[RavenSong]

I live in the forest, literally. I live on private land within the Tahoe National Forest in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Northern California, right in the middle of the Mother Lode (Gold Rush country). I've lived here for 10 years now, so I've become accustomed to dealing with all sorts of wildlife: mountain lions (seems my land is on part of their territorial mating grounds); raccoons (hate 'em, they're natural-born killers and very sadistic in how they kill); possums (love 'em, they're actually very cute in their own way); foxes (like to keep out of sight, but I often see their tracks in the front yard); bobcats (I've only seen one, they avoid humans like you wouldn't believe); all sorts of birds...owls, eagles, ravens, crows, vultures. And BEARS, BEARS, BEARS.

I have encountered many bears since I've moved here. Almost all of them go off running as soon as I yell at 'em. Some even run away as soon as they see me, lol. I have had many different bears nose around my porches and look into my truck...enormous cinnamon-colored bears; mid-sized black bears; mama bears with their cubs. I've never had any problems with the bears, until lately.

I'm having a terrible problem with a bear. So are all my neighbors, and no one is quite sure how to handle this guy. This bear has a real attitude and absolutely no fear of humans. When I yelled at him a few weeks ago from inside the house, he came right up to the window and chuffed at me. The other day, I chased him off my porch. He started to run off, then changed his mind and turned back toward me. And charged me... Fortunately I somehow knew he was going to charge. His body language changed, and he started chuffing.

I was able to get back inside and shut the door. I called one of my neighbors, who came over with a huge shotgun. He fired it into the air twice (the blasts made quite a bit of noise). The bear ran away into the deep woods.

Does anyone have any advice at all about how to handle an aggressive bear? We're careful about not having any food outside or in our vehicles. When we feed our outdoor barn cats, we pick up the plates as soon as they're finished eating (about 15 minutes). I'm running out of ideas, and this big guy scares me, to be honest.

I'm really afraid I'm going to run into him when I'm out at the woodpile or when I go out to our barn. And I have a strong suspicion that he'd like to take a swipe at me...he just has that "look" in his eye.

[snow princess]

call your department of forestry/wildlife - sometimes they will come in and trap and relocate a bear that has no fear of humans.

ask if you can "legally" shoot what you feel to be an agressive bear in your area, although if one were charging me and I had a gun handy - I'd be shooting if it meant me or the bear

Keep in mind, if the bear chose to, it could knock your door down or break thru window and come in your home - they are extremely strong and if they smell food and are hungry they will go for it

[kakuehl]

The only problem with trapping a bear and moving it is that they tend to find their way back if they aren't moved far enough away. Shouldn't it be about time for them to hibernate?

[RavenSong]

Kathy, I live in the foothills, and the bears don't hibernate at this elevation. I think the bears up on the crest of the mountains hibernate, although they aren't even hibernating as long as they used to, presumably due to global warming. They had a lot of trouble with the bears up in Lake Tahoe last winter. They're losing their fear of humans up there and breaking into people's houses and cabins...

One of my neighbors works for the U.S. Forest Service, and even she's not quite sure what to do about this bear. Her husband is a big hunter, and he's saying that the bear is toast if he is still hanging around here come bear season.

I feel kind of bad for the bear. After all, we humans are encroaching on their territory. It's getting kind of crowded here in the Sierra, especially with retirees moving here from the Bay Area (San Francisco). But my feelings of sympathy fade away quickly when the big guy starts chuffing at me and moving toward me.

I agree with your statement of how relocation often doesn't work out. The same bears often do come back to the area where they were originally trapped. I've heard quite a few stories about prodigal bears coming home around here, lol..

[kakuehl]

We have lots of black bear in this area, but they do hibernate here (it is the "mountains" of PA). Several years ago there were five bears wandering the church camp (about a mile from my home). It was a challenging summer although black bear "rarely" attack. We had a mother with twin cubs, a half-grown male and an adult male. They never attacked anyone although they did occasionally rise up on their hind legs to face down a counselor attempting to throw away trash! Interestingly, they haven't been back (at least as overtly) since that summer. The game commissioner's advice to the program director who lived in a cabin with his family: don't keep any food in the house (not practical advice with a newborn!)

[stinky_kitty]

Wow that is really scary! Sorry I don't have any advice for you! We had a couple instances last year up here where campers were killed by bears.

[RavenSong]

Well, since the last time I posted about our scary bear problem, the big guy ate all of my neighbor's chickens, except for one. Most of the outdoor cats in the neighborhood are missing. He's torn a couple car doors off peoples' vehicles.

The big news is the big guy has met his Maker. He is now in Bear Heaven, doing whatever bears do on the other side.

Remember when I said my neighbor's husband would make toast of him if he became any more dangerous? Turns out my prediction was right...

At least I don't have to be scared out of my wits every time I go to the woodpile or barn now...

[kakuehl]

Yikes! I hope your neighbor is not in trouble with the law! I'm glad it's safe to go to the woodpile though.

[RavenSong]

Hi, Kathy...

Nope, my neighbor's not in any trouble with the game warden. The bear was attacking his dogs the other night, when my neighbor dispatched him. We're allowed here, in my neck of the woods at least, to kill bears and mountain lions if they're posing any real and direct threat to our livestock or domestic animals (or to humans).

People in the area were starting to really get worried about this bear attacking one of the neighborhood kids. There was something really "off" about his behavior. And he was harrassing everybody on a daily basis.

The game warden advised my neighbor off the record not to file an official report, even though he was within his rights to kill the bear. It's just that every time official reports get filed out here in the Sierra forests, we get all the "Save the Animals" people screaming in outrage from the safety of their living rooms in the San Francisco Bay Area. Law enforcement really doesn't want the hassle...

[quantum]

I'm glad you're feeling a bit safer Raven! I wonder what was up with him?

[RavenSong]

Quantum, I can't for the life of me figure out what was wrong with that bear. He just had absolutely no fear of humans at all.

I heard last year that they're having similar problems with some of the bears up in Lake Tahoe, which is about an hour away from my place. The bears were breaking into houses and cabins while the owners were inside. Needless to say, several of them were sent to Bear Heaven.

This bear was scary. And it's really sad 'cuz he was a beautiful animal, with one of the loveliest coats of fur I've seen. But he was too darn aggressive towards people. The way he was behaving, I'm positive he would have hurt a human soon. So part of me is sad that it had to happen, but another part of me is glad he's gone.

[Janeytwo]

Hey Raven!

Just catching up on this post. Yikes!!!

Though it ended badly for the bear, I'm glad you guys are safe.