WATCH: Tiny Cat Chases Giant Bear Away From New Hampshire Home

There’s been a lot of bear activity in New England this summer. And with more humans coming into their path, New Hampshire Fish and Game bear expert Andrew Timmins had some pretty crucial advice.

In addition to removing a common lawn ornament until at least December, he urged Granite Staters to heed these words:

“I do need to mention dogs…Bears do not come into yards and chase dogs and go after dogs. But what can happen is you have an aggressive dog that will chase the bear, one of two things may happen: that bear may climb a tree, or the bear may kind of square off with the dog and challenge the dog. When we have issues between bears and dogs, it’s when the dog acts aggressive and goes after the bear. And then the bear turns around and tries to dominate the dog and chases the dog. And what usually happens is…once a dog feels like it’s being chased or scared, it runs right back to the owner. So then suddenly, you have a charging bear coming after a dog that’s now hiding between its owner’s legs.”

So, the next time a bear’s in your yard, hold onto your dog and tell your cat to have at it!

While not necessarily recommended, that handled things in one New Hampshire town, as reported by WMUR and seen in this video:

That was a Maine Coon named Bruno scaring off a bear in Thornton. It’s just the latest in a string of recent (and often hilarious) bear encounters in New England...