‘Hero’ French bulldog killed while saving owners being mauled by bear

A couple was saved by their ‘hero’ dog when a bear attacked them in the garden of their Northern California home.

Jeff Wilson heard their seven-year-old French bulldog, Cassie, bark inside their rural Trinity County home at around 4am on Saturday, September 19, prompting him to check their backyard.

When he opened the door, a bear attacked Jeff and knocked him to the ground, unbeknownst to his wife, Mallory.

Mallory was awoken by loud noises and she too went outside to check what was happening, with the bear then attacking her.

The bear then turned its attention to Cassie, grabbing the dog in its mouth and beginning to run away.

Mallory then threw a chair at the animal, which caused it to drop Cassie, before Jeff hit the bear with a patio heater.

Mallory sustained serious injuries to her head and face, a broken hand, and additional bite and puncture wounds, while Jeff sustained two broken ribs and several bite and claw wounds.

Jeff and Mallory survived their ordeal, but Cassie died of her injuries two days after an emergency surgery on September 19.

‘She was never meant to be a hero, she was not our guard dog. She was just our sweet indoor lap baby,’ Mallory told Redheaded Blackbelt.

Talking to KRON 4, Mallory said: ‘Cassie immediately came to his defense, putting herself between Jeff and the bear.’

The couple added: ‘This was an unprovoked and extraordinarily unusual encounter that none of us could have anticipated.

‘We can grieve Cassie and be devastated by what happened while still respecting the wild animals that belong in these places.’

The couple believes the bear attacked them because it panicked, being cornered between the house’s fence and gate.

‘I think the bear was startled by us just as much as we were startled by it,’ Jeff told Redheaded Blackbelt.

A GoFundMe page set up by the couple’s friend of 20 years, Rachel Moscon, described Cassie as ‘a deeply loved member of their family’.

‘In the moment Jeff needed her most, this little dog courageously put herself between him and a bear,’ it continued.

The fundraiser has already amassed more than $11,000 of its $16,000 goal, with the money going towards helping Jeff and Mallory cover their medical bills and offset their loss of earnings as self-employed business owners while they recover.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is investigating the attack, while wardens are trying to trap the bear.