Problem Bears ... Any Tips?

When you are putting out bait stations and waiting for your intended game to show up is not hunting. As a young boy growing up in Clearfield County, Pa., we would park our truck/car and start walking into the woods "hunting" for whatever game was in season. No one talked about baiting. We would have thought that wasn't fair to the animal. Stop baiting, bears most likely will move on and just go hunting. Many times we came up empty. Did not matter. We got out and went "hunting". Good exercise as well. Don't make your hunting acreage a grocery store meat aisle. Baiting to me is "suckering" some poor animal that is hungry into an invitation to get killed. That will never be hunting in my estimation.

How about a strand of electric fence just about as high as that bear's nose when he's up on his hind legs? Maybe one below the rope holding the feeder too.

H&Hhunter said:

And what you suggested with your SSS comment would be illegal in this case and considered poaching. Those bears are in no way shape or form problem animals in regards to life or property. They are just bears doing what bears do.

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I also mentioned to speak with the local game warden about the possible legalities of the issue. I am not from Florida so I wouldn't know the laws pertaining to that state.

Florida FWC is NOT going to do anything for wild bears in their native habitat. It is hard to get them to trap one "downtown"

My question is what is the OP baiting for?? Hogs??? Deer???

Heck I am not even a hunter but a fisherman.

https://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/wildlife/bear/living/recreating/


Deer Feeders. Deer feeders are wildlife feeders, and bears will be attracted to them, especially if you are using corn. Switch feed types from corn to soybeans, which are less preferred by bears. We have provided a list of frequency of bear use of common deer food items. Set up your feeder so it is out of reach from bears. Hang the feeder at least 8 ft high and 4 ft from the attachment point. You can also set up a solar powered electric fence around the feeder. Deer will be able to jump the fence, bears cannot. Planting food plots is the best way to attract deer while reducing the chances of attracting bears.

Armored farmer said:

How about a strand of electric fence just about as high as that bear's nose when he's up on his hind legs? Maybe one below the rope holding the feeder too.

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That’s what I am thinking, maybe you don’t have to kill it just make it not like to play with your toys anymore.

Have fun with it, how about a bunch of big rat traps with clothespins glued to the back to hang on the line



If I had the problem I would have to make a gigantic version of the spinner I made for the squirrels around here.

https://oi121.photobucket.com/albums/o213/jmorrismetal/farm/goodrun.mp4

Patocazador said:

I have 150 acres to hunt and put out 2 feeders about 2/3 of a mile apart. It only took about two days for bears to show up at both places. Eating the corn is expected but now 2 of them have shown remarkable smarts and are trying to bring the feeders down from their perches high above them on strong narrow limbs.

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As you can see, they are fighting over the corn. What I don't want is my feeders ruined but I don't know how to stop it without shutting them down.

They had one 2-day bear hunt here about 4 or 5 years ago but the antis have stopped them since. Also, our game department is not really interested in fighting the antis.

HELP! Please.

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Try a 300 Weatherby Magnum

Pile of donuts loaded up with exlax under your feeders. I tend not to go back and eat at a place that made me have a back door fire hose. Maybe the bears will be the same.

In seriousness d though,I really know what to tell you other than to stop feeding them for a few weeks and see if the bears move on. They're only trying to find some grub and your making it easy for them, can you blame them?

Edit to add:

Maybe you know a young buck you could flip a 20 or a pack of beer to, to lend you a hand stringing up the feeders so they are higher?

You could use boards with nails sticking up. Deer would probably step over them, but bears generally won’t if the span is wide enough.

But if people are using the area, may not be a good idea.

I agree that the electric fencing idea has merit if it can be set up to deter bears and not target critters

Heh!

Get yourself a large drone, load it up with feed, then tie the video into your remote control!

"Oh, look! A bear!"

*launch drone from stand and raise drone 30 feet*

"Oh, look! A deer!"

*continues to scatter feed*

Patocazador said:

Anyone have experience with dogs and bears?

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My only experience with dogs and bears comes from where our daughter lives up Rattlesnake Valley in NE Missoula. There’s plenty of noisy dogs, both big and small in that neighborhood, and we have never visited our daughter in the summer when we didn’t see at least one bear, as well as a dozen or more deer wandering the streets.

Missoula has ordinances about people leaving their trash cans out except in the morning of pickup day. They even have ordinances about people leaving fruit hanging on fruit trees after it has ripened. Both things attract bears.

I suppose some people still crowd the line when it comes to obeying the anti-bear ordinances. People are people. But I know for sure there are bears in Missoula – in spite of all the noisy dogs. Of course there are leash laws in Missoula too. Maybe the bears have learned that barking dogs behind fences aren't much of a threat.

