Bears on the loose in the neighborhood what do I do?

Question

What's the best way to protect yourself from a bear and keep him from getting into trash? Do lights like motion lights and porch lights scare them? Do dog's barking scare them? Just wondering we have a neighborhood pest in the area and I'm the only one that he hasn't bothered but He may and I want to be prepared for him.

Answer 1

I don't know about bears, but I put ammonia on my trash and no animal comes near it!

good luck.

Answer 2

The only way to keep them out of the trash is to have a bear proof trash can.  We get bears in our yard all the time..we have a dumpster but we put a large steel grate over it that the bears cannot move.  It allows us to still throw our trash away, but it keeps them from reaching the trash. We also avoid throwing out a lot of our leftovers until the day trash will be collected so it does not just sit outside smelling and attracting bears.  Our neighbor has 3 dogs that run loose on the property and they chase the bears away all the time.  The bears are really not very scared of them..I think they just find the dogs annoying and try and avoid them..but would readily attack them if the bear felt threatened by them.

Answer 3

Motion Lights can help..probably not the only thing you should rely on.

Barking dogs tend to upset Bears though....and if it's a Grizzly or Black Bear especially....you might very well just anger the animal instead of scare it away.

Not putting food in your garbage helps (food down the disposal or if possible using it as a fertilizer would be better for now...for you and all of your neighbors in the imidiate future) because if youl limit the food source for the bear...the bear is more likely to move on.

If the bear is getting around areas where children play though...it is probably a good idea to call animal control (911) and have the bear removed. If at all possible they will tranquilize the bear and move him/her to a wildlife santuary where the bear can roam free away from people.

Your issue maybe bigger than simply getting into the trash, it might end up being a safety issue. Be careful if it does attack. If the bear is a brown bear....lying down in the fetal position will save your life, but for a black or grizzly...the only thing you can do is run like h**l and try to get up high and on a structure the bear can't climb or knock over. (the roof of your house especially).

I hope this helps.

Answer 4

Don't put FOOD in your trash.

Answer 5

It sounds like you live in a sub rural or rural area. Check with your local authourities. If this has been an ongoing problem, they will have the best information for you.

Answer 6

Hi.  Motion lights will work somewhat if the bear is not very hungry.  If they are hungry (from lack of natural food) or habituated to humans, motion lights do not work.  Some bears will be deterred by barking dogs, but by no means all bears.  Bring in your bird feeders at night (if you have them).  Store your barbecue in a secure place.  Feed your pets inside or only give them only as much as they will eat in one sitting and store their food inside.  If you have ground level windows, keep them closed.  Only put your trash out the morning of trash pickup or get a bear proof trashcan (you can make your own by simply using tie-downs to wrap the can).

      If you encounter a bear, put your arms up and say "hey bear" loudly a few times and casually back away from it (look big, make noise, and move away).  If you are really worried, you can carry bear spray (glorified pepper spray).  

       If it really ends up being a nuisance, call the local wildlife agency and see if trapping and relocation or some type of deterrent (like nail boards, electric fencing or mats, pepper spray barrels, rubber buckshot, etc.) are an option.

      If a bear is rewarded with lots of calories from foraging in trash (or houses), it will quickly become a problem bear.

Answer 7

well keep ur trash picked up if you dont have bear proof garbage cans put them inside, because once the bear gets into them it will continue to come back possibly resulting in injury or death to someone or death to the bear and you dont want that on you concence.

keep windows and doors shut and locked, they are intelligent animals and know how to use doors and windows.

barking dogs can actually attract bears its been studied walking with dogs in bear country then the dog starting to bark at a bear it sees may cause the bear to attack, as its trying to defend itself or its territory a kill or possibly its cubs.  

bears are huge compard to dogs so it would make short work of a dog, wolf packs sometimes back down to male grizzlies.

Answer 8

Put the trash into your garage until trash day then take it out in time to get loaded up.