Mama bear euthanized after attacking woman near Asheville

A 75-year-old woman was attacked by a bear near her home in the mountain community of Swannanoa on Tuesday, newspaper The State reported.

The North Carolina Wildlife Commission said Toni Rhegness was treated at a hospital and released.

According to The State, Rhegness was walking her dog at around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday when she saw three bear cubs in a neighbor’s trash can. She shouted at the cubs, trying to scare them off, and her dog started barking. When she walked away, an adult female bear attacked her.

The wildlife commission trapped the bear along with the cubs over the weekend.

The adult bear was euthanized because of her behavior toward Rhegness, according to wildlife officials.

The cubs, who were healthy and old enough to live without their mother, were relocated.

The area where the woman was attacked is about 10 miles from Asheville, N.C.