Ask A Bear: Do Tasers Stop Bears?

Our resident bruin expert answers all in our weekly feature, 'Ask A Bear.'

Q: Does a Taser work on a bear? Just wondering.—Mike Rawley, via email

A: Let me answer your question succinctly: Don't tase me, bro!

Actually, a better response might be "can't tase me, bro." My thick skin and fur seriously limits the ability of Taser probes to even penetrate, which they have to do in order to deliver their jolt.

Even if you land a shot, a Taser or stun gun is unlikely to slow or stop me the way it might work on humans (keep in mind that even sufficiently agitated humans have resisted the involuntary muscle spasms caused by a Taser).

There is evidence of police in Washington using a Taser on a small black bear, and while it certainly deterred the bear, it didn't have the desired effect:

Chandler said a police officer used a Taser on the bear. "If you Tase a human, they usually say, 'I give up!' and stay down," he said. But as soon as the officer turned off the Taser, the bear got up and tried to run.

If you do land a shock on a large, aggressive bear, it's likely to only agitate me even further (sometimes even guns just agitate me). Also, with one shot in a 35-foot range, you've got extremely limited chances to even hit me. Bear spray has similar range, but disperses in a wider fog, so your chances are better.

Once again, bear spray is a much better, easier, and cheaper deterrent. And if you even try anything funny on me with a stun gun, I'll see you in court. I've got a bear of an attorney on retainer.

—BEAR

Got a question for the bear? Send it to askabear@backpacker.com.

PRINT THIS PAGE EMAIL THIS PAGE RSS FEED

Digg Delicious Yahoo Facebook Reddit StumbleUpon Google Newsvine Facebook Twitter

READERS COMMENTS

www.nfljerseysalecheap.com

May 17, 2013

new nfl jersey cheap, 2013 new nfl jersey sale, nfl jersey 2013, cheap baseball jerseys
http://www.nfljerseysalecheap.com/
sf giants jersey cheap, baseball jersey for sale, wholesale nba jerseys, wholesale nhl jerseys,
http://www.nfljerseysalecheap.com/Nike-NFL-Jerseys-c124.html
wholesale nike nfl jerseys, new nfl jersey wholesale
http://www.nfljerseysalecheap.com/MLB-Jerseys-c94.html
cheap mlb jerseys, cheap nhl jersey
http://www.nfljerseysalecheap.com/NBA-Jerseys-c77.html
cheap nba jerseys, wholesale mlb jersey, cheap nhl jerseys

http://www.jersey2shopsale.com

May 05, 2013

Cheap china nfl jerseys wholesale
http://www.jersey2shopsale.com/
Australia basketball jerseys. Australia soccer jerseys, cheap mlb jerseys, college basketball jerseys, wholesale nba jerseys,wholesale nhl jerseys,discount nhl jerseys
http://www.jersey2shopsale.com/Nike-NFL-Jerseys-c124/
nike nfl Jerseys cheap ,super bowl nfl jerseys sale
http://www.jersey2shopsale.com/MLB-Jerseys-c94/
baseball jerseys for sale mlb jerseys cheap cheap nhl jersey
http://www.jersey2shopsale.com/NBA-Jerseys-c77/
wholesale mlb jerseys cheap nhl jerseys wholesale nhl jerseys, basketball jerseys cheap, nba jerseys for sale. college ncaa jerseys
http://www.jersey2shopsale.com/Soccer-Jerseys-c118/
Australia basketball jerseys sale. Australia soccer jerseys cheap.

http://www.jersey2shopsale.com

May 03, 2013

www.jersey2shop.com

Apr 23, 2013

Cheap china nfl jerseys wholesale http://www.jersey2shop.com Australia basketball jerseys. Australia soccer jerseys, cheap mlb jerseys, college basketball jerseys, wholesale nba jerseys,wholesale nhl jerseys,discount nhl jerseys
http://www.jersey2shop.com/Nike-NFL-Jerseys-c124 nike nfl Jerseys cheap ,super bowl nfl jerseys sale
http://www.jersey2shop.com/MLB-Jerseys-c94 baseball jerseys for sale mlb jerseys cheap cheap nhl jersey
http://www.jersey2shop.com/NBA-Jerseys-c77 wholesale mlb jerseys cheap nhl jerseys wholesale nhl jerseys, basketball jerseys cheap, nba jerseys for sale
college ncaa jerseys http://www.jersey2shop.com Australia basketball jerseys sale. Australia soccer jerseys cheap.

www.jerseycaptain.com

Apr 10, 2013

Good quality good service nfl jerseys wholesale http://www.jerseycaptain.com elite nike nfl jerseys sale. http://www.jerseycaptain.com/San-Francisco-49ers-s644 nike 49ers nfl Jerseys,super bowl nfl jerseys
http://www.jerseycaptain.com/MLB-Jerseys-c94 cool base MLB Jerseys, 2012 world series San Francisco Giants MLB Jerseys
http://www.jerseycaptain.com/NBA-Jerseys-c77 Revolution 30 Swingman NBA Jerseys, Hardwood Classics NBA Jerseys
elite game limited light out nfl jerseys. Australia basketball jerseys. Australia soccer jerseys
You will be satisfied with our service and our jerseys quality. Quickly shipping.

