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Woman punches bear to save dog

A black bear, courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

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JUNEAU, Alaska, Sept. 1 (UPI) -- An Alaskan woman said she punched a black bear in the face when she spotted it attacking her dachshund in her yard.

Brooke Collins, 22, of Juneau, said she let her dogs outside at about 7:30 p.m. Sunday and she ran outside when she heard her dachshund, Fudge, barking frantically, the Juneau Empire reported Thursday.

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Collins said she saw the bear carrying Fudge "like a salmon" and she was operating on instinct when she ran up to the bear and punched it in the face.

"It was all so fast. All I could think about was my dog was going to die," Collins said.

"It was a stupid thing but I couldn't help it," she said. "I know you're not supposed to do that but I didn't want my dog to be killed."

Collins said she grabbed the dog when the bear dropped it.

Regan O'Toole, Collins' boyfriend, said he ran outside when he heard Collins screaming and the bear appeared to be stunned from the punch. He said the animal ran off when he chased it, the newspaper reported.

Collins said Fudge was not badly hurt.

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"I wasn't in my right mind at the moment but I would never think of doing it again," she said of punching the bear.

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