Bear mauls elderly man on tractor in this state's 1st bear attack in 25 years (Arkansas)

kenmbz · Friday at 4:25 PM

A 72-year-old man critically injured in a rare bear attack remained hospitalized on Friday, Sept. 5, after being mauled in rural northwest Arkansas, a state wildlife official said.

And I thought yellow jackets and hornets were bad, hope this guy survives.
Really unusual and a small bear, maybe Rabies or something up with a bear attacking a person on a tractor.

Jstpssng · Friday at 6:03 PM

The tractor must have been a Kioti (coyote) and the bear thought it was protecting it's lunch.

scootr · Friday at 6:14 PM

That tractor must have been slow, I do hope the man recovers quickly.
On the other hand I see few tractor mods in his future.
Bear cage and turret anybody?

tacticalturnip · Friday at 6:48 PM

Jstpssng said:
The tractor must have been a Kioti (coyote) and the bear thought it was protecting it's lunch.

That's crazy, a bear, no fear of the machine let alone the man. This is why I often carry, even around the property. I don't anticipate anything, but a wounded, rabid, or much too curious animal could be a problem.

Hay Dude · 2025-09-07T20:06:35-0400

Sounds like rabies. Makes normally shy animals overly aggressive and capable of attack.
I was laying on the ground under a tractor trying to make a repair when I heard a rushing sound through the grass. Next thing I know, a ground hog ran under the tractor and bit my work boot. lol
It was definitely rabid.

RjCorazza · 2025-09-08T05:43:32-0400

Yikes. I've never seen a rabid ground hog, and we have a lot of them around here. Fortunately in my 28 years here I've only seen a rabid raccoon on one occasion down at my stream running in circles. By the time I got down there it was gone.

kenmbz · 2025-09-08T08:34:31-0400

When I was in my early teens I was down by my uncles creek and saw two skunks climbing on a dead pine tree about 40 feet away.
I thought that's strange, they are out in the open in broad daylight climbing a tree with nothing chasing them.
The skunks saw me and jumped out of the tree and started running at me.
I took off, later heard the sheriff got the two of them near the road.