Bear Encounter

by Rachel Campos-Duffy (Subscribe to Rachel Campos-Duffy's posts) Jul 7th 2009 4:00PM

Categories: Kids 5-7, Kids 8-11, Teens & tweens, Health & Safety

Last night, as my husband, Sean, lay sleeping and I was brushing my teeth, I suddenly heard strange and terrifying noises outside my second-story bathroom window. Animal screams, I thought. Then, sounds of branches breaking and cracking underfoot. Whatever was moving around was BIG. Then I heard the sound of crying, like a child. At that point, I was totally freaked out and ran to the bedroom to awaken Sean to tell me what was out there.

After listening to the ruckus out back for a few seconds, he declared that it was a bear carrying away a baby fawn. The poor little fawns are known to cry in fear and pain. Then, with a yawn, he crawled back in bed. This was one of those moments in my marriage when I was very aware of just how different our rural vs. urban childhoods were.

Distraught by the thought of the scared little fawn, and still freaked out by the screeches continuing outside our rural Wisconsin home, I called my mom, who stayed on the line with me as I continued to listen from the bathroom window. Then, suddenly, from below my window I heard a deep, low, scary growl.

The next day, I declared an "inside day" of reading and board games for the kids, despite the beautiful weather. In the afternoon, my husband came home for lunch to tell me that he had just talked to a warden from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The warden confirmed what we thought had happened the night before. Indeed, bears prey on baby fawns at this time of year. He also warned us to train our kids on what to do should they encounter a bear.

I want to share his advice with other parents. According to the warden, it's important that the kids not scream (yeah, I know that's a tough one to teach, but that's what he said). Always keep your eye on the bear and do not turn around or give him your back. Walk backwards slowly to a safe place. Talk in a low voice to let the bear know you are human and raise your arms in a non-threatening way above your head to make yourself appear bigger.

I recognize that not everyone lives in bear country, but a lot of urban families will be camping outdoors this summer. Chances are that you will not encounter a bear, but it's always good to know what to do, just in case!
Here's a link to some more bear facts for kids.

Tell me, have you ever encountered a bear? If so, what did you do?

Comments (10)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

EK 7-07-2009 @ 4:50PM

I remember camping in the Montana mountains as a child and there was one evening where a bear crashed through our campsite and bit through a cooler in an effort to get to our meat! From then on all food would either be hung from a tree, or packed in air tight containers to prevent tempting smells from wafting. I vaguely remember Park Rangers recommending we make strange noises like banging pots together, or better yet- getting a dog with a good bark. Scary indeed!

pamela 7-07-2009 @ 6:16PM

im sorry but i dont think anything you do can scare away a hunger bear other than a gun shot, i mean , look at the timothy tredwell guy, who was spending months at a time with the same bear that ate him and his friend. the only way to not get attacted by one is to just plain stay away from them or have a gun if you live or camp where the bears are! especially if they have cubs !

LS 7-08-2009 @ 9:33AM

Timothy Treadwell was a moron. Sorry for the strong language, but he was messing with things he didn't understand. Multiple times, he was asked by rangers, and other law enforcement, to cease and desist his dangerous activities, but he ignored them. Please do not hold him us as the standard for behavior around bears. They are dangerous creatures, and should be treated as such.

EK 7-08-2009 @ 10:50AM

Sorry Pamela, but there are plenty of more user- friendly techniques for keeping bears away while enjoying the outdoors. The Center for Wildlife Information has a Black Bear Safety Tips section which recommends many of the things I listed, as well as carrying EPA registered bear pepper spray, carrying fabric softener (all animals hate the smell), making noise by shouting and acting aggressively, and if it's close to your home-perhaps installing an electric fence. Personally, I like these ideas much better than the Debbie-downer gun promotion.

pamela 7-14-2009 @ 2:52PM

i bet you wouldnt be a "debbie downer" if a bear or person was attacking you in your home!!! I DONT THINK SO

pamela 7-14-2009 @ 3:17PM

better yet EK, how about trying the hug-a-bear technique...........unreal, protect your self, having a gun could save your life!!!! hey, im not trying to make you think a little, just maybe....maybe you'll think about it, let alone a bear coming at you to eat you alive, there are horrible people in our world today, im not saying yee haw everyone needs a gun yeeeeee hawwww, come on man, use your head , ecspecially if you have kids, remember , its very simple .......its better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it, and remember person, guns don't kill people , people kill people ....and animals for that matter.

Sifrina 7-11-2009 @ 12:08PM

Now that's scary! I totally understand the need to stay on the phone with mom (I did this once right after an earthquake when living in Seattle and my mom was back east). The closest I ever got to a bear was when we stayed in a cabin in West Virginia and one had apparently been through our leftovers in the garbage. That's as close as I ever want to get!! Thank you for the bear info, which is very important; but I think, um, I'll avoid bear country for a long while!!

Flutterby 7-12-2009 @ 10:48AM

Over the years, Oprah has had at least 2 women on her show who were attacked by bears and survived. I recall one of them attempting to poke the bears eyes out. Do a search on her site and the information should come up.

Dena 7-20-2009 @ 11:30PM

We have a summer cabin in Eagle River, Wisconsin. A few years ago my children and I were sitting out back reading when I noticed something large and black on the road about 1 city block away.
I whispered to my children to get into the cabin, grabbed our little poodle, who was oblivious to the bear and ran into the cabin with my children. We watched from a window as the bear walked by our cabin and up the road. We jumped into the car and drove up the road to see if we could still see the bear, we did! Not only did we see the bear we were lucky enough to see a little baby bear running around it's momma. Darling to see mom and baby but not something I would ever want to meet in the forest. Yikes!

TheCozyCountryHome 9-22-2009 @ 12:12AM

Just found your post on a bear encounter. We had a 400lb mama break into our home a few months ago. We have 10 total (black bears...we're in the Northeast) and they come around every day. We have air horns (you know,the ones from football games) hanging on the swingset and all around our property. My children are well educated in how to act when they encounter a bear; unfortunately it's a necessity! Here's a link to our bear encounters...
http://thecozycountryhome.blogspot.com/search/label/%22Wild%20Kingdom%22

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