A bear that attacked a man in Pennsylvania this week was confirmed to have rabies, officials said Thursday.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission said on Facebook that the bear “aggressively approached” a man in the town of Jim Thorpe, Carbon County, in the scenic Pocono Mountains on Sunday and began to bite and scratch him. The commission noted this is abnormal behavior for bears.
The man, Andrew Neirer, survived the attack and is expected to make a full recovery. NBC affiliate WBRE of Wilkes-Barre obtained surveillance footage from a nearby homeowner that shows the moment of the attack.
The bear was shot and killed by a nearby homeowner and the body taken away for testing.
“Today, January 23, 2025, the results of the tests showed the bear was positive for rabies. The person involved is expected to have a full recovery and has received appropriate medical treatment,” the commission said in its statement.
“While rabies in bears is rare and a case emerging in a given area usually is isolated, rabies poses a risk to all mammals. In this particular case, male bears typically den alone therefore reducing the risk of other bear being exposed to rabies,” the statement continued.
Neirer was attacked while walking on a stone trail near his home and told WBRE that he spotted the bear in the middle of the trail. He tried to walk away but the bear followed.
He said he bore no ill feeling towards the animal and that it was probably looking for food during freezing but changeable conditions.
“They’re hungry. They’re starving. They’re supposed to be in hibernation. This weather is weird lately,” he told WBRE.
“Hot, cold, warm, cold. Emotional, I’m not drained from it. Just part of life, move on. It could’ve been a lot worse. Luckily he saved me, he shot it. I feel bad for the bear ’cause they really do not bother you that much. Just, anything happens,” he continued.
Black bear attacks are very rare but problems with bears have increased since the population has grown sharply in recent decades, particularly in the northeast of Pennsylvania. There were only 4,000 in the state in the 1970s compared to an estimated 18,000 now, according to state government figures.
In the late 1990s there were about 600 bear complaints from the 13 counties that make up the northeast region; the figure had risen to 1,100 by 2002.
Anyone who sees animals acting abnormally are advised to report it to the Game Commission at 1-833-PGC-WILD.
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