Bear Safety During Fall

 

In the last week and a half, Alberta Fish and Wildlife officers have captured and relocated five black bears found in the areas of Lower and Upper West Peace, The Pines, Saddleback, and Shaftesbury.

 

Bears naturally travel the Peace River valley and incidentally end up passing through the community. As they prepare for hibernation, they think largely with their stomach and spend a majority of their time feeding on any available food sources, including choke cherries, fruit trees, and other natural vegetation throughout the community. They will also take advantage of all opportunities for a quick and easy snack and can easily become habituated to non-natural food sources, including pet food, unsecured garbage, BBQs, and garden compost.

 

Once habituated, bears can't really be 're-educated' away from venturing into human spaces for food. But there are many preventative measures that we as people can do to help reduce negative encounters with bears throughout our community.

 

Some of these measures include keeping your properties free of food and smell attractants that may lure a bear onto your property; keeping garbage secured until morning pick-up; and picking apples and fruit trees regularly to remove the attractant.

 

We live in a wildlife zone, so managing bear interactions and safety will always be part of life here. We also know that adjusting your personal schedule isn't always easy or possible, but we ask residents to do their part in helping to reduce attractants around your individual properties.

 

Just today, Alberta Fish and Wildlife put out a trap in Saddleback – but the problem is that trap will have to compete with dozens of enticing garbage bins, as pickup is scheduled for tomorrow morning.

 

To the extent possible, we ask that residents try to secure their garbage bins overnight and put their garbage out the morning of collection (which starts at 7am). This is especially relevant for Saddleback while capture efforts are underway.

 

Alberta Fish and Wildlife would appreciate your help in mitigating this issue, as they're doing their best to keep up with demand and avoid human-bear conflicts.

 

Thanks, everyone!