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Bear attacks local couple inside their home

Bear attacks local couple inside their home Bear attacks local couple inside their home

On May 20 at 11:11 p.m. the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office received a telephone report of a bear attack at a residence located just west of the city of Medford on Castle Road in the town of Medford.

Taylor County Sheriff’s Deputies along with EMS were dispatched.

Upon arrival deputies found the homeowners, Chad and Lacey Liske who were the victims of the attack were both injured. Their children had been asleep in their bedrooms at the time of the attack and were unharmed.

Deputies were informed by the victims that they noticed a bear outside eating from the bird feeder. They opened a window and yelled for the bear to go away. The bear immediately turned and charged at the house breaking through the window and into the house and immediately attacked. Both the husband and wife were attacked and fought with the bear and at one point stabbed it with a kitchen knife as it attacked. Eventually the husband was able to retrieve a firearm and shot the bear dead inside the home.

Both individuals had numerous bites and injuries from the attack. They were treated for their injuries and released to go home.

The bear was an adult female and appeared to have one cub that was seen running off as the bear had charged the house. The Wisconsin DNR also responded and took possession of the bear for testing.

Black bears are usually the least aggressive of native bear species in North America. According to the National Park Service, there are about 800,000 black bears living in the United States. The odds of a black bear attacking a human being is about 1 in 2.1 million, this is due to the bear’s generally timid nature especially around humans. On average there is less than one fatal bear attack incident reported in the United States each year.

While generally wanting to avoid humans, things change if the bear feels that it or its cubs are threatened. The most common times of bear incidents involve animals such as dogs and their owners.

Mother bears seeking to protect their cubs are also at higher risk of attacking, although according to the North American Bear Center even these incidences are rare when compared to other types of bear species.

Bear are considered common in Taylor County and while they typically avoid humans in the wild, they, like most wild animals, are opportunistic feeders entering yards and destroying gardens, fields and bird feeders.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources suggests these tips for people if a bear is near your home or cabin:

• Wave your arms and make noise to scare it away.

• Back away slowly and seek a safe location where you can wait for the bear to leave.

• When scaring a bear away, make sure it has a clear escape route; never corner a bear.

• If you encounter a bear while in the woods, stay calm and do not approach the bear.

• Never approach a sow with cubs.

• For your safety, do not attempt to break up a fight between your pet and a bear.

According to the DNR, black bears are naturally cautious animals that normally avoid contact with people for their safety, but conflicts between people and bears can arise. Additionally, bears can quickly learn to associate humans with food when food sources are available.

If a bear finds food, such as bird feed or garbage near your home or cabin, it will likely return for more. Bear visits are more likely to stop when food is no longer available. Bears will periodically check sites where food was once available, so it may take several days to weeks after a food source has been removed for a bear to completely discontinue visiting food sites.

It is important to make sure these tasty food sources are hidden from bears at all times of the year, but it’s especially important in warmer months when bears are more active.

Follow these steps to avoid attracting black bears:

• Do not knowingly feed a bear.

• Completely remove bird feeders, even during daytime hours – Bears are active during the day and may cause problems even if the feeders are out only during that time.

• Clean areas where bird feeders were located so that accumulated deposits of spilled seed are removed.

• Reduce garbage odors by rinsing food cans before putting them in covered recycling containers or garbage cans.

• Keep meat scraps in the freezer until garbage day, and if possible, keep garbage cans in a closed building until the morning of pick-up.

• Be sure to lock commercial dumpsters.

• Keep pet food inside or inaccessible to bears even during daytime hours.

• Keep grills and picnic tables clean.


Chad and Lacey Liske of Medford received injuries after this bear entered their home and began to attack them. Chad Liske was eventually able to use a firearm to kill the bear before it got further into the home where the couple’s children were sleeping.SUBMITTED
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