Herdsman kills bear with bare hands

A shepherd allegedly killed a brown bear with his bare hands when it charged him as he tended his flock.

Blazo Grkovic gave the beast a ‘bear hug’ and strangled it as it swiped him with its paws and tried to bite him.

‘I grabbed it round the throat and squeezed and squeezed until it collapsed,’ the Bosnian said.

The 48-year-old, from a mountain region near Foča, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, went on to describe how he fought close up with the animal.

He admitted it was a tough battle and he was lucky to get out alive. ‘It bit me, and I hit it until it died.

I have injuries everywhere, especially in my left arm where he bit me twice or three times,’ Mr Grkovic said from his hospital bed.

After dispatching the bear, the shepherd managed to call his brother, who turned up with an ambulance.

The brave farmer was treated in hospital for cuts