Posted on 02/19/2022 8:20:52 AM PST by Right Wing Vegan
He has many names: Yogi, Chunky, Hank the Tank, Jake. Some people simply call him the Big Guy.
What everyone can agree on is that the 500-pound black bear roaming around South Lake Tahoe, Calif., has become a problem. For the last seven months, the bear has caused property damage and broken into nearly 30 homes in and near the waterfront Tahoe Keys neighborhood searching for food.
Because the bear has become accustomed to humans and would appear to consider them a source of easily accessible food, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife has labeled it a “severely food-habituated” conflict bear.
On Wednesday, members of a local homeowners association agreed to allow the state to use their properties to capture the bear, but it’s unclear what will happen once he’s contained. For one, traps recently set up in the neighborhood proved unsuccessful for catching the wily bear, and the state is reevaluating its strategies.
After it’s captured, the bear could be killed or relocated, according to the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“Any decision on what to do with the bear after capture is the discretion” of the state, department spokesperson Peter Tira wrote in an email.
According to the department’s black bear policy, “Adult bears may be poor candidates for placement [in a sanctuary] due to the chronic stress of adjusting to captivity after living in only wild conditions.”
Ann Bryant, who oversees the advocacy group Bear League, said the Tahoe Keys bear is docile and only searching for food.
“He’s on a mission. You can tell he likes to eat,” Bryant said. “The Big Guy likes to eat where it’s easy to get food, and he doesn’t like to forage.”
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
No squirrels in our house either, as they may have rabies, poop on the floor, etc.
They do tricks? Do you teach them or are they that smart?
No, but they seem really aware of what sort of antics draw the most peanuts. Sometimes I encourage them by saying: “Do tricks!” and they don’t obey, they just seem to know what you want them to do based on past rewards. (Isn’t that strange?????)
When our family first moved to Colorado we went for a scenic drive on (I think) Berthoud Pass. There was one place we pulled over where obviously a lot of other people had pulled over (this was in the early 1970s) and there was a sign saying don’t feed the ground squirrels. We got out to look around and A SMALL ARMY of ground squirrels came running up and - they weren’t being aggressive, but they were jumping up and down and capering all around. My mom was scared. (We gave them some food so they wouldn’t attack.)
Precious little animals. Certainly know how to cadge a meal.
Meanwhile, on Twitter, there’s a campaign to save “Hank the Tank,” bear breaking into houses in Tahoe.
If they don’t relocate him or kill him, he’s sure to cause two Hanks’ worth of problems.
He’ll be more docile as a rug.
the California Department of Fish and Wildlife has labeled it a “severely food-habituated” conflict bear.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Only a gov. agency could come up with such a label.
Donuts...gets them every time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pick a nik baskets.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.