Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Bear protection: 9mm, 40 S&W, 45 ACP?

Having lived with and among big bears for nearly 40 years I would say that normal situations with them is not really comparable to those with inner city humans. The ability to draw your weapon quickly is not usually an issue as there is no reason to not have a weapon already in your hand if you perceive a threat. And a bear poses no threat if it is still at 7 yards. Or even 3 yards !
Notice that my pistol is still in the full flap holster as I attempt to scare these two sub adults away from the airplane. And there are at least 3 other adult bears just outside of the photo.



If you can hit something the size of a 12 oz can or grapefruit multiple times in rapid succession, at 10 feet or less you should be relatively safe.
I find tossing items into the air and shooting them is a good practice for instinctively hitting smallish, moving targets .