Wisconsin Couple Fatally Shoots Bear That Broke Into Home While Children Were Asleep

A Wisconsin couple fatally shot a bear inside their home after the animal jumped through a window and attempted to attack them in their kitchen.

According to the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, the incident took place around 11 p.m. on Friday night, when the husband and wife noticed a bear outside eating from their bird feeder. After opening the window to yell at the bear to go away, the animal charged through the window and broke into their house.

“The bear immediately turned and charged at the house, breaking through the window and into the house and immediately attacked,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

Both the husband and wife, whose children were asleep in their rooms during the attack, sustained several bites and injuries while fighting off the bear, authorities said. The husband used a kitchen knife to stab the bear, before he eventually grabbed a firearm and fatally shot the animal.

Authorities identified the bear as an adult female, and said she appeared to have a cub, which was seen running off as the bear charged the house.

The couple was treated at a local hospital for several injuries, and has since been released. The couple’s children were unharmed during the attack. Wisconsin wildlife officials took the bear for testing, but have not yet specified what kind of bear it was.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the state’s black bear population is “considerably higher” than it was three decades ago, with the most recent data projecting there to be a little over 24,000 bears.