Welcome to this week’s Survive The Coming Collapse newsletter, brought to you by Free Survival Cheat Sheets.com, a set of quick, actionable, and free preparedness and survival tips and tricks from the The Fastest Way To Prepare course.
- David
Survival Diva here. This summer brought a cluster of animal attacks, most notably in the state of Alaska, and this should be a heads-up for all preppers. In a SHTF, post-collapse world most people will be forced to travel on foot to gather water, collect firewood, garden and in some cases, seek the outdoors for bathroom breaks.
You would be wrong to think that just because you live in a city, the only attack you need to be concerned over is the kind that arrives on two-legs. In the city, feral dogs are already a dangerous issue which has led to deaths, and the problem is only growing worse as more and more people abandon their pets. Most notably, Detroit has received major media coverage for packs of wild dogs running loose and causing havoc repeatedly this year.
Anyone living in the country will find both a greater and, at the same time, easier challenge with regards to potential wild animal attacks. It will be more difficult because you will be on a predator’s turf rather than your own, therefore it will be important to know what to avoid, how to spot danger signs, and in a worst-case scenario, how to defend yourself against an animal attack. It will be easier because country people have more leeway on the direct action they can legally take to correct the problem themselves without having to call and ask a government agency to do it for them.
Surviving a Mountain Lion Attack
There is an incredible survival story involving a Houston TX woman and three young daughters, whose story will paint a better picture of what you may be up against in a mountain lion attack and why carrying a weapon, especially in a SHTF scenario where medical attention may not be available, is your best recourse. You can read the entire story by visiting Cougar Info, copyright 1998 Nando.net, copyright 1998, Reuters News Service.
The attack took place on May 25 in Big Bend National Park in west Texas while Coder paused to take photographs of her three daughters — Jessica, 9, Dallas, 8, and Meagan, 6 — during a hike in the Chisos Mountains.
HOUSTON (June 8, 1998 9:20 p.m. EDT www.nando.net) – Armed only with a pocket knife and a mother’s powerful instincts, Mary Jane Coder fought off a mountain lion that tried repeatedly to attack her young daughters on a remote Texas trail.
“It was incredibly scary,” Coder, 41, told Reuters in a telephone interview on Monday. “We came very close to dying.”
The attack took place on May 25 in Big Bend National Park in west Texas while Coder paused to take photographs of her three daughters — Jessica, 9, Dallas, 8, and Meagan, 6 — during a hike in the Chisos Mountains.
Coder had Dallas in the viewfinder when she noticed that the girl, sitting on a boulder, was not smiling.
“She started screaming “Mommy, Mommy, get me down from here.’ I turned around and there was a big mountain lion getting ready to pounce,” Coder said.
Coder, who lives in the south Texas town of Harlingen, quickly pulled the girls behind her and told them to get a pocket knife out of a backpack. In the meantime, she threw a rock at the lion to try to scare it away, but the big, tan cat’s only response was an angry hiss.
She shouted at the lion and waved the knife, but the animal * began running at the girls one by one, “trying to cut them (out of a herd) like they were baby deer.”
Mountain Lions can grow to 300 pounds and are cunning hunters. The only land mammals known to hunt man when sufficiently hungry are polar bears and mountain lion. When traveling in mountain lion territory, traveling as a group is best, and avoid travel between dusk and dawn when possible. Mountain Lion attacks are more prevalent against younger children, so when outdoors or traveling in mountain lion territory, children should never be allowed to walk ahead of or linger behind the adults in the group. Not certain if an area has mountain lions? They tend to concentrate in areas with a high deer population. You should familiarize with what a cougars tracks and their scat looks like, which can be found online. Noise usually scares off a mountain lion, but if their food supply comes under attack when man competes for their natural prey during a protracted crisis, it is possible they may become more aggressive.
If you see a mountain, make yourself look as big as possible (some suggest opening a coat to give the appearance of a larger target) and try not to show fear.
