Another Urban Bear Incident

[FightingIrish]

This is the second time in the past month that bears have wandered into local populated areas. One of them was just yards from my office. The cute guy below was knocking on my bedroom door a couple of years ago. He was a cinnamon colored black bear just like today's news maker. I'm so happy that this latest incident turned out well.

Bear at Medford school tranquilized, hauled away
October 14, 2009

9:55 a.m. update: A 100-pound black bear treed at Lone Pine Elementary School in Medford this morning is on its way to the woods near Hyatt Lake.

The young male bear appeared to be healthy after Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist Mark Vargas tranquilized it and it dropped from a tree near the school's swing sets, Vargas said. Vargas said the bear was similar to one that drowned in Bear Creek in downtown Medford about three weeks ago after wildlife agents tranquilized it.



http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091014/NEWS07/910149996

[Ian David]

1. Why is that bear giving you the finger? n/t

[FightingIrish]

2. I thought it was a "claw bump"

[ljm2002]

30. C'mon, it was a "terrorist claw bump"! n/t

[joeybee12]

3. I defy anyone to say they DON'T want to hug that little bear....

....A-Door-able!

[FightingIrish]

5. We named him Stephen Colbear

He hung around the neighbor hood for two weeks. Anytime there's a bear incident we worry that it might be our little Stephen

[joeybee12]

6. Awww...the story just keeps getting cuter and cuter! n/t

[BoneDaddy]

28. Especially

when he is gobbling on your innards.

[vadawg]

29. rofl so succint and yet so true....

[TwilightGardener]

4. Awww. Not that I wouldn't be a little frightened. But he seems to be hoping for a cheezburger.

[JuniperLea]

7. So cute! So deadly!

While camping one year, we heard the familiar sound of a bear trying to open the bear-resistant trash bin near the outhouse... we continued to sit quietly by the fire... me with wok and chan in hand to make big noise... then we heard something that truly terrified us all!

"Look honey! Look at the bear! How cute he is! Look sweetie, look at the bear!"

I jumped up, wok and chan still in hand, to see this apparently mentally challenged young woman standing way too near the bear, with a baby (probably one or so) on her hip.

I scared the bear away, and I probably scared the hell out of the woman too. I'll spare you my diatribe... use your best DU flame war imagination... it was a jolly good tirade, no question:)

Hint: the term "bear bait" was used... and "fucking idiot" more than a few times:)

[vadawg]

8. yup they are only cute froma distance, close up they can easily kill

similar story to yours in that my son when he was three saw a baby bear when we were hiking and ran to hug it, i caught him and backed up carrying him with my glock drawn praying the mother wouldnt appear. she did and we looked at each other from about 100feet and then we both went our seperate ways. he still remembers the bear and how daddy had his gun out in case teh bear tried to eat him...

[joeybee12]

11. Try carrying bear spray instead...moer effective, less lethal...n/t

[vadawg]

13. yeah you carry bear spray, ill prefer something with a bit more lethality

id rather have my gun and not need it than need it and have bear spray. Sorry but i dont value the bear more than my kids or another human and have no problem euthanizing any animal that i deem a danger to myself or another...

[joeybee12]

18. You should stay out of the forest then...any one who understands wildlife

knows that most enocunters are avoidable and are not life-threatening...but carry your big gun and shoot away if it makes you feel like a man.

[vadawg]

20. lol mayby you didnt read where i actually backed off the baby bear with my son

but as i said as someone who lives with bears around, id rather have my gun and not need it than assume the fetal position and hope the bear plays nice...

[depakid]

12. If Daddy had shot that bear- he might not be here to talk about it...

All you'd likely have done was piss it off and get you mauled.

Try this instead (I know, less macho but much more effective):

[vadawg]

14. sorry i have euthanised enough wildlife including bears to know that my .40 cal is enough to put

one down,

[depakid]

16. And I've known a ton of old timers who would think you a fool for trying

Bullets can and do bounce right off their heads. None to bright to shoot at a bear with a handgun.

[vadawg]

24. but better to have at least that option in the worst case scenario

and 46 rounds can do a lot of damage :)

[depakid]

25. Just saying that there are much better options in bear country...

[vadawg]

26. yup having a heavier calibre rifle and the glock as back up if i read you right

:) i learned over the years that a pocket knife is better than bare hands and something that goes boom is better than a pocket knife

[joeybee12]

17. Wow! that must make you proud...

...most enocunters don't have to be lethanl, except for some gun-toting yahoo.

[vadawg]

27. yeah proud that i have to clean up when people dont realise that bears are wild animals

and then encourage them to come to their homes etc and then i have to clean up when they become a nuisance.

[TheWraith]

15. Unless that Glock was chambered in 12 gauge, you're lucky you didn't have to shoot it.

A good example, though, that bears really aren't interested in us unless we bother them.

[vadawg]

22. earlier this year i had to euthanize a large male and i used the 12 gauge slug

which i prefer to put them down, but i euthanised 2 smaller bears earlier with the glock. Its a shame but its because of exactly the behaviour of people encouraging them to associate humans and food that puts them in the situation..

[FightingIrish]

10. I've had a lot of close encounters with bears

We live on the edge of forested area and, when they get hungry, they come looking for food. Since my first face to face with one, I've done a lot of research on bears. I have the greatest respect for the fact that they are wild animals and very unpredictable. Black bears may be less predictable than grizzly bears. We have learned how to discourage their visits but we are not terrified when they do show up. They were on our land long before we were.

[sui generis]

9. dammit the bears in my neighborhood keep throwing pool parties

but they have fabulous drapes and landscaping.

[winyanstaz]

19. As the bees have died off a lot..so has the bear's food supply...

The bears that meander into civilization are mostly just hungry.
Usually a bear will avoid humans until they learn they can get food. Then they can be the pest extreme....

[FightingIrish]

21. They have photos of the incident up now

http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/misc?url=/_flash/gallery/gallery.html&Avis=MM&Dato=20091014&Kategori=MEDIA01&Lopenr=101409998&Ref=PH

[pipi_k]

23. Interesting, and probably sad as well...

Interesting because I live in (black) bear country and this is the first time in 14 years we have not seen a bear in our yard.

Sad because the poor critters are showing up in cities here too...humans are encroaching on the land of all sorts of animals and they have no place to live...or, if they do, they find food easier in the cities what with trash and garbage everywhere.