Bear?

[BrokenolMarine]

Tina walked the little westie out to do her business a few minutes, and Princess Fiona froze at the bottom of the ramp and just stared at the shadows in the driveway. We live on nearly fifteen acres, in the boonies, and it's dark out here. The ten pound scooby snack started to growl softly... But wouldn't move. (I have told Tina over and over to take the big Mag Light sitting on the counter by the door when she steps out after dark, but....) No

One of the shadows... A big one... ... Stomped it's foot and turned to shuffle away. . Holy Crap.. Shadows have feet?
Oh, they do when they at full grown bears. The westie beat Tina back to the porch... and was waiting at the door. For the rest of the night, any noise at all and she was up and growling. Ice Machine dropped ice. GRRRRR. Relay kicked to start the AC... GRRRR. Vents creaked as they warmed up after the AC cut off. EARS popped up and she was ON Guard. Woof.

[BrokenolMarine]

I will pull the cards on the Game Cams we use for security around the farm in the morning and see if he wandered in range. It would be pretty cool to have a pic or two of the big fella. We have been pulling a LOT of pics of deer, coons, possum, a bobcat or few.. but no bear these last few years. Ever since I worked that year or so at Fish and Game before I started with State Police, and learned what NOT to do to attract them to the farm. I was amazed at the things folks do that keep them on the Bear's Rotation.

[BigAl52]

Ya I dont blame the dog Id be growling to with a 44 mag in my hand

[clovishound]

Funny, we had some guy on my woodworking forum had the same thing happen to him.

[daytime dave]

Very cool Marine. We were at camp last week and I noticed orange signs along the roadway that goes for miles into the wilderness. It warned of increased bear activity.
I may have to hunt bear up there this year if I get a chance. Probably won't though.

I hope you, Miss Tina and the dogs stay clear of the bear!

[BrokenolMarine]

I swapped the game cam cards, and downloaded the videos. A dozen on the front yard cam, thirty or so from the lower pasture stream cam. Lots of deer, a number of fox, a few of coons. No bear or possums. No bobcats.

Tina talked to the neighbor last night, and he advised the bear has been hanging around his livestock for a couple weeks. The fish and game website warns it's breeding season.

[markiver54]

Unfortunately, my game cams are up at the cabin.
On three occasions in the last week, our shepard hooks with bird feeders have been mashed over flat. The first visit is the only one I saw him/her coming from across the street. Big one!, probably 250 to 300.
Kinda crazy, as we live 4 blocks from down town.

[North Country Gal]

Good post. Thanks. When we get a new neighbor moving in, we take the time to educate them on how NOT to create a bear nuisance. I always point out that once a bear becomes a problem, it's a bear problem for all of us. I am sometimes surprised when I see just how ignorant or just plain stubborn people can be on this issue, though. Now and then, it really is a bear problem when we get a truly grouchy bear in the neighborhood, but it's far more often a people problem. Our north woods wouldn't be our north woods without the bears and all the other wildlife. It's one of the big reasons we moved here and love it so.

[BrokenolMarine]

People just don't listen, because the don't want to. They like to apply human logic to bears.
One woman was told to take up the salt lick she put out for the deer, and not to leave her dogs food out all day, feed him then take the bowl up.

"Well, the salt lick is for the deer, and not bears, it says deer lick right on the package. As for the dog food, they don't call it bear food do they? Duh."

The game warden just shook his head and left.

[JEBar]

"Well, the salt lick is for the deer, and not bears, it says deer lick right on the package. As for the dog food, they don't call it bear food do they? Duh."

all I can think of is HERE'S YOUR SIGN ..

[BrokenolMarine]

Oh... Working there was an eye opener.
The Conservation Police Officers (The new title for VA Game Wardens, since they got real tired of hearing, "You aren't really even the Po'lice anyhow." ) were actually pretty funny, and had some great stories.

I often was kept laughing so hard, I literally had tears rolling down my cheeks.

[cooperhawk]

We don't normally have bears south of the Twin Cities but a few years back the high water drove them out of the river bottoms
of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers and we had one cruising our back yard. Tore down our bird feeders as well as all the
neighbors feeders. Finally the DNR disposed of it.

We were up on the Chippewa Flowage in northern Wisconsin a while back with some cousins RVing and fishing. We caught quite a few fish
and cleaned them at our camp site. The skins and scales were wrapped up in newspaper and put them in the supposedly bear proof trash cans
at the site, but my Wife decided she didn't want them so close to our RV and said she would walk them down the the lodge and the dumpster.
I pointed out that she may encounter a nice bear who would inquire if those were indeed fish guts in that paper sack. She didn't go.
Later a bear came into our camp but when our black lab began growling it ran off.

The next morning the Wife walked down to the lodge to get some coffee and met a woman who was all excited that she had hand fed a
bear just minutes before. By now the Wife recognizes an idiot when she sees one.

[Mistered]

and met a woman who was all excited that she had hand fed a bear just minutes before.

The abject stupidity of some people is beyond comprehension.
The sad part is when they find her partially eaten body the bear will somehow be 'identified' and killed - kind of like what happens in Yellowstone when idiots approach bison too closely and then are aggressed or injured by them.
I just saw a news story this morning and it was reported our DFW had to shoot several bears in Oregon as they had lost their fear and exhibited signs of having been fed by humans.
There have been cases of bears entering houses or garages and a dog was killed in one instance.

[markiver54]

Unfortunately, as they say, " A fed Bear is a dead Bear "

[Mistered]

Along with the incredible idiocy of hand feeding something as potentially dangerous as a bear is when the 'feeder' runs out of food.
The bear is not going to just happily lumber off. It does not appreciate the feeding from a human like say a dog does. it's going to want more and will become aggressive to get more.
I remember as a kid growing up in So Cal and remembering the warnings from the rangers in Yosemite National Park NOT to feed any animals - especially the deer as many would do this and a few had been injured by aggressive deer.
Heck the bears had already overrun the place and were a real problem even back then.

[RanchRoper]

Around here the saying goes...a fed bear is a dead bear.

Enjoy 'em but leave them wild.

[BigAl52]

Like I said in a previous post feed them a 44. Or leave them alone

[fortyshooter]

Kind of hoping this one might come back thru again. Maybe it takes him a year to make his rounds!
https://youtu.be/H9eEOr-nZoo

[clovishound]

We have those around here who insist on feeding the gators to be able to get a close look at them.

Then these gators start losing their natural fear of people, and associating people with food.

I've been in the receiving end of the attention of one of these gators, and was not amused. He didn't hurt me, but had I been a child, or a small individual, it may well have ended differently.

[BrokenolMarine]

When my middle daughter was in the Air Force in Louisiana, the base had a real problem with Gators. There were signs everywhere warning folks NOT to feed the Gators but of course, the idjits among them did. The Base Commander finally put out a Base Order saying anyone caught would be subject to Punishment under HIS authority rather than base regulations, including eviction from base housing, if they were residents. It was so bad that small dogs and most of the cats were disappearing on a regular basis.