Last summer, after spending a week in Missoula visiting our daughter, on the morning we were leaving to come home I was carrying our luggage from our motel room out to our pickup-truck. Our motel on that trip was clear on the other side of town from Rattlesnake Valley. Even so, when I got to the front door of the motel, there was an older lady studying a hand-written note posted on the door. The note ask motel guests to avoid the parking lot behind the motel because a young bear had been spotted there the night before.

About the time I finished reading the note, my wife walked up. She was leading our Cocker Spaniel (Ruger) out for his morning walk. So I pointed the note out to my wife, and told her that she probably should find a place out in front of the motel for Ruger to do his business.

I thought that older lady was going to have a fit. She was like, “What?!? There’s a bear out there and all you care about is where to walk your dog?!?”

I told her that bears are fairly common in Missoula, and that they usually don’t bother anybody as long as they are left alone. But she was still indignant. She said, “Well, we are from Los Angeles, and we are not used to bears.”

I was nice. I didn’t say what was on my mind. I just finished carrying our luggage out. My wife finished walking Ruger, and we got in the truck and came home.

Quit feeding them and they will go away.

I worked on a NW Refuge that had bears in LA. The bear biologists suggested to the deer hunters that put out bait on adjacent private land to use soybeans rather than corn. Deer eat soybeans so it may be worth a try.

Good luck,

Bull

The Evangelist Cowboy said:

No, poaching is harvesting game illegally. Your not going to know until you ask, that simple if you disagree it don't matter. After all I'm just some guy on internet.

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....and what are you suggesting? You are suggesting shooting a bear(or both) for no reason other than they are eating bait. They are no threat to the OP or anyone else. They haven't attacked anything but the corn and the feeder in an attempt to get more corn. I'd be hard pressed to think that Florida F&G is going to think that killing those bears is anything else but poaching under that scenario. Besides, if you weren't suggesting poaching/illegal harvesting, why the shut up and shovel after the shoot? Why the need to bury the evidence if everything is legal?

buck460XVR said:

....and what are you suggesting? You are suggesting shooting a bear(or both) for no reason other than they are eating bait. They are no threat to the OP or anyone else. They haven't attacked anything but the corn and the feeder in an attempt to get more corn. I'd be hard pressed to think that Florida F&G is going to think that killing those bears is anything else but poaching under that scenario. Besides, if you weren't suggesting poaching/illegal harvesting, why the shut up and shovel after the shoot? Why the need to bury the evidence if everything is legal?

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It's a common saying that has been said on this forum before. It's not that hard to comprehend, well maybe for some.

Subject: Re: soybeans for deer in feeders?

We tried them. Bears and deer didn't touch them. Racoons, rats and crows loved them.
From a friend
Bull

Patocazador said:

Armored Farmer's electric fence is a good idea imo as is Rule3's. Thank you.

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Seems like an electric fence would keep deer and hogs away too.

Seems like an electric fence would keep deer and hogs away too.

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High enough so the deer and hogs can’t touch it but a reaching bear could would be the ticket.

For that matter if the feeder is metal and insulated from everything when in the air, just connect the fence controller directly to it.

We use regular cattle panels to keep cows out, the deer will jump over to eat and we cut low openings for the hogs, if we want them there, so they can go under.

jmorris said:

High enough so the deer and hogs can’t touch it but a reaching bear could would be the ticket.

For that matter if the feeder is metal and insulated from everything when in the air, just connect the fence controller directly to it.

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I see. That makes sense.

Patocazador said:

OK. This has turned from a "don't destroy the feeders" thread to a "bury the bears" thread. All I am trying to do is keep the feeders from being destroyed.

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^^^^^

Don't you love it when you ask a simple question about ONE specific subject and folks take it off on a tangent (or worse), start in-fighting and lecturing.

The solution depends on what you want to do:

1. IF you don't mind the Bear(s) getting some amount of the corn....but don't want them tearing up your feeder you will have to suspend it.

2. IF you don't want Bears there at all (safety risk, etc...) then of course... you'll have stop all feeding until they move on.

There are a number of ways to suspend a feeder that don't involve you climbing the tree. PM me if you like...we can discuss it.

Scionti95 said:

When you are putting out bait stations and waiting for your intended game to show up is not hunting. As a young boy growing up in Clearfield County, Pa., we would park our truck/car and start walking into the woods "hunting" for whatever game was in season. No one talked about baiting. We would have thought that wasn't fair to the animal. Stop baiting, bears most likely will move on and just go hunting. Many times we came up empty. Did not matter. We got out and went "hunting". Good exercise as well. Don't make your hunting acreage a grocery store meat aisle. Baiting to me is "suckering" some poor animal that is hungry into an invitation to get killed. That will never be hunting in my estimation.

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Not everyone hunts just for the fun of it. Call it what you like, but I hunt to provide healthy meat for my family.