# Problem Bear



## Beeslave (Feb 6, 2009)

How do you get rid of a bear(without evidence). He is going through my electric fence! Can I put poison in the bait someone put 200 yds from my bees. He plans on shooting it this fall but since he was so disrespectful and put the bait by my bees I thought it is only fair that I get the bear first. I would use my hounds and rifle but my loud mouth blueticks would draw to much attention.


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## JohnK and Sheri (Nov 28, 2004)

Did you contact the DNR? They will trap it and move it up north to be some other beeks problem, just tell them to not bring him our way!

We had a bear like that a few years back and John put up 4 wires and put a HOT charger on it (Parmac); stopped the trouble making.

I wouldn't consider poisoning the bear bait, if you didn't kill him that might be one dangerous animal. 
Sheri


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## BEES4U (Oct 10, 2007)

Add a chicken wire 2nd ground mat around your perimeter. ( flat of course)
keep your grounding rod watered
The old ABC and XYZ book explains how to hook up the 2nd ground.
Ernie


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## jjgbee (Oct 12, 2006)

On my bear fences, I start with 4 foot cheap hog wire. I cut 1 foot off for a ground plain. I use T-posts with 2 inch black ABS pipe over the posts for insulation. The corner posts have guide wires and the hog wire is streched tight all the way around. The 1 foot wide ground plain is staked solid to the ground. With a Mann Lake charger, even cooler trained park bears won't get through this set up.


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## alpha6 (May 12, 2008)

I just posted this not long ago. Gives pics, plan and materials list on a good bear fence. Since we started building um this way no bear has gotten in.

http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=231480

I like Tom's Alka Seltzer quick fix also. That Tom...he's a sneaky one.


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## pchelovod (Jun 20, 2005)

A good ground is key with an electric fence. Having a piece of metal at each end of the bear is my goal.

An electrical schematic would show current flowing from the fence, to the piece of bacon hanging on it, to the bears tongue, through the bear, to the bear's foot to the large piece of grounded piece of chicken wire (on the ground right under the bacon). Galvanized wire conducts better than dirt, so there's a bigger zap from fence to ground if the bear is standing on a piece of chicken wire hooked to the ground terminal. 

(What's the symbol for bacon in an electrical schematic, though? )


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## rkr (Oct 30, 2008)

Yes, you can kill *that* bear, but another bear will take his place. I have hunted bear over bait in Canada, and we have taken 3 large bears off the same bait the same week. I was told by the guide that the big bears that "own' the bait will sleep within 75-100 yards of the bait given cover and water. This may be a satellite bear that sneaks in and gets a snack when big boy is not looking. I would say a bear fence is your best bet for long term relief. Also, you can bet there will be a problem with the state for poisoning game animals. In Missouri you can remove animals that are causing damage; you will have to check the laws in Wisconsin. 
I would have a solid bear fence up before the fall, an once of prevention is worth a pound of cure... you just *can't* kill them all, it is _The Great White North... Ae!!!_


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

Check that ground rod. If it is rebar, pull it out and get a proper ground. Set that ground rod in the ground at least 5 feet if you can. Hammer, pound, loader...what ever you have to do. Then buy yourself a volt meter for your fence and fencer. They are not alot of money, ($12.00 for a light up one and $65 for a digital read out one..nothing fancy) and worth the investment if you have a fence. Get the cranks up to 5000v. This is why you need a tester. No bear will touch it then. If it is less than 5000 you have a problem because a bear will continue to test the fence until he gets use to the charge.
Finally, what are your posts...fibre glass...wood...treated wood. Fibre glass no problem. If you are using wood or treated wood you need insulators and you will notice the difference on the cranks. Treated posts are treated with copper sulfate...copper something. When the current goes through the wire and not insulated, the copper ends up funneling some of the current into the ground.
Nine times out of ten, fence problems are ground related.
We have bears. Lots of bears. Test your fencer to just incase it is not putting out the juice.


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

Come and hunt on our land...lots of bears..easy picking


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## Beeslave (Feb 6, 2009)

I would love to come up there for a spring hunt. I have a hard enough time trying to find time away from the bees though. When the season is over(honey extracting) it's nothing but bucks and coyotes for me here.


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## GaSteve (Apr 28, 2004)

pchelovod said:


> A good ground is key with an electric fence. Having a piece of metal at each end of the bear is my goal.QUOTE]
> 
> On that same note, I have heard that running a ground wire between the hot wires is more effective. Otherwise, if the ground is really dry, they may not get a good shock.


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## Beeslave (Feb 6, 2009)

*Re: Problem Bear/My Fence*

I have a Zareba 6 v. energizer(solar w/ bat.), fiberglass posts, yellow tape wire and a 6' ground rod( in 5'). There are three rows of wire starting 9" from ground and spaced 12" apart. The middle wire is also connected to the ground. I tested it after installing it and it was 5,000 v.. It still tested the same when I checked it after the bear went through. I didn't have the fence baited but I don't think he/she will be back. I'm pretty sure it got the *#@! shocked out of it when it was trying to escape from inside the fence. The fence was still up but some of the posts were leaning outward.


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## JohnK and Sheri (Nov 28, 2004)

Please restrict your posts to legal activities. Those of you suggesting and joking about cruel and inhumane methods of dealing with problem bears, would you feel responsible if that suffering, dying bear attacked someone out hiking? There is no justification for torturing animals. 
Sheri


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## Tom G. Laury (May 24, 2008)

Sheri:

You are advocating lead poisoning out of season? Isn't that illegal? What about a wounded bear on the trail with your hiker? Shooting often doesn't kill. Cruel & inhumane?


