New Jersey bear attack wounds dog, 81-year-old woman
A bear attacked a dog outside a home on Echo Drive in Sparta Township, N.J., on Monday, Jan. 3, 2022. (FOX 5 NY Image)
NEW JERSEY - An 81-year-old New Jersey woman trying to save her dog from a bear attack suffered minor injuries on Monday, police said.
The woman told police officers that when she let her dogs go outside her home in Sparta Township, a bear appeared and attacked one dog.
When she tried to pull her dog from the bear's clutches, the bear either scratched or bit her, Sparta Police Lt. Jeffrey McCarrick told FOX 5 NY in an email.
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Emergency medical workers treated her wounds and took her to Newton Medical Center.
"Patrols located the injured dog in the woods and transported it to the nearest animal hospital," McCarrick wrote. "Fish and game was notified to assist with the investigation."
Sparta Township is in Sussex County, which has frequent bear sightings and encounters.