Second visit in just under a week and a half of a decent sized black bear in the middle of the night, not afraid of my dogs and certainly not afraid of the one that was a foot away snarling and the crazy lady telling him to drag his butt out of there. Estimate his size around 300 pounds and around 5 ft tall on his hind legs. Yup he stood up to look at me better.
Nuisance when they destroy your property more than once or harm your family or dogs. otherwise, live and let live. However, bite me or tear up my stuff more than once......
When I lived in bear country, a bear was considered a nuisance by me if he decided to enter anything other then a burn barrel. If a bear does not loose interest when ALL the food sources are taken away , you may have a problem. If you continue to feed animals of any kind or leave trash around he will continue to visit. Just because he is not afraid of a dog or stands up to see you better does not necessarily mean he is dangerous or even destructive. He may just be curious or knows there are goodies around and is trying to locate them by smell. That being said , I never really had any one bear be much hassle. We had one get on back porch and paw at screen window ,he was bigger and I scared him off and was never a problem again.
We had a small black bear steal our lunch meat when on a hunting trip in Alaska. I had a black bear tag as well. We just decided to chase him away pretty far from camp.
It was comical to watch him run away with a family pack of ham in his mouth. It wasnt funny to be out of lunch meat for the rest of the trip.
I prefer to try to discipline them. But if they get too comfortable after discipline, you have to elevate the punishment. Hopefully it doesnt involve letting the air out of them. But if it was near my house with my young boys around, I would probably be more inclined to put some bird shot on his rear end on the first go around. After that, time to get the tractor out.
Black bears are typically afraid of people. If you come out the door banging pans and he walks away, you have a bear who either lost his fear of humans, or a bear who is moving toward being a predatory bear. They typically aren't fearful of dogs on chains and unless the dogs are coming after the bear they aren't going to be concerned frequently. I'd certainly have a rifle on hand, you have a problem bear, best case scenario. You may have a bear that is sizing things up to determine how easy a dinner there is there, hard to tell if he sees the dogs as dinner or possibly you. If you come out banging the pans and he doesn't take off, shoot him. Especially if you are in fear of him coming after you, or going after your dog. The last part is the law. Hard to prove you aren't in fear if the bear is in your yard. If you have a license and a bear tag, you get to keep everything and have a choice of meals for you (or the dogs).
We had a small black bear steal our lunch meat when on a hunting trip in Alaska. I had a black bear tag as well. We just decided to chase him away pretty far from camp.
It was comical to watch him run away with a family pack of ham in his mouth. It wasnt funny to be out of lunch meat for the rest of the trip.
I prefer to try to discipline them. But if they get too comfortable after discipline, you have to elevate the punishment. Hopefully it doesnt involve letting the air out of them. But if it was near my house with my young boys around, I would probably be more inclined to put some bird shot on his rear end on the first go around. After that, time to get the tractor out.
Second visit in just under a week and a half of a decent sized black bear in the middle of the night, not afraid of my dogs and certainly not afraid of the one that was a foot away snarling and the crazy lady telling him to drag his butt out of there. Estimate his size around 300 pounds and around 5 ft tall on his hind legs. Yup he stood up to look at me better.
Ignore him or lay in wait?
When they start listening to Justin Bieber...time to put him down.
If it comes back again it's probably associated people with food rewards. We had a crazy old lady feeding a few black bears a couple miles away, one decided it wanted more and broke into her house and killed her. Once they loose their fear of people, they need to be dead.
Maybe time to let the dog off the leash. Dogs are WAY quicker than bears, it's really rare that a bear actually gets a lick in on a medium to large size dog.
My grandfather and I hunted bear with dogs for just over a decade and he had been doing it for 40 years before that. In all that time, he had one dog get injured from a bear (and the dog did get pretty tore up). It was a very unlucky thing, one dog was squaring off and the other dog Blue actually stepped right into a claw strike. But I had seen Blue take on blackies several times before. Once it ran right up between a bears legs, inverted and latched onto the bears neck...that was quite spectacular (what an awesome dog Blue was).
Before I killed it, I'd be calling game wardens to see if there's a chance of relocation. Just don't like seeing animals killed unless it's really necessary. I'm a big lover of bears...but people always come first.
