But for one breed—the Karelian bear dog—that sort of behavior is pure playground antics. Since the smell of food attracts bears, these are materials you can buy and are designed to prevent bears from identifying the food. Pedersen has formed a very close bond with his principal Karelian bear dog, Soledad. “This dog is an ambassador for teaching the public about how to get along better with bears and also teaching bears that they have to move away from humans.”, Carrie Hunt, Founder, Wind River Bear Institute. In the 20 years he’s been working with bear dogs, Beausoleil says he hasn’t seen any dogs injured because of their work. When bears get used to being around people it can be more dangerous than if they are fearful. But they needed more evidence to bring the suspect to court. Bears will go right through electric fencing once they are food-conditioned and know that food is available. You might want to look into other breeds that are considered good sheep guardians (like the … Carrie Hunt is a bear biologist for the Wind River Bear Institute, and she noticed several unfortunate gaps in the way bears are managed and treated in zones where the two species intersect. She earned an MFA in creative writing from the University of Houston and reviews books for The Dallas Morning News. And the work helps fund the institute. Spray objects and areas around the hive as well as flowers, bushes and plants that attract them. Sometimes they fire beanbag rounds or rubber bullets to scare the bear even more, and then the bear dogs are released. Several national parks, including Banff, Yosemite, and Glacier, have contracted bear dogs too. https://www.rover.com/blog/karelian-bear-dogs-instead-sheep-dogs-herd-bears How do these tough dogs deter bears and convince them to leave an area? It sounds cruel, but the point is to keep the bears away from high risk areas without resorting to killing them. They can be applied as a perimeter treatment around the building or garden to keep dogs away from protected areas. Soledad can smell polar bears under feet of snow and alert Pedersen when she’s found a den, thus allowing the den and its inhabitants to finish their long sleep undisturbed. Not one human, bear, or dog has been injured in the years Hunt’s been working and training her dogs. For most of us, this means our dogs bark when our neighbors walk down the street or when something goes bump in the apartment upstairs. “The bear boogies out. How Do Dogs Choose Their Favorite Person? “Bears are naturally afraid of canids,” Hunt says. Hunt realized that bears can be taught, just as we teach ourselves and our dogs new tricks all the time. In some cases, rubber bullets and beanbags are used to further discourage the bear from hanging around, teaching them that areas with humans can be dangerous. They track it, bark at it, nip at its heels, until the dogs are called back by their handlers. The bottom wire must be no more than 8 inches off the ground. Bears will generally avoid a busy trail, and the last thing you want to do is surprise a feeding bear. Will having a dog in the tent attract you, or will dogs keep you away?. (Also read about dogs that can sniff out cancer.). This “invasion,” as it’s been called, has sparked conversations about how prepared wildlife managers in North America are for an influx of polar bears as they lose critical habitat from melting sea ice and take to land in search of food. So I’ve put together a list of tips that will help keep the bears from showing up at your camp site. With the body, law enforcement was able to prove the crime and prosecute the case. They're all yappy little dogs to me. “It’s a huge, full-time job because that dog is there with you all the time,” Bryant says. Bear dogs have also been helpful in solving wildlife crimes. FIND THE BEST PRICE 2. Bear dogs are especially helpful when a bear gets habituated to a particular spot, such as a garbage dump. Hunt emphasizes that safety is her chief concern when sending dogs after bears, and she says they’ve had no injuries in the field either. Another study published in International Bear News in 2014 suggest dogs may actually trigger bear attacks. ), Typically if a bear shows up at a dump or digging through someone’s garbage, “you’d either show up, corner the animal, and euthanize it,” says Alan Myers from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, "or you would dart the animal, put it in a cage, and take it many miles away. After the dogs have barked at the bear for a while, they open up the bear’s cage. These dogs have inhabited northeastern Europe and Scandinavia since Neolithic times. Also, block off any crawlspaces below your home by nailing wood panels across them. Sometimes the bear might just have wanted to go in the same direction you were. Ever had a bear try to claw its way into your house? But within 20 minutes of bringing in the bear dog team, one of the dogs found elk remains. Photograph by Derek Reich Since then, law enforcement … They’re not large dogs (compared to a mastiff, say), but they’re stocky, powerful, and stay low to the ground. The Caucasian Shepherd Dog is a massive, long haired dog that can easily break the 200 pound mark. Many state wildlife agencies in bear territory have some form of bear response plan, including the deployment of agency staff members trained in aversive conditioning techniques. Sign up and get $25 off pet sitting and dog walking! These dogs have to become your life.” (See the rigors of war dog training.). “The good thing about bears is that they’re smart enough to know [and] to learn quickly. Here’s how, ‘Puppy dog eyes’ evolved so dogs could communicate with us, If you’re chronically stressed, your dog could be too. Use of Bear Tubes or Kegs. 5. A 400+ pound bear was determined to rip the screens off windows and break into the house. Soledad is a huntress.”, Together they’ve released 500-pound black bears in Tahoe and pushed mama grizzlies with cubs out of campgrounds in the Rocky Mountains. Derek Reich, a volunteer who assists the Nevada Department of Wildlife with its bear dog team, says that the time and resources required to train bear dogs has limited the growth of their program. It operates by radar and knows when a