What a day!!! Any bear ideas??

Anonymous Poster · Jun 6, 2003

It snowed yesterday (It all melted today). I woke up this morning and it was 32.7 degrees. It did
make it to the low 50s today and then this afternoon a front roared through and the temp dropped from
52 to 46 in about 5 minutes.

On top of that the wife opened the door from the house to the garage and came face to face with
a bear eating the dog food. She screamed and slamed the door he slowly walked out and has hung aorund
the house for hours now trying to get back to the food. Nothing fazes this thing! 3 95 lb dogs barking
wildly barely registered. Numerous .22 shots was hardly noticed (Not shooting at the animal, just around
him). The most effective method was throwing sticks at the thing. Since I am not a hunter, does anyone
have any suggestions for encouraging this critter to move on?? He already has a tag in his ear and if I
call on him they WILL put him down.

bmac · Jun 7, 2003

I'm not a hunter either, but my guess is that now that he knows where the chow is, he will be persistent / frequent guest. You may have no choice but to call the game warden. Be careful and watch out for your dogs.

Egon · Jun 7, 2003

If you got a hungry bear that knows where the food is it will be back. Given enough time it may even join you at the dinner table. A locked door would not provide much of a deterance..

Best call the wardens for peace of mind or play some heavy metal music for the bear.

Egon

r0GuE · Jun 7, 2003

Create a hole in an area that won't show and make your self a rug.

I'll buy a paw from you so I can make some tracks around my neighbors house and freak him out!! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

What are you gonna do man... I'd hate to kill a bear too... I like cute fuzzy things etc, but that thing can do a lot of damage (or injury) in no time flat. You gotta whack him (or let the state do it for you). You get more rug if you do it! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

Mrwurm · Jun 7, 2003

Wow! Some of you may remember my stories about raccons and skunks coming in my garage and eating cat food. A simple live-catch trap was the solution to my trouble. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Seriously, though, if this bear is not afraid of humans, then he is a serious threat to children (and unwitting adults). Trust the game wardens judgement on this one.

looch · Jun 7, 2003

It's unfortunate, but there's a reason why he already has a tag in his ear.

Anonymous Poster · Jun 7, 2003

Sure sounds like you made a mistake of building a house in bear territory. I guess the realtor forgot to check for easements owned by the bear.
Buy more dogfood, and don't leave it in the garage. Also keep the garage door closed after the bear leaves. If he can't smell another free meal, he will go elsewhere.

gerard · Jun 7, 2003

Have u considered loading some light load shotgun shells with rock salt and shooting it in the rump?? Oughta get it's attention without causing any permament damage.

RoyJackson · Jun 7, 2003

"Have u considered loading some light load shotgun shells with rock salt and shooting it in the rump?? Oughta get it's attention without causing any permament damage. "

All that will do is irritate the bear...not a good idea. If you're going to shoot at the critter, shoot to kill it, not just try to scare it or wound it.
Your game warden might try to capture it and haul it many miles away or, he might shoot the critter.
You sure don't want it feeling your home is part of it's turf.
I'm a shooter, but not a hunter. Fortunately, my only wildlife problems have been groundhogs and an occasional deer or two. I keep a 12 gauge shotgun handy for the groundhogs. I use a light game load, but I do keep 00 buckshot shells close at hand too...just in case.

If you don't want to go that route....and since you're not a hunter or shooter, I don't reccomend it, just keep your dog food and any other edible stuff (garbage, don't cook outside) inside. Eventually, the bear will go where there is food available. Don't let your dogs outside without supervision, or keep them in a run. To the bear, they're food too.

If you want to live in a rural area, you really want to have a gun handy, and know how to use it.