www.jerseycaptain.com

Mar 26, 2013

Our professional <a href="http://www.jerseycaptain.com/">elite nike nfl jerseys sale</a>. All our jerseys are high quality,our service is best on the market.
<a href="http://www.jerseycaptain.com/San-Francisco-49ers-s644/">nike 49ers nfl Jerseys</a>,<a href="http://www.jerseycaptain.com/MLB-Jerseys-c94/">cool base MLB Jerseys</a> <a href="http://www.jerseycaptain.com/NBA-Jerseys-c77/">Revolution 30 Swingman NBA Jerseys</a>, elite game limited light out nfl jerseys
You will be satisfied with our service and our jerseys quality. Quickly shipping.
http://www.jerseycaptain.com

Karl Hungus

Mar 21, 2013

Really? All you guys do is put each other down and puff out your "I'm Super Outdoors Extreme Minmalist Earth Dude" chests? The only decent post was the Darwin escapade. Heavens to Betsy!

dfsf

Mar 11, 2013

Welcome to our jerseys shop http://www.yourjerseyhome.com we would off you the best Nike San Francisco 49ers jerseys,Nike Baltimore Ravens Jerseys and best servise. We are professional jerseys manufacturer from china,wholesal.cheap nike nfl jerseys, mlb jerseys, nhl jerseys,nba jerseys and shoes. we offer the latest 2012 nike jersey, with the best quality and the cheapest price,
http://www.yourjerseyhome.com/Nike-NFL-Jerseys-c124.html Nike NFL Jerseys, the perfect jersey to let you enjoy the sport, to make you crazy for sports.
http://www.yourjerseyhome.com/MLB-Jerseys-c94.html cool base mlb jerseys and throwback mlb jerseys.
http://www.yourjerseyhome.com/NBA-Jerseys-c77.html Revolution 30 swing nba jerseys
http://www.yourjerseyhome.com/NFL-T-Shirt-c126.html wholesale NFL T-Shirt,
All Our Jerseys Are Sewn On and Directly From Chinese Jerseys Factory, hope to do longtime business with you.
http://www.jerseycaptain.com http://www.jersey2shop.com

no1nefjerseys

Jan 31, 2013

The same as a man to fight, walk the line, fear any opponent
Here you can choose any can even wholesale cheap jerseys discount nfl jerseys nfl football jerseys Custom nfl jerseys Wholesale new era hats from China. We will sincerely serve you, let you have a happy and safe shopping journey, this is our aim. Welcome to our website www.no1nefjerseys.com
wholesale cheap jerseys | http://www.no1nefjerseys.com
discount nfl jerseys | http://www.no1nefjerseys.com/Nike-NFL-Jerseys-c124/
nfl football jerseys |
http://www.no1nefjerseys.com/NCAA-Jerseys-c114/
Custom nfl jerseys http://www.no1nefjerseys.com/Customized-Jerseys-c116/
Wholesale new era hats http://www.no1nefjerseys.com/Hats-&-Caps-c119

www.3cjerseys.com

Jan 25, 2013

cheap convenient and creditworthy is the service tent of our online store(http://www.3cjerseys.com). you can buy all kinds of cheap nfl jerseys here , just as nfl jerseys , NBA jerseys , NHL jerseys , Football jerseys and the new era hats , we also provide jerseys customized service . All the products in our website are from china with wholesale price ! Now ,you can choose different payment in our website ,just as VISA credit card , western union and paypal . more information please visit http://www.3cjerseys.com .

Anonymous

Aug 24, 2012

Did someone really question if you are a bear?

You people need to take anatomy again.

Sabrina

Feb 12, 2012

I seriously question this article. I mean send an email to a bear.And like he can't be a highly educated bear because there is no such thing.

Sabrina

Feb 12, 2012

I can talk to a bear yeah, lol!!!!!!!!!

Sabrina

Feb 12, 2012

I am seven and I have come up close with a baby black bear 10 times and as far as I know a bear can't talk.

alaska too

Sep 15, 2011

Ha ha ha, I live in Alaska too and would consider a taser as backup to my bear spray. Some trails in Anchorage have humans that are more dangerous than bears- the benifit is that the taser would work on them too.
Anyone backpacking- I recommend the short US-Canadian collaboration "Staying Safe in Bear Country". Great DVD.
Don't tasers deliver an electrical charge that would travel through anything that conducts a current until it is grounded? I imagine that the bear offers much more resistance, decreasing the effectiveness, but it's electrical system might still be a little interrupted.

Peter Jensen

Aug 26, 2011

I live in Anchorage, Alaska, and every year we have brown bears and black bears in our yard. Local hiking trails have plenty, too. Bears generally seem to be as afraid of us as we are of them, and they typically move away from hikers before the hikers even knew bears were present. Neighborhood dogs seem a bigger threat, and dog bites in our local hospital emergency departments are much more common than bear bites. The thing Tasers offer, as protection against dogs and bears, that guns and pepper spray don't is muscle paralysis. Angry dogs and bears seem to be able to ignore pain. I don't think they can ignore muscle paralysis/spasm. Hence my interest in knowing about actual encounters rather than theory. Guns are also heavy if you're backpacking, and you need to make a good shot in a hurry to kill a bear before it kills you. Playing dead is a strategy that has worked well with brown bears here, but I don't know that I have the guts to try it.

Peter Jensen

Aug 26, 2011

cesar

Jul 17, 2011

What taser has a 35 foot range?

cesar

Jul 17, 2011

What laser has a 35 foot range?

BigSkyAdventurist

Apr 15, 2011

I have no idea why my post in in duplicate...just my luck.