Experts say the best way to protect yourself from a mountain lion is a gun..no surprise there. Baring that, a taser gun or knife or pepper spray (ideally bear spray or high concentration human spray) are the next best back-ups. Should you find yourself having to defend against an attack without any of these items, scream, yell, throw whatever is handy, stomp your feet, and generally try to give the impression that you are not worth messing with.
If that doesn’t stop the attack, fighting is your best recourse—use whatever’s on hand; a large rock or a stick that can be used to stab with—always fight dirty and aim for the head…namely the eyes, open mouth, and neck–while protecting your neck and eyes. These are the vulnerable points a large cat will attack to take down their prey. Yell for help while defending yourself.
Surviving a Feral Dog Attack
Never underestimate the danger of a feral dog. They often travel in packs, and reports of attacks AND fatalities against humans are on the rise. It doesn’t take a stretch of the imagination to expect the situation to only grow worse as people run out of dog food and turn their pets loose. You can read an earlier post, How To Survive A Feral Dog Attack , or follow the life-saving tips below.
It’s wiser to take steps to avoid a feral dog attack than to have to defend yourself against one. In some locations, this will be more difficult to do depending upon their numbers and whether or not they have a steady, reliable food source.
When you are walking, carry either dog repellant or a weapon, which might include a gun, baseball bat, a large stick or a knife. If a feral dog approaches you, your body language should never project fear, nor should you run. To do so sends the impression you are weak, or another words, prey.
Never look a feral dog in the eye. Turn to the side, as standing in front of a dog tells them you are in the position to attack, and they are likely to respond by escalating their aggression.
Remain calm, holding your position, and don’t wave your arms or hands, as this may invite the dog to bite you if they feel threatened. If you give them a command to leave, do not scream. Stay in command of the situation. If you have an object like a backpack, or a walking stick, that will distract the dog, and they go on the attack, they are likely to bite the object, rather than you.
(David’s note: In situations where I’ve been confronted by a wild animal who I thought were going to attack, I have taken the role of apex predator, puffed up, tucked my chin, aimed my gun at the animal, and started yelling. Four things that I do immediately are to 1. pick out my primary target on the animal. 2. Scan for additional threats. and 3. Plan my lateral movement in case the animal decides to charge and my shots don’t immediately stop the threat. 4. Pick what I will offer the animal to bite on if they charge (pack, shirt tied around my waist, fanny pack, stick, etc.) Your circumstances, personality, and results may vary, depending on your situation and the number of animals you’re facing. This is NOT a suggestion of what to do…simply an illustration that close encounters with violent animals are chaotic and don’t necessarily follow a script.)
If possible, climb higher such as climbing a tree, to get out of their reach, but do so moving backwards. And remember, whatever you do, never turn your back.
If you can’t get away and do not have a weapon and the dog attacks, all bets are off. Use your thumbs to gouge out an eye, deliver a hard blow to the throat, or if your ability and the size of the dog make sense, attempt to grab it (or let it grab something you’re holding) and swing it like a bat into something hard.
(David’s note: I’ve been on the bad end of a dog attack a few times over the years…most notably breaking up fights where otherwise friendly dogs turned from biting each other to biting me. More than once I’ve maneuvered on the dominant dog into a rear naked choke and successfully ended the attempts at biting. Frankly, I wouldn’t suggest doing this. I’ve always been bitten and/or scratched when doing this. There are a lot of ways that it can go wrong and you’ve got to REALLY want to keep the dogs alive and be willing to take some incredibly tangible risks. But, if you are an experienced grappler, it’s good to know that it is an option.
Unfortunately, I can also personally vouch for the effectiveness of Tasers on dogs. I’ve never shot the barbs at a dog, but I have used a drive stun on one. Like humans, you’ve got to drive the Taser through your target and keep it in contact for a few seconds for it to be effective. If you just do a pansy touch with a Taser on a person or a wild animal, you’re going to shock them, but you’re just going to make a determined attacker more mad (I say this from experience). To be effective, you’ve got to drive through your target and keep the Taser in contact for a few seconds.
