A brown bear seriously injured a woman in her front yard near Kenai shortly after she let her two dogs out early Thursday morning, according to Alaska State Troopers.<\/p>\n
The woman, who has not been publicly identified, was airlifted to Anchorage for medical treatment after the mauling at her home near Karluk Avenue off Kalifornsky Beach Road.<\/p>\n
In a statement posted online, troopers said the woman had opened her front door around 5 a.m. Thursday to find a brown bear sow and two cubs, which caused one of her dogs to run back inside, while the other ran away from the door.<\/p>\n
The woman grabbed a shotgun and fired three to four rounds in an effort to scare off the bears, troopers said. The sow then attacked the woman on her front deck.<\/p>\n
Another person at the house scared the bear away and moved the woman inside, troopers said.<\/p>\n
In the yard later, troopers found multiple bird feeders \u2014 a known bear attractant \u2014 in disarray.<\/p>\n
Alaska Wildlife Troopers and state Department of Fish and Game officials are investigating the attack and collected samples left behind by the bears. <\/p>\n
As of around 2 p.m. Thursday, the three bears had not been located. State troopers are asking anyone who sees brown bears in the area to contact the department at 907-262-4453, or to file a report<\/a> with Fish and Game.<\/p>\n