bear (or a burglar) is attempting to enter a house. “They want to go out and get that bear,” says Nils Pedersen, the wildlife dog program coordinator at Wind River Bear Institute’s satellite kennel in Fairbanks, Alaska. In the past 3 weeks, we’ve had four bears within close proximity to people. Keep a Bear Out of the Garden & Yard. For those with compost piles, be … Keeping predators away can be simple and nonlethal with a few tricks that will help prevent predators from coming into your yard, killing your livestock or pets, and becoming comfortable around people. The Wind River Bear Institute in Florence, Montana, has stepped in to help protect both bears and humans, and the key to their success is the Karelian bear dog. The big dog keeps the bears away. One of the benefits of electric fencing is that it not only deters bears, but it teaches them to keep away. Karelian bear dogs were bred to find and chase bears away from populated areas. in harm’s way. “I’m going to try to expand the use of these dogs into new areas that have bear problems like the east coast of the United States.”, Hunt says she’s proud of her legacy. Make sure that whatever electric fence system you use, your fence is at least 3 1/2 feet high, with wire strands no more than 8 inches apart on a permanent fence, and 12 inches apart on a temporary fence. Karelian Bear Dogs: Instead of Sheep, These Dogs Herd…Bears, Meet the Dogs Rescuing Koalas from Wild Fires. DNA from the head matched DNA from the remains. A dog in bear country can be both a deterrent and an attractant. Don’t feed them or follow them trying to get a picture! The results have been promising. You've likely risen many mornings to find your trash strewn about your yard or street. “They were able to prosecute once again based on being able to find the carcass, which we never would’ve found without the bear dog,” Beausoleil says. Fourteen years ago, the organization got two Karelian bear dogs, Anya and Dmytry, from a breeder and trained them up. In this post, we’ll share some tips on how to keep bears away when hiking and camping in the wild. It was the family’s third bear encounter in a month. Prevention is much easier to handle than an actual encounter. Photograph by Derek Reich Since then, law enforcement and wildlife agencies in the United States and Canada increasingly have begun turning to dogs as an alternative to keep bears away. To see what cookies we serve and set your own preferences, please review our Cookie Policy. What bear would want to raid a cooler while having to listen to screams and barks and noise-makers? Those were the only two options and neither one of those was effective at all.”. It's not gonna end well. But Soledad is also trained to do something else—she can sniff out polar bear dens. What is the best way to keep them and you safe and separate? Cali the Golden Retriever helps me demonstrate the benefits of my bear-proof food bag for backcountry camping. “They’ll bark at this animal and scare the heck out of it [to] let them know it’s not where it’s supposed to be and it should never come back to this location,” Myers says. They are used in Colorado around camping areas with great success. Karelian bear dogs are quick on their toes and don’t scare easily; these traits made them useful to hunters of large game, like moose, boars, and of course bears. Despite the enthusiasm for the program among some state wildlife managers, Karelian bear dogs aren’t the best choice for everyone or every setting. (Read about sniffer dogs that find cremated human remains in the rubble after wildfires.). This black-and-white breed is native to Finland, where the breed is considered a national treasure. When the wildlife department was tipped off that a grey wolf had been poached—the first in recent memory—it was critical to find the body. Though bears sometimes return even after such negative experiences, the rate at which they return is far lower than when they are just trapped and then physically removed. It’s complicated. Bears: I purchased a Spark-Away unit mid-summer at the height of black bear activity. Spotting a wild animal in its natural habitat is always an exhilarating experience. In 1996, Hunt founded the Wind River Bear Institute, headquartered in Florence, Montana, to train a special breed of dogs to be “bear shepherds”—to bark and scare away bears when they get too close to human settlements and to condition them to steer clear. Your best bet is to leave the bears alone, take away their food source, and watch from a distance. Dogs may also harass a bear unnecessarily or pique a bear's curiosity. If it continues to follow you, it might be eyeing you and your dog as a meal. Just Watch These Border Collie Puppies Meet Sheep for the First Time, 9 Surprisingly Dangerous Foods for Dogs (Starting with Popcorn), Animal-Saving Volunteer Pilot Flies Shelter Dogs to Safety Each Weekend, Lorkie Breed Profile: Lhasa Apso Yorkie Mix, Revealed in Photos and Fun Facts. Keeping bees away can be as simple as watering your lawn. The Forest Falls, Calif., youngster was home alone one afternoon when a bear tried to climb in through an open kitchen window. Rex is a barking dog that resides in a small box kept on your counter when you’re not home. Keep an eye out for bear scat, something your dog might also alert you of. Certainly, for some humans living near bear populations, Karelians are truly man’s best friend. “In most states, black bears are a game species. One bear biologist, Carrie Hunt, has made it her life’s mission to find effective, non-lethal methods to prevent human-bear conflict. When sprayed in an animal's face, the solution causes extreme discomfort in it and gives you time to safely leave the dangerous area. If a bear comes too close, Rex barks viciously and stops as soon as the bear runs off. She began training Karelian bear dogs not to hunt bears, but to ward them off. 1. “I had this dream, and it became a reality because I never gave up,” she says. Dog Repellent 1.5 oz It is made with 0.35% capsaicin, a naturally occurring pepper extract. Cleaning up grills after each use and keeping all pet food and bird feeders put away is another good idea. 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