“This will likely be an annual occurrence as long as these food sources remain readily available to bears,” said Dennis Newman, IDFG wildlife manager.  “We encourage folks to help us address the bear concerns for the safety of themselves, their property and pets, as well as the bear’s wellbeing.

Here are some tips you can take to avoid attracting bears to your neighborhood.   

• Remove bird feeders between April and mid-November
• Feed pets inside.  Also, keep pet foods inside at all times
• Pick fruit promptly when it begins to ripen, and clean up any fallen fruit
• Place trash cans out the morning of your pickup day, not the night before
• Do not keep coolers, refrigerators, or freezers outside
• Keep barbeque grills clean after use

If a bear has already visited your place and found food, take the above steps right away. The bear will likely pay you a couple more visits, but if it finds no food, it will eventually move on.  If it does find food, it is likely to become habituated. A habituated bear imposes a human safety threat, particularly in an urban setting, and can no longer be relocated and will likely be euthanized. 

Residents should report bear problems to their local Fish and Game office in a timely manner

Often, if Fish and Game knows of a problem early, staff can get information out to homeowners to encourage them to make some changes to make their neighborhood less attractive to bears and make non-lethal interventions by Fish and Game staff more effective.