Posted on 06/22/2026 5:41:34 AM PDT by marktwain
Lori Price successfully defended herself from a black bear attack in Alaska. Her dog was severely wounded by the bear. Then the bear came after her. She used a 9mm Glock 43 to defend herself. Joe Allgood interviewed her for In Depth Alaska (video link).
On Sunday, June 7, 2026, Lori Price was hunting for mushrooms near Skilak Lake. Skilak Lake is south of Highway 1 on the Kenai Peninsula, about 20 miles east of Soldotna, Alaska. She was almost ready to go home. She had two dogs with her, a chocolate lab, Willis and Chaos her German short-hair. The dogs were not very far away, but the woods were very dense. Both dogs wore bright colored GPS collars.
Lori heard a yip, an expression of alarm and fear from Chaos, then a loud roar from a bear.
Immediately, she heard yelps of pain and fear from her dog. Lori charged into the woods, a dense combination of alder, Devil’s club, and other trees, to get to her dog. As she dashed in, she was screaming for her dog. In a tiny opening, she looked up, and a black bear, with the blood from her dog dripping from its face and teeth, was coming at her.
Out of the corner of Lori’s eye, she saw the GPS collar for her dog. She saw Chaos lift his head, and he was a bloody mess. In that instant, the bear got up. Lori reacted and shot again. The bear went down again. Lori’s chocolate lab was trying to push past Lori to get between her and the bear. Lori was holding her back.
(Excerpt) Read more at ammoland.com ...
A 9mm is not ideal for taking on a bear BUT....9mm does have pretty good penetrating power and at least for a smaller bear like a Black Bear, will almost certainly kill him.
The only thing I’d have done differently is I would have done a mag dump into the bear.
Nothing can replace a paper map and the knowledge of how to use it.
L
Plus, being able to refold it....
The bear was not recovered, so we do not know where it was hit.
I suspect the bullet contacted the skull and or the spine, but was not well enough centered for an immediate kill.
Lots of animals are dropped with a hit which stuns them but does not immediately kill them.
That’s bear country, for sure.
I’ve never been attacked by a bear, but If I would out hunting mushrooms in bear country, I would carry something larger than a Glock 43 - a 10mm would be my choice.
Anyway, good for her.
Grok:
Buffalo Bore’s 9mm +P Outdoorsman load (147gr hardcast flat-nose bullet at ~1,100 fps) is marketed for 4 to 6 feet of straight-line penetration through flesh and bone. 
This is the manufacturer’s design goal for deep penetration in large game like bears (black or grizzly), emphasizing the flat-nose hardcast bullet’s ability to crush through tissue/bone while staying nose-forward and avoiding deflection (unlike round-nose designs). 
Real-World Bear Incident
In a documented 2016 case, Alaskan guide/outfitter Phil Shoemaker used this exact load from a compact S&W 9mm (Model 3953/3954) to stop a charging grizzly at close range (6–10 feet). He fired 7 shots, hitting vitals/shoulder areas multiple times. The bear was stopped and later skinned. 
• They recovered 4 bullets.
• One photo showed an entry on one side of the back with the bullet tip visible just under the hide on the opposite side (indicating near full-body penetration on that path).
• Other shots reached lungs/shoulder areas without exiting, consistent with substantial but angle-dependent penetration through thick hide, muscle, bone, and gristle. 
This matches the ammo’s reputation for bear defense when shot placement is good. Independent tests (ballistic gel, wetpack, barriers like wood/frozen meat) often show 24–43+ inches of penetration, supporting the 4–6 foot claim in ideal straight-line paths through softer tissue. 
Context and Caveats
• Not guaranteed full exit: Actual penetration varies with shot angle, bone hits, bear size, and fat/muscle layers. Hardcast excels at straight, deep tracks but isn’t magical.
• It’s purpose-built for woods/backcountry carry (over-penetration is a feature for bears, a potential issue for humans/urban use).
• Many sources (including Buffalo Bore, user reports, and articles) highlight it as one of the better 9mm options for bear defense due to penetration over expansion. 
For the most authoritative details, check Buffalo Bore’s product page for the load and Shoemaker’s account. Always prioritize shot placement and consider larger calibers if possible for dedicated bear country.
Ammo matters.
I carry 9mm for black bear and .357 for grizzly.
Both with Buffalo Bore.
Eh, lot of bone there. Just over the right shoulder if you can get a shot might be better, assuming that is an option. I really don’t know. I’ve only shot a nuisance bear once, and that was with a fairly powerful rifle, and I was told to only take a heart shot by the rangers due to being in a neighborhood.
So this Bear got up THREE Times!?
.
The First time it was Down I would sink 3 or 4 rounds Up it’s Snout or Between it’s
Ear and Eye holes easily scrambling it’s well protected Brain.
.
Even a .22 would work for That.
Yeah, if you’re on target, empty the mag.
A large weapon you can’t handle isn’t better than a smaller weapon.
A QUICKER REACTION IS BETTER THAN NO REACTION
A WILLINGNESS TO SHOOT IS BETTER THAN FREEZING
You should make them practice triangulation!
Her 9mm is a very poor choice for bear country. She is lucky it was not a brown bear.
Now THAT's the hard part!
She’s lucky, because a Glock 43 is a 9 mm. The normal pistol for bear protection is Alaska is the Glock 20, which is a 10 mm, loaded with Buffalo Bore 220gr ammo.
Holy Moly! 😲
So true. I just remarked to Mr. GG2 that if we lived in Alaska I’d have Kangals or Alabai’s. You get a much better outcome.
I live in Connecticut and black bears are a real problem. Three or four times the idiotic legislature has killed bills introducing a bear hunting season and now the bears are everywhere. I had one on my deck trying to get at potted flowers.
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