While little Mosca the Jack Russell terrier was being noisily killed by wolves earlier this month in Chugach State Park just above Anchorage, the dog's owner was hiking along a trail to Wolverine Peak unaware of what was going on because he was wearing headphones.
Hikers high on the 4,491-foot mountain clearly visible from Alaska's largest city said they heard a dog fight going on far below, but weren't sure what was happening.
"We heard this dog barking,'' one of them said. "This dog was just like going crazy.''
They were baffled as to the reason for the noise until after they met Brandon Ward on the trail yelling "Mosca! Mosca! Mosca!'' He told the hikers he was looking for his lost white dog. The dog, Ward told them, had run away.
"He didn't hear his dog run away,'' one of the hikers said. "He had headphones in. He didn't even hear his dog barking.''
Alaska wildlife biologists and others have been warning for years about the dangers of running in the wilds while listening to music on headphones.
"Use your senses to stay aware. No headphones!" proclaims the municipality's official "Bear Aware" website. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game three years ago eliminated an
entire pack at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson after those wolves
developed a taste for dogs. The biologists were concerned the wolves
might injure, possibly even kill, someone trying to defend a pet...more
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