How do I have so much experience? It really doesn’t happen very often, so I guess I’ve just logged lots of years. I trail run with my dog(s) and interactions seem to happen every year or two. I’ve spent as much of my adult life as possible in wilderness areas and a lot of my friends and acquaintances over the years have had dogs that were unleashed and unfenced guard dogs but who were great assets in the woods, but who wouldn’t be welcome in a city dog park. The vast majority of the time, I’m able to avoid conflict, but when you start adding up the miles over the years, a few bad interactions aren’t that surprising.)
Survive a Wild Pig (also known as Feral Pig or Wild Boar) Attack
The wild pig doesn’t top the charts for the cause of human fatalities, but they reproduce like bunnies and are spreading across the country like wildfire. They are hearty, opportunistic, adaptable, and can currently only be controlled by active human culling efforts.
A boar’s (male) razor sharp tusks, their sharp teeth, and their lightening speed can do serious damage. Advice on avoiding an attack by a wild pig is nearly non-existent, other than shoot them. If that isn’t possible, climb a tree. The reason defense techniques against wild pig attacks is in short supply is likely because they have an ornery disposition when cornered or when someone gets too close to a sows litter. If either happens, it’s probably going to be game on. Otherwise, its generally agreed on that the wild pig will try to avoid people.
When a wild pig charges, the male will raise his head and when he connects with his victim, he jerks his head down and then up, using his tusks for optimal destruction to tear its victim open with his long, sharp tusks, of which he has 4. The sow will charge, mouth open, ready to inflict wounds with her sharp teeth. Wild pigs can charge at 30 miles an hour and can weigh up to 300 lbs.
In each description I have read about wild pig attacks on humans, it has required extensive stitches along with antibiotics to fight infection.
Wild pigs can react with lightening speed, therefore using the strategy of making yourself look bigger or yelling isn’t likely to be effective. In fact, victims relating a wild pig attack say they charged without warning; eye contact or no eye contact and there wasn’t time to make yourself appear larger or to try to take charge of the situation by yelling. If you will be spending time outdoors where wild pigs run wild, consider bringing a firearm, trees or no trees!
Survive A Moose Attack
Moose made the top five list of dangerous animals. Even though they’re dangerous, many are fooled by what on the outside appears to be a slow, lumbering, dim-witted animal. But even though they don’t have the sharp fangs of most predators, nor the terrifying growl, they can come at you at 35 miles per hour, and if it’s a cow with a calf and she’s decided she doesn’t like your being nearby and decides to charge…if you don’t have a gun or a nearby tree to climb, it’s not going to go well (although, I’ve known more than a few people who got behind a large tree because there wasn’t time to climb and lived to tell about it).
Here’s another animal you simply can’t reason with and you might as well not even try. Puffing yourself up, waving your arms, yelling, stomping…any of that could get you killed. Moose are notoriously unpredictable and are easily startled. Either shoot or climb. And if you must back up to get to a tree, do so slowly and avoid direct eye contact.
We’ve covered ground, but there are other wildlife dangers out there. Which animal do you feel poses the biggest threat and do you have any strategies to stave off attacks? Please share!
For more on the survival mindset and how to have the most powerful survival tool in the world available to you 24/7, attached to your shoulders, check out the SurviveInPlace.com course, the FastestWayToPrepare.com course, or The Survivor’s Club. It’s a great book, very complimentary to David’s books, and is oftentimes bundled with one or more of my books on Amazon. To read more about the Survivor’s Club, click >HERE<
This article got too long to include the bear portion, so we moved it to it’s own article >HERE<
Chapter 24 of the book, Implant is now available. You can Click Here to continue reading.
God bless and stay safe,
David Morris and Survival Diva