An out-of-line bear is lucky to be alive today after surviving a tussle with 80-year-old Russian shepherd Yusuf Alchagirov. Take it away, The Guardian:
The bear approached Alchagirov, 80, in a raspberry field in the southern Russian region of Kabardino-Balkaria last week, but despite his age, Alchagirov showered kicks and headbutts on the bear and managed to knock it off balance.
The bear, apparently irritated by the feisty shepherd, tossed him off a cliff and sauntered away, said Alchagirov in an interview with local television. He was hospitalised with bruises, bite wounds and four broken ribs, but was spared a mauling, and released within a few days. It is not known whether the bear suffered any lasting injuries.
Um, it probably did. If there’s one thing we know about Russia’s powerful fleet of elderly badasses, it’s that they seldom leave their animal attackers unharmed. Let us never forget the Russian granny who killed a wolf with one hand and an axe: