Finally... it comes close to home..

[Gerritt]

Jun 08, 2008

Permalink 09:40 am, Mark Bonokoski / General, 257 words

Bear Facts

(Sunday, June 8)

 

Some residents of the Toronto 'burb of Pickering woke up the other morning to find a black bear in their back yard, all which forced two elementary schools to go into lockdown until the bruin was taken out with a tranquillizer gun.

 

Welcome to the club.

 

Those of us who live a little further north of Toronto — and you don't have to go far — have experienced the same thing.

 

A year ago a black bear cub wandered through our property near Bancroft, all which had Arthur the Airedale going crazy and us going, “Oh, oh, where's mama bear?”

 

The cancellation of the spring bear hunt years ago by the Ontario government has a great deal to do with this, despite the fact ministry officials have tried to write off the Pickering incident as simply a matter of a bear following a creek path a little too far south.

 

Hell, if the bear has gone any further south, his hat would be floating in Lake Ontario.

 

And this bear was no cub. He stood six-and-a-half feet tall, and was estimated to be four years old.

 

In other words, he was an urban bear. He didn't just happen to wander down from Algonguin Park.

 

Our minister of logs and frogs, Donna Cansfield, is from the great bush country known as Etobicoke, another Toronto 'burb.

 

Perhaps she will now see the merit of bringing back the spring bear hunt.

 

Lock and load. We can only hope.

 

 

 

http://blog.canoe.ca/moosecountry/2008/06/08/bear_facts

 

 

G

Edited June 12, 2008 by Gerritt

[tjsa]

We get 50-200 sightings each summer in our area, lots of the newer developments back onto greenspace(bush).

Many times, a lot of calls will come in from a certain area in 2 days, and its probably the same bear just making its way across the back yards of the developments, so one bear can generate 30 calls easily.

 

Our university where I work gets bear warnings a couple of times each summer, and I have personally seen the police chasing them back into the small bushlines ringing the university. The university does not go into lockdown because of them, warnings about them being around are posted via e-mail to all university personnel and students, and broadcast on our plasma screens.

 

Mostly, the only problems the bears have caused has been some small destruction of personal property, bird feeders, fruit trees, etc.

 

The only time the MNR usually gets involved is when the bears get into an area where they do not have an easy exit back into greenspace such as getting into a development where there are high fences or concrete wall barriers. Then people start chasing it to get a good picture, and the animal gets trapped and stressed.

Then they tranquilize them, and haul them back out of town.

 

If you see one, just stay away from it. They usually find their way back out of the area.

It happens with moose up here also, and of course now, deer. I had one in my back yard a couple of years ago, and the closest bit of bush that it could access was over a kilometer away. It was just taking advantage of the plethora of nice edible shrubs and flowers people had planted in their front yards, then found itself in the middle of the city trying to figure a way out during the morning rush hour.

[misfish]

We get 50-200 sightings each summer in our area, lots of the newer developments back onto greenspace(bush).

Many times, a lot of calls will come in from a certain area in 2 days, and its probably the same bear just making its way across the back yards of the developments, so one bear can generate 30 calls easily.

 

Our university where I work gets bear warnings a couple of times each summer, and I have personally seen the police chasing them back into the small bushlines ringing the university. The university does not go into lockdown because of them, warnings about them being around are posted via e-mail to all university personnel and students, and broadcast on our plasma screens.

 

Mostly, the only problems the bears have caused has been some small destruction of personal property, bird feeders, fruit trees, etc.

 

The only time the MNR usually gets involved is when the bears get into an area where they do not have an easy exit back into greenspace such as getting into a development where there are high fences or concrete wall barriers. Then people start chasing it to get a good picture, and the animal gets trapped and stressed.

Then they tranquilize them, and haul them back out of town.

 

If you see one, just stay away from it. They usually find their way back out of the area.

It happens with moose up here also, and of course now, deer. I had one in my back yard a couple of years ago, and the closest bit of bush that it could access was over a kilometer away. It was just taking advantage of the plethora of nice edible shrubs and flowers people had planted in their front yards, then found itself in the middle of the city trying to figure a way out during the morning rush hour.

Exactly what you said.

We are going through the same thing here In Barrie.Probly more then you Tom.

So much is being taken away from the wild life. Hell, Im at Timmies at the bottom of Essa hill, and theres a wild turkey or two in the parking lot. Just past him, is a deer eating the home owners fresh greens. It,s true.

Just let them be,they were here first,and you/we, are the invaders. Stay back,take a pic or two. Let them walk .

G Im not against the spring bear hunt,as you know,I am a hinter myself,but these animals have to have a place to roam.

It,s thier NATURE.

Edited June 12, 2008 by misfish

[Bernie]

Folks up here got tired of calling MNR. Now they just shoot, shutup and bury them. Sad scenario. Canceling the spring bear hunt hurt a lot of operators that were already having trouble keeping things going.

[chilli]

They should cancel the fall hunt too!

 

Let them bruins migrate South to where the kind hearted ignorance originated. You know the place where the population is its thickest and they never have to deal with the eyes they claim to love and don't want to kill them even if they do get eaten!

 

Amazing the hysteria when one bear comes to town yet you hicks in the North can live with them just fine.

 

If anyone has suitable land and a bear problem please PM me as I would like to bring my junior apprentice North for a bear this year. We just don't have a place to go.

 

Dan

[jwl]

Mmmmm.....meat that didn't come from a grocery store

 

If ya bag and tag one Chilli,I know a couple good ways to cook it up, I will get the wife to make ya a cool necklace out of the claws

[duber]

We had some bear activity around here and the tree-huggers just loved it.One lady even wrote a large editorial in the local newspapers.She started out with the usaual treehugging jibberish then buy the end of her story she was complaining that the MNR wouldn't come to her property to trap and remove the bear.So the moral of the story is:

 

"I love all animals-------------Just not in my back yard."

 

Hipacrete.I hope that bear eats her little ankle bitting dog! (you just know she has one)

[Jay T]

mmmmmmmmm bear meat

I shot a 150lbs bear with my bow 2 years ago and the meat was great, I have a trip booked for 1st week in September to get another.

I hope they do bring back the spring bear hunt, but some how I don't think they will.

[Tootsie II]

I'm afraid that the only way we'll ever see the Spring bear hunt re-instated is if some bear wearing a night gown and a sleeping cap devours the provincial Premier's grandmother and takes a stab at his grandaughter and that'll happen when the hot hole down under becomes the home rink of the Leafs.