Well-intentioned animal lovers could put injured bear at risk
While their hearts may be in the right place, some nature lovers supplying an injured black bear with food west of Calgary are doing more harm than good, say the young bruin’s defenders.
Concern continues to grow for the two-year-old bear, first spotted in September roaming a farmer’s field in Springbank, as colder weather looms and he’s yet to wander anywhere near an artificial den built on private land where it’s hoped the animal will ultimately decide to hibernate.
Adding to the already mounting worries for the bear’s small corps of advocates are apparent recent attempts to provide the wayward bruin with food, said wildlife biologist Lisa Dahlseide.
“It looks like someone placed an ungulate (deer) carcass in the field for him. There were tire marks that showed a truck drove right up into the field,” she said. “Somebody also left a bunch of pumpkins.
“People should not be out there feeding the bear. I’m quite concerned.”
Dahlseide, along with a group of local wildlife advocates, has been lobbying the province to alter its policies preventing rescue groups from treating and releasing injured bears, a position currently under review.
But with no resolution expected until next year, the immediate fate of the animal, which has been favouring a hind leg since it was first spotted, grows dimmer by the day.
Redwood Meadows fire Chief Rob Evans, who has chronicled the bear’s predicament through photographs since it was first spotted, had another sighting on Tuesday, as it continued to limp through the same farmer’s field, seemingly content to stay put thanks to what he believes may be a well-intentioned, albeit foolhardy, effort to fatten up the bruin for winter.
“It’s ridiculous. Those of us who want to do something are doing everything we can, but we don’t want to habituate it,” he said.
“If they would just leave the poor bear alone, it would probably be out of there and maybe looking for a den.”
Despite its injury, which is still apparent in its gait, Evans said the bruin appears to be putting on weight along with a winter coat, hopeful signs should it ultimately find its way to a shelter to hibernate.
Dahlseide said while the bear has shown little interest in wandering beyond its familiar field, its supporters hope it will find its way to the manufactured hibernaculum — created from boxes and plywood and insulated with wool — as nature would intend. Though she admits it might not be that easy.
“It’s a bit of a hike for him, so that is a bit of a concern,” she said.
“But I believe that instinct is very strong.”
Should it settle down, Dahlseide said, they plan to appeal to the province to go in while the bear is sleeping, tranquillize it and examine its leg and any other potential health issues while it sleeps to ensure it’s not distressed by human contact.
“If it uses the den we’ve set up, we’ll be requesting if we can get a veterinarian out there,” she said.
“He’d be sleeping, so we can get in, have the vet assess him and get out without worrying about him being habituated.”