Black Bear in front yard

“My wife saw a black bear in our back yard behind a boulder about an hour before dusk on Friday. I was out in the canoe. The family cat alerted us to it. She was in the screen porch (2nd floor) and came running in the house acting crazy. While in the house, she watched it walk through the woods on the side of the house and over a rock wall and into the front yard. It was looking for sunflower seeds. It finally left after the "guard dog" awoke and started barking, but it just had to have a quick scratch on a telephone pole by the dirt road first. Hopefully, the pictures will come out.

Last night the bear came back and I saw it. It sniffed at the bird feeders hanging high on a pulley system. It sniffed around for awhile and climbed a tree. Once again, the dog wasn't aware anything was going on outside. When I let him out right before bedtime on the leash, his nose went into high gear.

I guess I have to be careful and not just go out the front door without checking for bears first. I would take down the bird feeders, but really like having all the birds about.

I love living in NH. We've seen moose, black bear and all sorts of wildlife in the short time we've lived here.”

“Ski, just be careful! I don't want to have to come shoot and skin that barr just to get you out. I'd be like the huntsman zipping open the woof to get granny and Red Ridinghood out. LOL
I am a bird and wildlife lover. I had never thought about the seeds attracting bears! Glad you took time to share the incident. Hope to get to see those pictures. =)
Before I moved off our farm in Virginia we had a papa bear weighing in at over 500 lbs, a sow and three cubs who called our farm the core of their turf. I taught my kids to drive the truck in and out the 1/4 mile lane due to Mama and 3 cubs living in the cornfield long side the lane. We saw her and her babies in their all the time and I didn't want my cubs eaten by her! My youngsters lairned to drive and stayed safe on the way back in off the bus while I was working. It was right funny and a good solution to keep all concerned safe.”

“I only put birdfeeders out in the winter, otherwise the rest of the year they would become bearfeeders.”

“wow, so there are people around here who believe in bears, huh? ha!

yeah, there was like a dragon in my yard the other day. cool!”

“I was afraid lyra would read the thread about nutmeg.”

“well, i've never seen one...just thought i'd take the opportunity to be an idiot. LOL!

i've actually heard the nutmeg thing before. i used to have a roommate who did stuff like that all the time...he'd be like, "i'm going to do a whole lot of nutmeg, and it might be fatal!" wheeee!”

“bears are awesome but....better go and get some rubber slugs(for shotguns) and plug him a couple times next time you see him. it is a very bad idea to let them get used to visiting your place. it will get bolder and bolder......loud noises help too.”

“Yeah nothing like a big wooly friends hanging around.”

“If you were in NJ you could be charged for " storing attractants in a manner that resulted in the feeding of a black bear. They just charged the first people for violating this new law. Without a hunt, our bear population is exploding and there have been a number of bear/people 'interactions' already this year.”

“I agree with the suggestions to discourage the 'visitor'.

Come fall when they want to put on a lot of fat, family dog becomes food. Bears are omnivores but tend to eat meat before and after hibernation and vegetation during the summer.

Seeds have a high fat content. Bears just love fat.

Get Rosie O'Donnell or Roseann Barr to move next door, that will keep the bear out of your backyard.”

“I agree with the deterrant suggestions. Its probably very wise to get going on that. I hate to think you'd have to take down your feeders. What about using finch feeders or something that is not going to attract bears as easily? My Uncle Charles had a bear get in on his enclosed backporch and it wasn't a bit funny. He had to take the stronger measures suggested and if I remember right... the bear wound up being relocated. It wasn't amusing at all to his family.”

“Call Ted Nugent, he'll take of the bear for you.”

“In Ireland they have these gadgets that look like traffic pylons they use for rabbit deterrent. They've got a motion detector and are loaded with shotgun blanks. They keep these things in all their fields, even when the field is right next to, not even 20 feet from, the local bed-and-breakfast. They kick in right at sunrise. I know firsthand.”

“Man skiracer, I'm jealous! That's awesome! Hey, are you joining us for the Buttkicker II?”

“I would look for a culprit who is fat, black and furry. He might decide to plunk his big bear butt down in it and go for a float down the river. LOL Wouldn't that be funny!?”

“Artex, not sure about the Buttkicker II. I've been thinking about it, but have limited vacation time this year. I do have my bear canister, though.”

“I have coyotes out the back door frequently. I love to hear them but would not want them any closer. Not many cats or dogs left in the neighborhood; FiFi, Spot, and Fluffy are no match for a coyote, who has a different set of rules than domestic critters.”

“How about taming him, dressing him in a tutu and teaching him to balance on a ball? That ALWAYS makes for some fun and games!”

“Understood, but it'd be fantastic if you could join us. You are an original Buttkicker member, afterall. :-)”