Bradley

I had always been a big dog type of person, but our last several dogs have been miniature dachshunds, who only think that they are big. 

I’ve learned that it isn’t how much space they take up – it’s how big they are on the inside.  Originally bred to go into holes after badgers, dachshunds know they are ten feet tall and bulletproof – it’s in their genes.

Today, I came across the story of a tiny black and tan hero ( four or five pounds compared to our girls who weigh in at around ten) who gave his life to protect his family from a 400 lb black bear.

It happened last fall when the Force family took a golf cart ride into the woods of northern Michigan.  They encountered a bear with cubs, and when the mama bear became aggressive, Bradley jumped out of the cart and attacked the bear. 

After a short fight, the bear grabbed Bradley and headed off into the woods.  They were eventually able to find him and rushed him to the vet, but he was too badly mauled to be saved.

One of the people on the cart had recently suffered a stroke and would have been unable to protect himself, or even run, if the bear had not been distracted.

You can read the whole story at PetMD.com