Mama Bear

[Krip 2]

Hi Folks

Winters coming so the boss and I have been scrounging for firewood wood,& for turning on a lathe. We prefer to let someone else cut the tree's down, and then get their permission to cut the timber in place in a manageable size and hump it out.

We enjoy our privacy by not livng in a subdivison, lots more wildlife. When we first moved here mama bear was stealing our bird feeders so we just started to bring them in at night.

Our neighbor that lives behind us wants to switch from cable service to a Dish and started droping some tree's behind us about 50 Ft on his side of the property line

We asked if we could help clearing out some of the downed timber.]

So far we were able to salvage some nice maple and holly. But also noticed that something has been doing some major damage to the suger maple and cedar tree's.

The damage we saw was very uniform starting 2' above the ground extending to about 5'. We think it's mama bear sitting on her butt clawing on the bark to get to the sweet maple sap. Don't have a clue about the cedar except maybe for bark or bugs?

Anyone know anything about bear feeding habits (besides bird feed or anything that bothers her cubs).

We're going to have to wait until we get a bigger chainsaw before we go back for the 24" dia stuff. To bad our neighbor doesn't know how to drop a tree. His method is just one cut straight across the trunk so it falls wherever it want to.

I'm guessing in the middle of the winter when mama bear is sleeping might be the best time to go for the big stuff.

Hopefully the neighbor will leave mama bears food supply standing. After this go around I'm hoping we'll have enough cords of firewood stockpiled for about 4-5 yr's.

BTW we don't carry. Don't really have anything big enough to stop mama bear. But we still have the hounds, when we let them out of the house in the morning they patrol the perimeter and clear the property

R.

[jackwallace 3]

Get some beat spray. The new stuff is great. Sprays 50 feet. I also carry a boat horn. If I even think there is a bear around, I lay on it. It works for wild bears. If they are use to humans they may not pay attention.
As for the marks, they could also be a scratching tree. Bears scratch their backs and stretch like a cat on a tree. Sometimes they are very territorial of it. A mama bear is the one to be worried about. They will kick your ass in a heart beat, if they have cubs.
Get rid of any food source this time of year. They are fattening up for winter. I wouldn't put the bird feeder out, if you have bears in the area.
Take care of that bear. There are a lot of us and not enough of them. Forest Service, DOW will "move" them for you if they need to. Problem is, there's no place to move them.

U only make 2 jumps: the first one for some weird reason and the last one that you lived through. The rest are just filler.
scr 316

[jimmytavino 16]

could some of the damage be from white tail Bucks scraping the trees with their antlers?? any signs of hoof prints around the base ????
just wonderin'

[Coreece 190]

This thread makes me happy....that's all.

Your secrets are the true reflection of who you really are...

[oldwomanc6 60]

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could some of the damage be from white tail Bucks scraping the trees with their antlers?? any signs of hoof prints around the base ????
just wonderin'

That was my first thought.

Krip: are the marks vertical or horizontal? Bears mark more vertically, and deer tend to scrape side-to-side.

lisa
WSCR 594
FB 1023
CBDB 9

[Krip 2]

H Jack

Most of us like the few bears we have left..So what if we forget to bring in a bird feeder or two before dark. The bears were here first. To bad if the new folks want to see the bears gone because they have kids.

I usally carry some pepper spray all the time because of my bully neighbor. DA is twice my size and put his hands around my neck. At that time the PS was 10 years old but the bully was only half a arms length away.

It worked like a champ two short squirts and he hit the ground like a unhappy rock. But it only has a 15' range when new so we bought a new can even hotter. Just in case there's a next time which I doubt..

We also recently upsized & got a can of bear spray with a 30' range. comes with a holster. I feel better with a 30' range for humans.

About a yr ago a mile down the road a lady was walking a little fur ball dog off leash on a trail in their sub division. Poor little puppy got scared, ran back to her owner followed by the bear. The dog was safe the owner got cut up & spent a week in the hospital.

People were . #1 Dog should have been on a leash (law). The bear should be trapped and killed.
The injured lady told the F&G to leave the bear alone. It was her fault not the bears.

F&G brought out their donutes and bear trap.After 3 days they gave up. Took their donuts and trap and went home.

I've got 2 labs as house dogs they are real good at letting us know when the bears, rabbits, dear, and neighbors around theperimeter of my property.

Even when the dogs are in the house. If the dogs are outside and alert us we just bring them inside .So they will stop barking and not get hurt.

We live on the olympic pennisula in the PNW so there is plenty of room to move a bear to . But they belong here where they were born and what about the cubs.?

We don't feed the bears just catch a glimps once or twice a year. IMO a real treat
R.

[Krip 2]

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could some of the damage be from white tail Bucks scraping the trees with their antlers?? any signs of hoof prints around the base ????
just wonderin'

That was my first thought.

Krip: are the marks vertical or horizontal? Bears mark more vertically, and deer tend to scrape side-to-side.

Hi JT and nice lady

The marks are verticle and we can see the maple sap oozing from the trees. I'm guessing the ceder tree has some bugs under the bark. Same makings.

We had some deer here when we first moved in (apple tree's) as soon as the dogs saw the deer they took after them and our neighbor told us she never saw the deer run that fast or jump that high over the fence.

Poor deer haven't been back in 14 yrs and the apple tree is gone. They weren't bucks just doe's. Last year we saw a dear in town feeding on the banks land scapeing
Living in the country can be fun as long as you can go with the flow and don't get involved in the small town politic's and just ignor the barbie dolls.

Some tourists were in town and said something about the lcal women looked like the stepford wives.

R.

[Squeak 17]

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Some tourists were in town and said something about the lcal women looked like the stepford wives.

R.

What town do you live in?

You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
My Life ROCKS!
How's yours doing?

[Coreece 190]

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Living in the country can be fun as long as you can go with the flow and don't get involved in the small town politic's and just ignor the barbie dolls.

Well said...

I love it up in northern Michigan...there is like 2000+ square miles of national forest in my back yard....I just built a deck - I get mama bear training her cubs up and down a tree right in front of me (30 yards away)...chipmunks and raccoons practically sit by my side as squirrels frolic around up and down the apple trees as the deer feed...birds and butterflies sit on my shoulders....sometimes I feel like Snow White. These animals trust me...could you imagine if I just came out one day and started shooting at them? What a betrayal...I'm just a pussy when it comes to hunting - tis the season and I'm having second thoughts again even though I'll be deep in the forest away from my "pets."

Your secrets are the true reflection of who you really are...

[Krip 2]

Quote

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Some tourists were in town and said something about the lcal women looked like the stepford wives.

R.

What town do you live in?

Hi Squeak

Check out my profile

I checked out yours

R.

One Jump Wonder

[Fullmoon 0]

Hi Krip. Yes, bears scratch trees and they rub their backs up and down them to mark them. That's awesome you are sharing space with bears. There is an organization called North American Bear Center in Ely, MN. Their website has great info about bears. There is some great info that describes vocalization and what the bears are telling you. http://www.bear.org/website/bear-pages/black-bear/communication.html Bears speak to us...we just don't listen. I prefer horns over spray. The feeding habits depend on where you live, the time of year, and the food source available. That can change year to year depending on different factors. If you look at their scat, it can tell you a lot. Bears that are ate a lot of wild blueberries will have poop that is pretty blue.

I have had some magical encounters with bears over the past few years with no need for spray or horns and was close enough for physical contact (both wild back bears and grizzlies). I may be a little biased on my feelings for bears....I just returned home late last night from the Great Bear Rainforest where we hung out with Grizzlies, Black Bears and the rare Spirit Bear. Un-freaking believable!