Animal trainer mauled to death by bears in Montana

Animal trainer mauled to death by bears in Montana
Animal trainer mauled to death by bears in Montana

Stock photo: Getty


An animal trainer was mauled to death while cleaning the pen of two 500-pound brown bears in Montana.

Benjamin Cloutier, 24, was found by the head trainer, Demetri Price, in the enclosure at the Animals of Montana centre.

Mr Price said it was unclear whether Mr Cloutier was conscious when he was mauled by two bears, called Griz and Yosemite.

There were no defensive wounds on Cloutier's hands or arms, and he did not use the bear spray he was carrying.

According to Fox News, Price said that, although the bears were responsible for Cloutier's death, he did not believe it was an attack.

"I believe, given all things accounted for, that (Cloutier) was somehow rendered unconscious, whether it be he slipped and hit his head or something else" Price said. "The bears we believed killed him, but we don't believe it was an attack scenario."

Gallatin County Sheriff Brian Gootkin confirmed the fact there were no defense wounds, but said there was also no way to prove Cloutier was unconscious when the attack began.

He said: "The body had been attacked so fiercely, there were so many injuries that there was no way - that's why we're not going to speculate."

He did say, however, that it was clear Cloutier died of bite and claw wounds that hit major arteries.

Animals of Montana provides captive-bred animals for films and photography shoots, including bears and lions.

When Price, who was the first person to find Cloutier, arrived at the scene, one of the bears, called Griz, would not step away from the body, and did not respond to bear spray.

Mr Price was forced to shoot the animal dead to be able to get to Mr Cloutier, who had already passed away when reached.

Talking about the difficult decision to put Griz down, Price told ABC News: "Griz and Yosemite look like they have been involved in the mauling. At the time we found our trainer, Griz had a grip on him. This was a life and death situation where I was putting my safety at risk while trying to save our trainer, whom we suspected might still be alive. Our initial abating techniques failed and destroying Griz was our last resort to retrieve our trainer in the safest way possible.

He added: "We suffered a double loss. We lost a very valuable trainer, tragically, and we lost one of our most precious bears. We invested in Griz hours and hours of training and love and care."

Benjamin Cloutier's death, which has been listed as accidental, is under investigation by the sheriff's office and the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, whose public information officer Andrea Jones told ABC News: "We are the ones who issue licenses for facilities like Animals of Montana to keep a wild animal like a grizzly bear captive.

"From the way it looks, the trainer and the facility did not violate any of our licensing rules and regulations at the time of the incident. The man was operating within the normal business hours and met all the regulations involved in his activity."

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