It was late June when I had my first bear encounter in my Minnow Lake community.
I was letting my dogs out in the backyard and there it was, a black bear, rustling around the bushes alongside my chain-link fence. After running inside and calling the MNR Bear Line, I made sure to notify the other families on our street.
Since then, myself, my husband and our neighbours have had more and more of these sightings and close run-ins. It's time for something to change.
Let's take last week as an example.
Monday: As I drop my two children (both under the age of three) at their daycare on Third Avenue, a lady across the street notifies me that there is a large bear next to the house.
Tuesday: On our way to nursery school, we see yet another bear running on the street and climbing onto porches on Barry Street.
Wednesday: While walking with my husband, two sons and two dogs, a neighbour yells out 'bear,' and there it is, a mere 10 feet away from us. And he didn't seem afraid of us or in any hurry to leave the area.
Finally, Friday of the same week: I am walking my dogs down Bancroft and as I nod to say hello to a woman walking with her dog, she lets me know that a bear was just seen on Autumnwood Crescent. Four sightings in five days and this is just my personal experience.
Do I feel sorry for these bears who are likely afraid of us and simply looking for food? Sure. But am I 'OK' with these constant sightings or feeling afraid to let my children play outside?
The feeling that leads me to pack a baseball bat in my double stroller; the feeling that keeps me awake at night imagining what I would do if I was in fact, face-to-face with said bears? No, I'm not OK with it.
Yes, we live in Northern Ontario, but am I the only one who thinks our domesticated bear situation has become a major problem?
I personally don’t have any answers as to how we solve the bear problem, and I don’t think killing more bears is the primary solution.
Maybe it’s time to examine our Bear Wise strategies and extend them beyond passive activities like cleaning up food attractants (a no brainer) and look at whether there is more that can be done to make urban areas unattractive to bears.
I am desperately writing this today to urge our city to protect its citizens before something tragic happens. Can we make some decisions for our safety? I speak of the bear issue in Minnow Lake, but earlier this year two people were sent to hospital due to run-ins with bears in the Long Lake area. You think this would be enough for major change.
I just got home from a walk with my 12-month-old son and dogs and received a text from my mother noting that five bears were just spotted in my area.
I am woman (mother, wife, daughter, concerned citizen); hear me roar. Bottom line: we must address the issue of domesticated bears, today.
Andryanna Gonko
Sudbury