Look at the bright side. When I moved into my freshly built house in Arkansas, I had been there for just under 2 months when a Sheriff's deputy swings by to warn me there's a 600lb tiger on the loose...WTF???
Since you have a tag I would suggest you fill it out. Lots of things to eat this time of year, like fawns, so that bear should be somewhere else. It may be sick or just goofy. We only have bear season in November here in PA.
Natural Resources tells us we should try to live in harmony with the bears. I let them try to harmonize with a 405 grain bullet out of my 45-70 after they damage my property.
Bad idea. Relocated bears either return in short order or are killed causing a problem somewhere else.
Kill it and eat it.
That's not true. Sure it does happen, but that's not the norm, it's the exception. At least that's not true for the places I've lived. I've never lived anywhere that had more bear relocations than Lake Tahoe, and the vast majority go on to have normal lives elsewhere. It comes down to where the bears are relocated. If you move them 5 miles down the road to another thickly populated place, well then yeah; it's going to remain a problem bear. But the bears in Tahoe are taken at least 100 miles away and rarely are they ever a problem again.
I'm with Ironbender on the kill it, eat it thought. Relocation rarely works and it's costly. Plus I'm off the road system not an easy place to have a relocation happen.
It's a nuisance when it eats all your porridge. I really like bears too, but another appearance that makes me think something could go wrong (my fault, his fault, nobody's fault...Richard Boone in "Big Jake") and he's dinner and a memory. If you decide to do it, don't hesitate, just do it. Best of luck, Annie.
Bad idea. Relocated bears either return in short order or are killed causing a problem somewhere else.
Kill it and eat it.
That's not true. Sure it does happen, but that's not the norm, it's the exception. At least that's not true for the places I've lived. I've never lived anywhere that had more bear relocations than Lake Tahoe, and the vast majority go on to have normal lives elsewhere. It comes down to where the bears are relocated. If you move them 5 miles down the road to another thickly populated place, well then yeah; it's going to remain a problem bear. But the bears in Tahoe are taken at least 100 miles away and rarely are they ever a problem again.
Wow! Just wow!
Let's spend thousands to move a bear from an area so over-populated the state has declared it a predator control area... and put it where? The next predator control area up the road? 100 miles is nothing to a roaming bear...
Why was he there? Is there a lot of loose dog food around?
If he is coming back for something in particular remove the something.
No extra dog kibble left out and if one dog doesn't eat all of his it's given to one who will finish it up. Dogs don't get raw bones this time of year either, I don't feed birds and no fish spawning yet.
Hi Elf! Toss a couple of shots into the air to see if he takes off! If not, bag him and tag him!
Shots were fired last night, he took off and I really hope he stays gone but not confident he will remember to stay away. Also had one of my dogs almost nose to nose with him, I heard the bear whisper to the dog...You're a wuss...
Take a 12 gauge shell and uncrimp the end dump out #6 shot and fill with Rock salt Re-crimp and add a touch of hot glue. Spank the offender at close range and repeat as he departs. Of course from a safe OP Guarreenteed "trouble" bear repellant
You are putting yourself and your dogs at risk if he comes back and you dust him with rock salt. What if he doesn't like that little dose of medicine and attacks YOU? That shotgun loaded with salt isn't going to do you OR your dogs any good if things go south during the "education" process.
Take your rifle and your bear tag and dump him. A bullet to the ear is magic and in this case, you definitely need a DRT. BTDT.
Bad idea. Relocated bears either return in short order or are killed causing a problem somewhere else.
Kill it and eat it.
That's not true. Sure it does happen, but that's not the norm, it's the exception. At least that's not true for the places I've lived. I've never lived anywhere that had more bear relocations than Lake Tahoe, and the vast majority go on to have normal lives elsewhere. It comes down to where the bears are relocated. If you move them 5 miles down the road to another thickly populated place, well then yeah; it's going to remain a problem bear. But the bears in Tahoe are taken at least 100 miles away and rarely are they ever a problem again.
Wow! Just wow!
Let's spend thousands to move a bear from an area so over-populated the state has declared it a predator control area... and put it where? The next predator control area up the road? 100 miles is nothing to a roaming bear...
