edition
In a conversation with Inside Edition, Huxley’s mother, Britney, stressed how impressed she was by her son’s courageous reaction.
“I think most adults even in that moment would’ve perhaps panicked or run away,” Britney said. “Not everybody knows what to do there so I’m super proud of him.”
“Most adults in that moment would’ve panicked or run away. I’m super proud of him,” Huxley’s mother, Britney, said
Image credits: Inside Edition
Living in an area where bear sightings aren’t all that infrequent, Britney had warned her son about potential encounters with the wild animal.
“We’ve had a conversation about being aware. ‘Hey, be aware of your surroundings. If there is a bear and you’re not with an adult, you know, be calm.’”
You can watch the terrifying human-bear encounter below
It’s safe to say that Huxley not only paid close attention to his mother’s words but also displayed extraordinary bravery, emerging victorious from the terrifying encounter, thanks, of course, to the assistance of his kind neighbor.
People congratulated the boy for his bravery and expressed relief about the neighbor helping him
I‘m really really glad for the boy. Still it makes me sad to see that the bears are so hungry they have to come looking for food in the cities. :(
It's not that it has to come into the city looking for food, it's that the suburb was built in its territory.
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Looking at this with my mam, she says it's lucky there were no dangerous animals in Ireland, because she'd enough to deal with, what with me bringing home otters, rabbits, and the like. She said 7 year old me would've tried to bring it home.
Well, what does a 7 year old do? You have no choice. If he started to run, the bear likely would have considered that an open invitation to chase him. Lucky an adult neighbor was nearby to "encourage" the bear to leave. I would have peed my pants, I'm sure.
i live in north carolina and just fyi the bears wont hurt you unless you either: get too close to their kids or hurt them. mostly, they are furry little nuggets that just sleep and eat all day and occasionally break your trash can! :)
1/2 This article hugely overstates the risk. I live in bear country. Black bears are timid. The few incidents of them killing humans usually occur in remote areas where bears have never seen humans before. That bear was probably curious and just getting a look at the boy. The neighbour was right to scare it off just in case. But it's more likely the bear would have gotten a look and wandered away. Even if the boy had run, a black bear isn't likely to chase unless it felt threatened. It's possible, but rare, especially from a bear who is accustomed to seeing humans. So the boy was smarter to stay still, but black bears kill one human a year in North America. That's all. If you see a black bear, stay still. If it walks toward you, back away slowly. If it keeps coming, then wave your arms and yell. It's also smart to carry bear spray if bears are around. Only use it if you know you're going to be attacked (and do it from 30 feet away for blacks), then run fast because it will p**s the bear off, and angry bears will swipe at you if you're close enough.
Load More Replies... I‘m really really glad for the boy. Still it makes me sad to see that the bears are so hungry they have to come looking for food in the cities. :(
It's not that it has to come into the city looking for food, it's that the suburb was built in its territory.
Load More Replies... Looking at this with my mam, she says it's lucky there were no dangerous animals in Ireland, because she'd enough to deal with, what with me bringing home otters, rabbits, and the like. She said 7 year old me would've tried to bring it home.
Well, what does a 7 year old do? You have no choice. If he started to run, the bear likely would have considered that an open invitation to chase him. Lucky an adult neighbor was nearby to "encourage" the bear to leave. I would have peed my pants, I'm sure.
i live in north carolina and just fyi the bears wont hurt you unless you either: get too close to their kids or hurt them. mostly, they are furry little nuggets that just sleep and eat all day and occasionally break your trash can! :)
1/2 This article hugely overstates the risk. I live in bear country. Black bears are timid. The few incidents of them killing humans usually occur in remote areas where bears have never seen humans before. That bear was probably curious and just getting a look at the boy. The neighbour was right to scare it off just in case. But it's more likely the bear would have gotten a look and wandered away. Even if the boy had run, a black bear isn't likely to chase unless it felt threatened. It's possible, but rare, especially from a bear who is accustomed to seeing humans. So the boy was smarter to stay still, but black bears kill one human a year in North America. That's all. If you see a black bear, stay still. If it walks toward you, back away slowly. If it keeps coming, then wave your arms and yell. It's also smart to carry bear spray if bears are around. Only use it if you know you're going to be attacked (and do it from 30 feet away for blacks), then run fast because it will p**s the bear off, and angry bears will swipe at you if you're close enough.
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