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## JohnK and Sheri (Nov 28, 2004)

I was not advocating out of season shooting but legal hunting, nevertheless you will see I previously deleted my own post as well just to avoid confusion.
Those who choose to shoot problem bears should of course be very careful to have a clean kill for the reason you state.
Some states allow people having problems with bears or other animals to deal with those problems in various manners. Individuals should contact their local DNR or State wildlife authorities to find the methods allowable to eliminate problems or other recourse available.
Sheri


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## Barry (Dec 28, 1999)

Discuss issues of moderation OFF FORUM with the moderator.


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

We have a fall bear hunt here in MB as well as a spring hunt


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## honeyshack (Jan 6, 2008)

*Re: Problem Bear/My Fence*



Beeslave said:


> There are three rows of wire starting 9" from ground and spaced 12" apart. The middle wire is also connected to the ground. I tested it after installing it and it was 5,000 v.. It still tested the same when I checked it after the bear went through.


Hubby says...and he builds miles and miles of fence for cows and bees...go one row higher for the wire...or maybe two spaced 6" apart. He does not understand why you have the middle wire attached to the ground but if it is cranking out 5000v on each row of wire....? Hubby thinks your fence might not be high enough especially if it is a big bear. He says close to if not more than 4 feet high.

Hubby says that if a bear is tall enough he will go over a low fence. Get it higher


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## dcross (Jan 20, 2003)

Maybe a critter gitter in addition to the fence?

http://crittergittersensor.com/


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## Ted (Feb 20, 2000)

JohnK and Sheri said:


> Individuals should contact their local DNR or State wildlife authorities to find the methods allowable to eliminate problems or other recourse available.
> Sheri


 Sheri I have contacted N.Y.S DEC and tried to work with them, and all I got was some smart #@# DEC officer that told me he could not arrest the bear....all my fences are 6 wire with Par-mack chargers , I have done my part to try to educate the rouge bear but when it comes to the one that wont learn then you do what you half to to stay in business N.Y. DEC has been no frend of mine they dont and wont help


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## BEES4U (Oct 10, 2007)

Please try our advice on the dual ground!
It works and is cost effective.
You could get a copper clad gronding rod. But, they are expensive.
Regards,
Ernie


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## Trevor Mansell (Jan 16, 2005)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v514/benelli90p7/untitled.jpg
I was going to use something like this, Im just not sure if the DNR would approve.


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## fish_stix (May 17, 2009)

At Home Depot the copper clad rods are $9.97 for 1/2" and 10.97 for 5/8". Not very expensive when you're talking about keeping Mr. Bruin from destroying 100's to 1000's of bucks worth of beehives.


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## John Fulp (Apr 27, 2008)

People....don't overthink the bear problem. Use 8 foot ground rods,
8 feet apart from a corner, near your power fencer....that means three....lay two to three feet of chicken wire on the ground (flat) around your fence attached to your ground plane. Now....bacon on the wires....this is the MAIN ingredient...you know..pig too tongue....you need to hit the bear with NO fur.....oh...no close by trees...they think they can fly...

John


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## Tom G. Laury (May 24, 2008)

I gotta say; for all the bees I've lost to bears, and I have lost hundreds, I have to smile a little when thinking about the scene. Hard to imagine any other "natural" food source as rich as brood honey and pollen. They will learn all kinds of tricks and make great efforts to get in. Often wished I had a video of the action.


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## JohnK and Sheri (Nov 28, 2004)

You got that right, Tom.
We had a bear once that wore a path around the entire yard; wore the grass down to bare dirt. He wouldn't go through the fence but finally figured he could dig under it. He dug out a steel corner post, digging a hole 4' deep x 6' x 6'. When the post finally went down he got in. After all that scheming and effort he knocked over one hive and high tailed it, found the honey not worth the effort and stings I guess. I felt a little insulted, truth be told. We never saw him again..:scratch:
Sheri


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## Beeslave (Feb 6, 2009)

Thanks for all the input. No more is needed.


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## jjgbee (Oct 12, 2006)

Have you ever seen one hive left in a yard and wondered why the beekeeper did that? Does it make you want to take a look inside? This will raise your hair. About 1985, I bought out a 90 yr old beekeeper. He was also an eastern sierra hard rock miner. His way of getting rid of problem bears was to move all the hives and leave one behind with a quarter stick of dynamit and a quick fuse under the lid. Yikes! Times were simpler in his days.


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## Tom G. Laury (May 24, 2008)

When those powder monkeys smoke cigarettes it kind of skews their thinking and gives them a headache too.


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

jjgbee said:


> About 1985, I bought out a 90 yr old beekeeper. He was also an eastern sierra hard rock miner. His way of getting rid of problem bears was to move all the hives and leave one behind with a quarter stick of dynamit and a quick fuse under the lid. Yikes! Times were simpler in his days.


Now that is funny. lol My kids made a sparkler bomb last 4th. They lit it inside of an old mail box we had in the back yard (my yard is 5 acres) and it was really dark. You saw a lit fuse and heard one of the boys yell "oh &^%$ I am not running fast enough!". Kind of scary that we allowed them to get that carried away (it was dark we did not see it). He is now an army ranger blowing things up for real in <Classified>.


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## BEES4U (Oct 10, 2007)

Lasso.
What is the term lasso?
Just curious.
Ernie


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