–Wild Wise Sooke

Although watching a bear feed in your yard can be an exhilarating experience, it almost always leads to trouble at a future date. Making sure your home and yard are bear-proof is an essential part of making your community safe for both bears and people. Here’s how:

1. Keep your home bear-attractant free. Don’t attract bears to your property with garbage, bird feeders, fruit trees and berry bushes, gardens, compost, dirty barbecues (grease cans or drip trays) or pet food.
   
2. Don’t stockpile garbage and recycling in large quantities. Store it indoors; or outdoors in bear-proof containers. If your community has curb-side pick-up, don’t place it outside until just before pick-up.
   
3. Bears can and will climb through open windows and doors. Consider keeping them closed and locked during bear season, especially if you know there is a bear in the area.
   
4. Use specially designed bear deterrents – remotely triggered noisemakers and sprinklers or unwelcomeelectric door mats – to discourage bears from entering your property, especially while you are away for extended periods.
   
5. If you encounter a bear in an urban area, remain calm. Give the bear plenty of space and an easy escape route. Make lots of noise to encourage it to leave; Call your local conservation/wildlife officer and report your bear sighting.
   
6. Keep the whole neighbourhood safe by encouraging your neighbours to follow Wild Wise Sooke practices, too.
   What People Are Saying-We too need a place to live and thrive. If you protect wild spaces for bears and learn to live with us you are in fact protecting your own kind.~Jeanie-the-Bear

Debb Read
Wild Wise Sooke
A community program

• wildwisesooke@gmail.comm
• Wild Wise Sooke’s website
• Original post on Facebook here

Resources

• Wild Wise Sooke issues dire warning: clean up your trash or see more bear conflicts
• Preparing for hibernation season in bear country
• Preparation for hibernation puts bears on a massive calorie intake search
• Want fewer bears put down? Manage your garbage, pick your fruit!
• Increased bear sightings, what you need to know, and how to keep bears alive
• Bear sightings at Potholes, between parking lots 3 and 2
• Black bear wants some water play in Sunriver
• A sure sign of spring for residents of Sooke is the return of bears.
• Bear in Area signs emerge from hibernation
• Wild Wise Sooke presents falling numbers in Sooke
• Bear conflicts are on the rise
• Wild Wise Sooke reminds SUNRIVER residents to store garbage indoors and manage attractions
• Reminder from Wild Wise Sooke: Bears are emerging from the hills
• Be bear-wise in Sooke: Bear-proof your yard
• First bear destroyed, Wild Wise Sooke urges education
• Be Bear Wise: Wild Wise Sooke suggests spring cleaning, minimize attractants
• More cougar cautions for Sooke Potholes hiking area
• Good to Know: How to deal with a surprise encounter with a black bear
• A Bear’s Bill of Rights, from Wild Wise Sooke
• The community of Sooke let this bear down, say Conservation Officers