permaculture

[Vint Lawrence <vlawrence@nets.com>]

 

sal wrote:

my friend has a bear that comes around when she is not there and takes the door off the house .  its been back 3 times in daylight and also when i was up there last there was a mountain lion in the drive.  what is a good way to keep wild life back away from the house? is there a noise maker or electric fence or what kind of dog or what size gun etc.  what would u all do.  she said she had a talk with the bear and told it not to come back but it did.   I worry about her.  what do u do when u face a bear or mountain lion?

Here in New Mexico we have had problems with both bear and  (not really a problem) mountain lions (cougar).
Bears are attracted to food sources and once they learn that there is food available in a particular location they will continue to return.
Last year, in New Mexico, the lack of early precipitation in the spring curtailed the availability of the bears' normal food sources up in the higher mountain terrain. (Note to Verne L. Chinampas - we are surrounded by Santa Fe National Forest, thousands of acres of high grade zone 5 habitat. We occupy the "edge" of that zone and - as we are generating greater abundance at times than zone 5 - we attract the bears.)
They came down to lower elevations and got into compost heaps, greenhouse areas where we had stored bone meal, and finally, they destroyed a chicken tractor and all but one of the ten chickens inside.
New Mexico Fish and Game Department (known in these parts as Squish and Maim) came with a large culvert trap and we captured the offender the following night. Most Western States have similar programs. If the bear has simply been a nuisance, they will tag  its ear and move it to a less populated location. Second offense - second tag. Three strikes and they're out. If an animal has killed livestock then it is destroyed on first offense - the evidence is that marauding bears that learn to kill domestic animals are likely to seek the same experience again and again - something like 99% recidivism.

Your friend can probably get state assistance in moving the bear, but she should also try to seal up any food which is left at the cabin so that there are no "attractive" smells.
Most brown and black bears are shy of people and will depart rather than confront.
Cougars are also likely to avoid humans if possible. Cougar will look for easy prey, but tend to depart in the presence of large dogs, noise, human occupancy. Generally they go after many of the same animals as coyotes do.
Again, depending on your area, state game offices are the best source of advice and support. Find out if it is legal to defend yourself and your livestock with firearms - laws vary from state to state and species to species.
Hope this is helpful.
Vint Lawrence
Apache Creek Ranch
Santa Fe, NM