Beware of the… bear? Yup! That big furry thing behind that fence with the “Beware of the Dog” sign is definitely not a dog.
Though it looks pretty comfortable rolling around in the grass in that yard, it’s definitely a bear.
He was tuckered out from a big day of exploring some neighborhoods in Fort Myers Florida. He was definitely ready for a nap.
https://www.facebook.com/fmpolice/photos/pcb.10158576310212948/10158576301747948/?type=3&theater
The small black bear’s day on the town made for an interesting day for police and residents near McGregor Boulevard.
This little guy made an appearance on several home surveillance cameras as he meandered through McGregor Blvd. and South Street.
And boy did he have himself a good time.
https://www.facebook.com/fmpolice/photos/pcb.10158576310212948/10158576301792948/?type=3&theater
He hung out in people’s yards, jumped over some fences, and gave Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) quite the chase.
They even closed down some streets to try and get him.
It took them hours to finally capture the little guy and bring him to a remote location. Above you see the bear hanging out in someone’s backyard with police who transferred the call to FWC.
https://www.facebook.com/fmpolice/photos/a.10154591986332948/10158576171892948/?type=3&theater
The bear was captured without the use of a tranquilizer.
“Oftentimes when we use a tranquilizer gun the bear will not have an immediate effect,” FWC Officer Adam Brown told WINK News. “Sometimes they will run away … we didn’t want to take any chance of it running into traffic or running into any residential area and causing further problems.”
https://www.facebook.com/MyFWC/photos/a.445884778348/10152011658613349/?type=1&theater
Instead of tranquilizer, the FWC had another trick up your sleeve that could have lured both humans and bears alike.
“We had set some doughnuts in the trap and we also had a device where he might grab the larger package of doughnuts and trip the trap,” Brown said.
And those doughnuts worked like a charm.
The 18-month-old bear was caught in the trap and transferred to a state-managed land in South West Florida.
The Fort Myers Police Department ended up posting pictures of their encounter with the bear on Facebook.
“At this time Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will be taking this call over and we will not be on scene any further,” they wrote on Facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/fmpolice/posts/10158576310212948?__xts__[0]=68.ARAJIge0zxC-_1fWiE_YGPWlza8AFJ-MBqMmmr2GN5dx3hSOzH0VCDMHXkJpLIkdEntO8aCmwPssYmtfhtR5eSIjgNrSLMLfrricPnCnamx_7ORhDRnJZLUbnA53WuoM-IYBMEBOG9-lHcJQeuDlVa31k7Dw83T5dgBz4_H9nk6eOHVHJ4AZBhHpT2rIHG7340QR7LhxWzzm2ZDCvVCM23ug31cUGGG5LZPazgrPfKj4zXzy8Qr4E5YyQ_70X-xuY4SydRbU116t8TceYoPvKcNhWsZGry2nTth8mVkQekWlMXudER5cyKBArDyTor0K3xL2J76jNpAKGO-FDQ&__tn__=-R
“Here a couple photos from the call. Looks like the bear is ready for a nap after all the ground he’s traveled. #definitelyNotadog.”
Their Facebook followers got a kick out of it.
“Cute dog, when do you think it will be up for adoption,” one follower joked.
“I really wanted a pic of the bear eating donuts,” said another.
Us too! Apparently there have been lots of bear sightings around the country from this bear in Florida to Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Colorado, and Massachusetts in the past few weeks.
There’s a reason for that.
It’s mating season.
“June is the peak of the mating season for black bears. So female that have had cubs with them for the past year, basically disperse those cubs. They’re now out on their own for the first time,” Mass Wildlife’s black bear biologist Dave Wattles told Western Mass News.
“You also have the males there active in the mating season are moving around. So you tend to see a peak in activity around this year, every year.”
Learn more about bear sightings in the video below.
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