There was a black bear in my driveway tonight!

[thefamilyflock]

This beautiful bear was sitting there eating the weeds next to my drive, not paying any attention to us.... What kind of trouble am I in for? Have you had bears after your chickens? Mine were outside on the lawn at the time!! I ran out in my bare feet to scoot them into the coop and run.

 

[PortageGirl]

Well, the run for sure won't stop it. The coop might, or it could tear the siding off the coop if it wants to...

Thing is, bears are pretty odd, and it may or may not be interested in the chickens. It may VERY well be more interested in the chicken feed, and will DEFINITELY be interested in any dog or cat food it can find, as well as any trash it can get to.

Get anything it might want, including the hens, any pets, any small livestock etc, out of sight, and as locked up as you can get it, and call Animal Control, or Fish and Game, or the Sheriff or all of the above and tell them about the bear. Even though it didn't actually threaten you or your animals, I'm sure they'd like to know that it is in your neighborhood and any small children or elderly people should be warned too.

 

[Dogfish]

Bears are wicked strong. An electric fence may slow them down, but maybe not. If they want to get in, they will. Check with your game dept on defending livestock from predators, and be prepared to take action if necessary.

A friend live in Ketchikan, AK. They got visits from a black bear named "Pinky" on a regular basis. Warren's home was where a stream met the salt water, right near a hatchery. They would haze the bear with a paintball gun, hence the name "Pinky." It worked for a while, but once it switched from fish to garbage, and wasn't scared of people, it got put down.

Hopefully an electric fence or some hazing with a paintball gun is enough, but only do so with sufficient back-up firepower.

 

[Mahonri]

BEAR!??!

I'll stick with coyotes and rattlesnakes.

 

[WalkingWolf]

With a bear you must be concerned with your family and your own safety first. Do not try to make friends with it get a air horn or paintball gun firecrackers and scare it away. If it shows back up with cubs do not leave the house call your game wardens they are extremely dangerous when they have young ones around.

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

I agree with portagegirl. Let your local wildlife official know that there is a bear in the area. Bears have individual personalities so there is no way to predict what they will do. They are also opportunistic feeders and will take advantage of an easy meal if your babies are out unsupervised. We make sure that our yard is not a bear attractant as much as possible. Garbage is kept in the garage until pickup night. Compost heap is in the woods away from the house and no food is put in it. My chickens are locked in their tractor every night and so far no visits from our local bear. If there is a good food supply for bears, they wont bother with you at the moment. Problems will arise in the spring and fall to late fall when food supplies become scarce. Electric fencing should help. We are looking into that ourselves to preempt any problems.

 

[NarutoTn]

time is short .if it is in your drive way than it can just get up closer and closer then it will harm your birds and other pets/livestock and if your are not careful it can get into your home and someone might get hurt.so call the animal people and get a gun to defend yourself/property.