We have brown bears around here. Are they the same? It’s mountain lions I’m skeered of. Seen their scat (huge!) and paw prints (big!) on our property. Neighbors trail cameras have caught pictures of them. DH has seen them crossing the road a few times. Very rural of course. We’re near a small branch of river so lots of animals around.
Depends. Brown bears a grizzlies. But Black bears can be any color, from blond to brown to black. I have seen them blond with dark socks. But even the big Brown bears can be handled with magnum revolvers, though I would rather a .44 Mag in their country.
Those cats are a worse problem because they wont let you know they are there. I would consider a chest holster for accessibility. I spent a lot of time in the high Rockies and never saw one but I did see deer they had killed. Spooky, since you know they are still close by.
Years back, probably ‘98, we were camping at Shasta Lake. Had a lab puppyish sort of. She was 2, beyond feisty. And HATED other female dogs.. very aggressive. Had her on a leash, was taking her for a potty walk, when I looked to my right and not 15’ away was a mountain lion. At first I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, same second was awed at how gorgeous it was, same second, wondered what my next move was, same second wondered what my dog’s move was going to be. So I backed up very slowly and my dog did the same. Could have been different had my dog reacted but she made a good decision to be quiet. My heart was sure fluttering though.