I'm shocked, a clueless post by Kevin? Tell me it isn't so?
A bear going through your property isn't an issue, but one hanging around would concern me. If you're in an area where you can legally take one with a tag, then it's a no brainer. Get a tag and punch it. It's funny how often bears are troublesome when you can't take one, and are nowhere to be seen when you can.
You are putting yourself and your dogs at risk if he comes back and you dust him with rock salt. What if he doesn't like that little dose of medicine and attacks YOU? That shotgun loaded with salt isn't going to do you OR your dogs any good if things go south during the "education" process.
Take your rifle and your bear tag and dump him. A bullet to the ear is magic and in this case, you definitely need a DRT. BTDT.
Yup no way am I pissing a bear off that may in turn take out his pissed offness on my dogs. It's shoot to kill, no hesitation because he's all cute and furry. Have the tag and live where I can harvest him, my dogs are very important to me.
He doesn't seem to want to just wander through, he wants to hang around. I've got moose, fox, beavers and in the past other bears that just wave as they pass and continue on, I'm good with that.
Yup no way am I pissing a bear off that may in turn take out his pissed offness on my dogs. It's shoot to kill, no hesitation because he's all cute and furry. Have the tag and live where I can harvest him, my dogs are very important to me.
He doesn't seem to want to just wander through, he wants to hang around. I've got moose, fox, beavers and in the past other bears that just wave as they pass and continue on, I'm good with that.
He doesn't seem to want to just wander through, he wants to hang around. I've got moose, fox, beavers and in the past other bears that just wave as they pass and continue on, I'm good with that.
Time to grab the first rifle you see and plunk one in his head.. uncle had to do that in wisconsin a few years ago, bear kept coming around destroying bird feeders, then on night it started on the chicken coop. he caught a round from a 444marlin to the ear. which opened him up like a ripe watermelon. Was a juvenile male.
The first visit is his last.....loaded 9.3 behind the door.....The little neighbor kids wait in front of my house for the school bus.....I just can't have a visiting bear nor loose sled dogs.
Some people have figured out that if they quit putting out birdseed in the spring then the bears will quit tearing down the feeders. Some people leave cat food and dog food all over and then wonder why bears come around to eat it.
Bad idea. Relocated bears either return in short order or are killed causing a problem somewhere else.
Kill it and eat it.
That's not true. Sure it does happen, but that's not the norm, it's the exception. At least that's not true for the places I've lived. I've never lived anywhere that had more bear relocations than Lake Tahoe, and the vast majority go on to have normal lives elsewhere. It comes down to where the bears are relocated. If you move them 5 miles down the road to another thickly populated place, well then yeah; it's going to remain a problem bear. But the bears in Tahoe are taken at least 100 miles away and rarely are they ever a problem again.
A year ago there was a sow with 2 or 3* cubs in Anchorage. After many chances, F&G was going to 'euthanize" them until our stupid governor got involved.
They were moved to a secure location that turned out to be the KP. That was figured out when they were shot about a week and a half later for engaging in the same behavior.
But Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Larry Van Daele noted other efforts to relocate bears in the past have failed and it's unlikely moving bears will become a common occurrence for the department.
But Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Larry Van Daele noted other efforts to relocate bears in the past have failed and it's unlikely moving bears will become a common occurrence for the department.
sounds like just a normal day at my house.we learned to live with bears 20 years ago.they've torn up my trash hundreds of times. my burn barrel has over time gone from a single barrel to 3 barrels chained together setting on a concrete slab with a 3in post in the center to keep them from being rolled away. i also drilled the concrete and dropped foot long rebar in the holes so they can't pick them up.bears are smarter than you think. most here are not afraid of humans .
Sort'a have a live and let live mindset about this. They live somewhere else, they live. Try to move in with me, they die. Have a bit of experience with the Florida version...they aren't cuddly Disney characters. Never saw any good come out of having black bears hanging around residential neighborhoods.
If you ever have pee'd on a tourists picnic basket you might be a nuisance bear.
If the garbage man calls you by name you might be a nuisance bear
If you take time from your law practice to keep trolling the campfire with anti Trump threads you might be a nuisance bear.
