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Post by Stearmandriver on Oct 7, 2023 18:43:05 GMT -5
Statistically, you're better off with pepper spray. You're much less likely to miss, and reports are extremely rare - almost non-existent in fact - of a bear that's continued or escalated an encounter after a faceful of spray. The odds just don't favor the firearm - a higher percentage of people are injured after shooting a bear than after spraying it, and that's if you even hit it with the gun.
People are more comfortable armed and there's nothing wrong with that, but a realistic assessment of data is probably useful too. Nothing wrong with having a gun, but not a bad idea to have quickly accessible spray either instead of, or in addition to, the firearm.
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Post by Plainsman on Oct 7, 2023 18:49:06 GMT -5
The stats linked by Charlie do not support this.
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Post by Stearmandriver on Oct 7, 2023 19:24:03 GMT -5
Well, they are stats aggregated and disseminated by pro-firearm sources though, right? Not exactly non-biased. Stats by any DNR I've seen though definitely favor pepper spray, and these are entities that couldn't care less one way or the other about firearm carriage.
Here's an article actually published in a bear hunting magazine that favors spray, not as an opinion but because they cite several comprehensive studies supporting that conclusion.
I understand things like this have political overtones; I'm just following data here because that's how people stay safe. I could not care less if anyone carries a firearm; I own guns myself. You'd just hate to see people overestimate their ability to keep themselves safe.
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Post by trailboss on Oct 7, 2023 19:28:59 GMT -5
I would rather have a gunpowder propellant than an aerosol propellant...just me, but we can agree to disagree. 
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Post by Plainsman on Oct 7, 2023 20:04:45 GMT -5
Hard to know what or who to trust. Anyone with any kind of bias can find ‘stats’ to support their position. Or they can make them up and hardly anyone will notice b/c they’re busy making up their own. I just know what I KNOW to be true and reliable. When in bear country I do carry a big bear spray canister, plus Old Reliable heavy-stoked. YMMV.
PS… As a member of the bear clan I believe killing a bear would be a sin. Just as killing a man would be. But sometimes we are forced to do things we would really, really not like to do since the law of survival trumps just about everything else.
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Post by Stearmandriver on Oct 7, 2023 20:36:57 GMT -5
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Post by Stearmandriver on Oct 7, 2023 20:44:48 GMT -5
Hard to know what or who to trust. Anyone with any kind of bias can find ‘stats’ to support their position. Or they can make them up and hardly anyone will notice b/c they’re busy making up their own. I just know what I KNOW to be true and reliable. When in bear country I do carry a big bear spray canister, plus Old Reliable heavy-stoked. YMMV. PS… As a member of the bear clan I believe killing a bear would be a sin. Just as killing a man would be. But sometimes we are forced to do things we would really, really not like to do since the law of survival trumps just about everything else. Fully agree
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Post by trailboss on Oct 7, 2023 20:46:32 GMT -5
“ If your sidearm is buried under layers of clothing and jackets and you can’t get to it “western quick,” then it likely wouldn’t do you much good either. In a situation where you had warning of the attack, access becomes less of an issue. In Todd Orr’s situation he saw the sow coming from 80 yards away and had time to access his bear spray.” The likelihood of two legged predators far outweighs the possibility of angry four legged predators, I cannot speak for anyone else but my sidearm will not be buried.
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Post by Plainsman on Oct 7, 2023 21:28:58 GMT -5
We live in such dangerous times. Poor Israel!
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Post by toshtego on Oct 8, 2023 9:06:54 GMT -5
We live in such dangerous times. Poor Israel! I am sorry that Bear Spray will not work in their case.
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Post by toshtego on Oct 8, 2023 9:11:58 GMT -5
“ If your sidearm is buried under layers of clothing and jackets and you can’t get to it “western quick,” then it likely wouldn’t do you much good either. In a situation where you had warning of the attack, access becomes less of an issue. In Todd Orr’s situation he saw the sow coming from 80 yards away and had time to access his bear spray.” The likelihood of two legged predators far outweighs the possibility of angry four legged predators, I cannot speak for anyone else but my sidearm will not be buried. Bear charges are often bluffs or so I read from credible source, a Canadian wildlife biologist who has studied bears for years. Still, it would be best to have a defense plan. this same guy prefers bear spray over firearms as most of us are not trained well enough or prepared to draw, aim and fire accurately in time to be effective.
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Post by Plainsman on Oct 8, 2023 9:16:34 GMT -5
He’s Canadian. Of course he doesn’t like— or “approve of”— firearms.
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Post by toshtego on Oct 8, 2023 10:08:15 GMT -5
He’s Canadian. Of course he doesn’t like— or “approve of”— firearms. That is not the case. If you are interested in his book. Here it is:
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Post by Ronv69 on Oct 15, 2023 14:43:07 GMT -5
If you give them peanuts, they will ignore the trash, within reason. You just have to shell them quickly, a hungry bear can be an impatient bear.😉😂 They shell them themselves.
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Post by Ronv69 on Oct 15, 2023 14:50:12 GMT -5
Maybe pepper spray to clear the tunnels.
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