Jack the cat and a black bear
June 2006
Jack is a 10 year old tabby who weighs 15 pounds. Although 15 pounds is not exactly small for an average household tabby, surely it is not the kind of weight that will allow the cat to go head-to-head against a wild black bear - or is it? On the 10th of June 2006, Jack the cat, a respectable feline resident of West Milford, New Jersey, USA, found a large black bear invading his territory. Being a very territorial kind of cat, Jack was not going to let pass that sort of insult to his garden's territorial integrity.
The first to notice that something was amiss was a Mrs. Mrs Suzanne Giovanetti to be precise, who informed her husband that she had spotted a black bear at the top of a tree holding on tight. Our hero cat was sitting at the bottom of the tree looking up. At first they thought that Jack was just looking up at the bear. They quickly informed Jack's human that their cat had innocently wandered into a dangerous situation. But closer inspection revealed the truth. Jack was not just sitting under the tree and looking up, but hissing and spitting at the bear, which definitely seemed on the losing side of the contest of wills.
After 15 minutes the bear climbed down the tree and made a run for it with Jack in vigorous pursuit. The bear's only option was to climb another tree. Jack's human had turned up in time to witness the second pursuit, and decided to call the cat in, afraid that Jack might sustain injury or worse.
As for the black bear, when released from the terror that was Jack, it climbed down the tree and ran into the nearby forest. Bear sightings are not unusual in West Milford, which the experts reckon is one of the state's most bear-populated areas.
After the events Suzanne Giovanetti admitted that she now positively fears the cat. She had never regarded Jack as a soft and cuddly little creature anyway, having watched Jack chasing small animals off his property in the past. As for Jack, it just shows that self-confidence and boldness can get you a long way. Bring on the grizzly!