If you frequent the classifieds ask dozens of questions about an item make an offer but then delay paying with numerous money problems and family medical issues you might be a nuisance bear
If you can't write a intelligent political thread on the campfire without using 15 cuss words and / or the N word or can't refer to a political figure without using a derogatory nickname and generally coming across as a smart mouth junior high brat, you might be a nuisance bear
Interesting read all the way through. Most of us don't like to put down a nuisance bear, which is a revealing underlayer among hunters. If the bear comes back, you got it to do.
I've killed one nuisance bear and my son killed one in his back yard. I remember being a little angry at the bear for “making” me kill it. My bear kept hanging around the neighbor kids bus stop and following them home, so all the dads for a mile or two around were keeping an eye out for it. I happened to run across it minding its own business a few hundred yards from the bus stop and like other folks in the area, had a rifle in my rig for such an encounter. Skinny youngish boar with a ratty cinnamon hide.
Son's nuisance hung around the swing set for his kids in the back yard and after 8 hours and running it off twice he applied a .338 to its head to keep it from running off and dying in a neighbor's yard. It was a sleek, fat, healthy good sized boar. Both legal, with tags in open season, tags we had rather not used that way.
Killing it and killing it soon, before it does real damage becomes the responsible, grown-up thing to do as you know, Elf, and handle well.
I guess preserving a genetic fluke like an albino or 'blue' bear could warrant relocation.
Otherwise, how could relocating a black bear in AK be other than a PR stunt? Maybe if I lived in the bush like Elf I could live with it as a novelty. Maybe not. Dogs complicate things.
Then again, remember the "Bear Eats Kayak" video ...
Think I talked myself into a bearskin here. Easiest hunt ever.
Oh the Bear eating the kayak video....Bawhaaaaaaa.. I remember that one.
Dogs make it a bit more interesting and though I don't keep their food outside I do store it inside and can't even imagine the mess Mr Bear would make if he decided to come in.
Yep, it is bear season, so I've got my double barrel shotgun out. What I do is cut a couple of shells at the crimp and dump the shot out. I put one shell in each chamber, then dump in an ounce and a half of dried beans into each barrel and tamp some newspaper on top of them. I aim for the aft end of the bear to avoid hitting an eye and let him/her have it. That seems to run them off right well -- I've never had one come back for a second dose.
But Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Larry Van Daele noted other efforts to relocate bears in the past have failed and it's unlikely moving bears will become a common occurrence for the department.
But Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Larry Van Daele noted other efforts to relocate bears in the past have failed and it's unlikely moving bears will become a common occurrence for the department.
But Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Larry Van Daele noted other efforts to relocate bears in the past have failed and it's unlikely moving bears will become a common occurrence for the department.
Any bear that doesn't jello away from you at warp speed is a potential problem. I would get some Counter Assault immediately, some bean-bag shotgun rounds if you see any more bear after spraying them with the whiz. After the beanbag, get a kill permit.
Any bear that doesn't jello away from you at warp speed is a potential problem. I would get some Counter Assault immediately, some bean-bag shotgun rounds if you see any more bear after spraying them with the whiz. After the beanbag, get a kill permit.
He's debating as to wether he wants to die or not, he's in the neighborhood the dogs have let me know. He just hadn't showed his furry face in the off limits zone yet.
Elf: Good evening to you, here's hoping that there's been no unwanted gunfire in your life thus far tonight.
It's been interesting/educational to read the responses from folks in different areas if nothing else Elf, so thanks for stimulating that.
Here in very rural BC they've pretty much given up on relocating bears because the ones who become nuisance bears here will just be a nuisance bear in the next location they're moved to.
The reasons for that are myriad, but mostly it's because we've got a very high population density of black bears.
There was a fairly infamous issue a few years back as well when a relocated, collared BC nuisance bear ended up killing someone - in Alberta as I recall. Anyway it didn't reflect well on us so most nuisance bears that the CO's deal with are "relocated" into the regional landfill nowadays.
Oh lastly if you're not opposed to it, a local houndsman I know takes a bear a year just for dog food - they love the bones he says.
Good luck with your bear and all the best to you all this summer Elf.
Dwayne
PS; Actual phone conversation with the CO last time a bear was trying to break into our house.
I chuckled at your phone conversation, I think my phone conversation would be similar though they might remind me to be careful and not hit one of the dogs by accident.
