US teenage girl fights off mother bear to protect her pet dogs

A 17-year-old California girl has fearlessly confronted and shoved a bear that was swiping at her even more fearless dogs.

Surveillance footage shows a bear and its two cubs climbing down a backyard wall in Bradbury on the outskirts of Los Angeles on Monday.

The ursine intruders were soon confronted by Hailey Morinico's family dogs, who run up and start barking at the much larger animal.

READ MORE: Skier mauled by bear in Alaska 'plays dead' to survive

The video shows the mother bear swatting and swiping at the barking puppies, before the arrival of Hailey, who had been gardening.

The 17-year-old charged down the bear and shoved it off the wall.

"I run to see what they're barking at and it's not a dog — it's a bear," she told KTLA.

READ MORE: Bear filmed in hot pursuit of skier at Romanian resort

"I see the bear, it's grabbing my dog, Valentina, and I have to run over there. She's a baby.

"And the first thing I think to do is push the bear. And somehow it worked."

Hailey grabs the smallest of her dogs and the rest run to safety.

She sprained her finger and scraped her knee, but was otherwise unharmed.

And while she showed no fear when confronting a bear, her Instagram feed showed a different kind of anxiety.

"All the news stations want interviews and as an introvert…HELP," she wrote.

But she has sent out a message to all those who think her experience is representative of most bear encounters.

"Do not push bears," she said.

"Don't do what I did. You might not have the same outcome."

READ MORE: Nail-biting video shows brown bear following child on family hike