Large cats and feral dogs can be surprisingly resilient. Many feral dogs also travel in packs. When defending yourself against an animal threat, you want to drop it with as few shots as possible, conserving more ammunition to worry about the rest of the pack if need be. If we are to achieve this, penetration is crucial. Make sure you have a good penetrating round such as, full metal jacket rounds, lead semi wad cutter, standard target shooting wad cutters, soft point etc. These rounds fly straight and penetrate deep giving you a better chance of survival and escape to safety. Hollow points are not typically recommended for larger wild animals as they may not penetrate deep enough to hit a vital organ. Knock them down? Sure. Piss them off? You bet. This could be very bad. (Although there are some special hollow points such as Hornady XTP that are made for hunting as well as personal defense.) Remember placement is key, so practice with these rounds as well as your defensive loads when you have some trigger time. When in bear country, magnum is the key word. While a 10 or 12 gauge slug would be great as would many rifles, they are not practical to carry. For bear country you would want a deep penetration round in a minimum of 357 Magnum, 10mm, 41 Magnum, but preferably 44 Magnum, 454 Casull, 460, 480 Ruger, 500SW. We also want the heaviest and fastest hard cast round we can find for penetration. This will give the best odds should a defense be needed. Something to consider, even in these larger calibers. Tests will show that less than 60% of Brown bears are stopped with handguns, and when successful it took at least four shots to stop the charging bear. I think it's quite a feat to be able to deliver a well placed shot into a charging bear, when fear, adrenaline and flashbacks of life are throbbing in your veins. Perhaps a more effective solution exists?
Albeit, if I was to fall in the 3 percentile that was unsuccessful with the stupid can of pepper spray, then my strategy would hypothetically go something like this. Although a bigger caliber would be better, more than likely, I would be stuck with an empty rattle can, and a Glock 20sf 10mm loaded with Buffalo Bore 220 grain hard cast Flat Nose. Sites previously filed down.
Hands down best knowledge and safety tip anyone can give is this... "Knowing where you are going and what type of animal threat there could be, and preparing for such is by far the best defense." Once you know that, choose the appropriate firearm or bear spray or other defensive tool for the trip. Know your surroundings and what you might encounter and be prepared. Remember, a firearm are not a miracle tool or a death ray Han Solo! They will not roast a marsh mellow, and certainly will not change a flat tire. Of course in a bind a 380ACP just might prove to be better than nothing, but when it comes to large wild animals, if you don't have the tools, don't attempt the repair. And beware, NEVER forget the chocolate and gram crackers. In my experience that could be even worse than a run in with Smokey the Bear. - Jeff | balllistics101
epilogue | camping and hunting ammo Hard Cast, Full Metal Jacket, Lead Round Nose, Jacketed Soft Point, Flat Point - These rounds are designed to penetrate deep and will be best suited to protect yourself against a four legger. Shooting a bear with a hollow point is not going to be effective. What we need to stop an animal this size and strong is deep penetration. We need to cause remote damage or hydrostatic shock. Hydrostatic shock is when the pressure and energy of the bullet effects a remote area other than the area penetrated by the bullet. For example a bear is shot in the shoulder, but the pressure and energy from the bullet is so great it renders damage to the brain of the animal. That is hydrostatic shock. When an animal is shot with such a round, they can die from hydrostatic shock even before they bleed out. Sometimes within 10-15 seconds. 9mm, 357 Magnum, 357 SIG, 10mm, 41 Magnum, 44 Magnum, 454 Casull, 460 SW, 480 Ruger and 500 SW rounds are very fast bullets and all capable of causing hydrostatic shock. These would be good protection weapons against smaller four leggers. While camping we should load rounds that penetrate deeper and are more likely to strike a vital organ. Or better a magnum round that is capable of inflicting hydrostatic shock.
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When camping or hiking, selecting a carry load is a totally different animal (pun intended) than when selecting a home 
Alternatively, 97% of bears are stopped with a 9oz. can of bear spray. Comparing the percentages, a firearm should actually be carried as a second line of defense should the bear spray prove ineffective. Yes that's right, Bear Spray. A lot of people react very weird when they here this. The ignorant ones will swear up and down that this can not be true, as any handgun is far better than pepper spray. This is because uneducated people think that a handgun is a death ray and shooting anything will deem you victorious. Do not believe these people, the statistics do not lie. When someone states something that starts with, "I think, ...." do yourself a favor and dismiss the claim immediately. "I think" is a huge gamble for something as important as your own life. There is no need to "think" you are correct, when the answers can be found with a simple google search. I am a believer in math, so "I know" that statistically the odds or survival will favor me should I choose the Bear Spray. Remember that pepper spray will be a hell of a lot more effective on a bear than a human. Why? Because their nose is wet. Smell is the bears sharpest sense. Scientists believe a bear can easily smell a carcass over 18 miles away. Shooting Bear Spray at a bear is the equivalent of you shooting it up your nose and into your sinuses. Moreover, it is a free country and people can use whatever stick, hand grenade or advice they choose, but heed this advice that was given to me by a friend who lived in Alaska. "If you are not going to carry Bear Spray along with your handgun, be sure you file down your front sights as smooth as possible. This way it won't hurt as much when the bear takes it from you and shoves it up your ass."