I'm also in the camp of relocating would be costly and probably then create an issue for someone else. I live in an area that can't be accessed by car or truck, only ATV, foot, bicycle or dog sled and snowmachine in the winter. I couldn't imagine the circus it would be to get the 'stuff' needed for a relocation out here and then remove the bear. The bruin will meet his maker if he returns, I'm ok with that. When one lives as I do you have to be ok with some decisions you might need to make that some of the rest of the world would never understand. I may have to think about harvesting a bear for the dogs to have some extra good stuff to eat.
I may have to think about harvesting a bear for the dogs to have some extra good stuff to eat.
Were I you, the only thing that would make me hesitate would be the extra work involved in taking care of it, once it was dead. If you are like a lot of us, you have about all that you can take care of, without extra stuff piling on. miles
This one has been hanging around my sister's house lately here in Ct. This was yesterday at 10 in the morning after it got a drink in the pond. I've been seeing a lot more in this state in recent years. No fear of people, thats for sure.
i had a friend headshoot a bear years ago with a 22.250. mr bear was turned into barbeque and was quite tasty. I have been debating popping a bear since last falls deer season where i found out the residence of a black bear. haven't done it yet tho, trying to talk the daughter into it. probably would do it if i agreed to pick up the cost of the bearskin rug. I still think of you an that episode with the dog and the ice. A number of my goldens have come and gone since those days, but i have loved/love every one of them.
Bad idea. Relocated bears either return in short order or are killed causing a problem somewhere else.
Kill it and eat it.
That's not true. Sure it does happen, but that's not the norm, it's the exception. At least that's not true for the places I've lived. I've never lived anywhere that had more bear relocations than Lake Tahoe, and the vast majority go on to have normal lives elsewhere. It comes down to where the bears are relocated. If you move them 5 miles down the road to another thickly populated place, well then yeah; it's going to remain a problem bear. But the bears in Tahoe are taken at least 100 miles away and rarely are they ever a problem again.
I grew up where those bears were often relocated. Not heavily populated, but some people live there. My Grandpa shot one on his front porch, as he was in the house and the bear was on the porch. One of his good friends had a majority of his apple orchard destroyed by bears climbing in the trees to eat the apples. So yea, relocating doesn't cause an issue when they are relocated away from you!
I still think of you an that episode with the dog and the ice. A number of my goldens have come and gone since those days, but i have loved/love every one of them.
Sure is a day I'll never forget and I quietly thank all of you kind people everyday, for all that you did for me. Still have a stitch left in one of my pinkies.
Smells of dog food anyway. Hard to eliminate that if you have a team as Elf does. A bear is a NOSE!
Elf- if you don't want to kill/eat as a first option, nail it at close range with bear spray.
If that doesn't work - go to Mike's option. Bear ain't bad...
Not on my 5- option - but decent.... I take one every 4-5 years, and I'm out....
So true about the dog food, I've got a couple that flip their dishes all the time but then eat it, I'm sure the smell is still there.
Shoot it is my decision me thinks, there's a few people who have offered to take the meat if my hands if I don't want it..I've had bear before not up there at the top of my list but hey I should at least give it a try once in a while..right?
Thanks for the info on sled dog rides. Now I understand why you have a bear problem, you must go through tons of dog food. I don't have a dog but in the Spring I normally have a small bear walk through the yard. Our hunting season is fall only. I think the neighbors must kill everything they see. They seem to love sunflower seeds. Happy Birthday!
Smells of dog food anyway. Hard to eliminate that if you have a team as Elf does. A bear is a NOSE!
Elf- if you don't want to kill/eat as a first option, nail it at close range with bear spray.
If that doesn't work - go to Mike's option. Bear ain't bad...
Not on my 5- option - but decent.... I take one every 4-5 years, and I'm out....
So true about the dog food, I've got a couple that flip their dishes all the time but then eat it, I'm sure the smell is still there.
Shoot it is my decision me thinks, there's a few people who have offered to take the meat if my hands if I don't want it..I've had bear before not up there at the top of my list but hey I should at least give it a try once in a while..right?
Cook it so the fat drips away, on a rack or grill. It's much better that way.
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