Rescue group says hands are tied in helping injured bear

CALGARY Provincial regulations are preventing the rescue of an injured black bear loitering in a farmer’s field west of Calgary, says a wildlife aid group.

The bear, believed to be between one and two years old, has been pacing around a field along Highway 22 south of the TransCanada Highway for up to two weeks.

In video shot Wednesday by Redwood Meadows Fire Department Chief Rob Evans, the young bruin appears to be favouring its left hind leg and limps between an open area and a nearby clump of trees.

It’s become a sad fixture for those living in the area and travelling past the spot, said Evans.

“The only real predators are humans and grizzlies, and it just seems like unnecessary suffering,” said Evans.

A provincial official said it’s best to let nature take its course with the lone bear.

The root of the issue is a sevenyear-old provincial regulation that prevents private wildlife rescuers from treating and releasing into the wild bears and other large mammals, said Clio Smeeton of the Cochrane Ecological and Wildlife Reserve Society.

The province said the change was made in the interest of public safety and the danger of the bears becoming human-habituated.

“It could be brought somewhere, overwintered and released in the spring,” said a frustrated Smeeton, whose organization is ready to help, if allowed.

“We have built facilities specifically for black bears.”

Before the province’s Wildlife Act was amended, the society had rehabilitated 15 to 20 black bears, something extensive study has also deemed effective, she said.