The joys of living in rural Central Florida!

[Pappy!]

Just had a Black Bear on and in my back porch twice tonight!
Mind you I have a 6' wooden fence all the way around the back yard!
Didn't know what was out there at first and let my dog out. He and the dog got into it for a few seconds before it went back over my wooden fence. Neither were hurt. Was after the dog food I keep out there in a huge purple plastic container. He had dragged it off the porch the first time and all the way to the corner of the fence.
45 minutes later he was back and was inside the porch again. Already had the food container and was hauling it off the porch again. Opened the back door and greeted him with a flashlight and a 12 Ga. Good thing he understands English........
Yes, after Lord knows how many years the food is not on the back porch any more.

[Thunderbolt]

Saw one in the Ocala Nat. Forest couple of weekends ago on the road.  Wouldn't want to meet one up close.  Glad everyone is O.K.

[Bert AKA,Valkaholic]

I have Black Bears come through my property frequently but I do not put any kind of food or garbage outside so they just Pass Through. There are at least three that I know of ,Momma ,Poppa , and Baby Bear.
One of my Neighbors has had a Few Black Bears tear through his Screened Porch to access his Cat's Food. He said that he has lately began to take the Food inside at Night but the Bears are still Ripping the Screen to access his Porch. I have heard that the Bears are more likely to look for other sources of food in the Winter Months,(Dog , Cat , and Human Food). It would probably be Wise to feed the Dog or Cat inside of the Home because when the Bears know where to get Food, they tend to Return for more. And even with taking the food in at Night, the Bears can still Smell that is was present in the area that they are accessing.

[John Schmidt]

There was a local joke re. the bear that attacked a woman a week or so back. They set out three traps and baited it with donuts. The joke was; if they caught a few cops were they going to relocate them or just set them free.  

Personally, I've met a few that need to be put down.  

[flsix]

A few years back we woke to the sound of the trash cans being molested and found five of them having a great time with them. Way too many around here.
Fish and game really should open a limited season on them.

[FloridaValkRyder]

A few years back we woke to the sound of the trash cans being molested and found five of them having a great time with them. Way too many around here.
Fish and game really should open a limited season on them.

That's what is coming I'm afraid. It breaks my heart that we have invaded their territory then start killing them off because they have become dangerous. We kind of have a history of this..going back hundreds of years.. Every time we start trying to control a species..we screw it up..Alligators come to mind..

[flsix]

Fortunately gators are one of the success stories as far as repopulating the southern states. Eggs are being harvested from nests and sold to farms to hatch and raise as meat animals, instead of relying solely on hunting to supply the demand.

The same thing has happened with the introduction of the Texas Cougar into the Fl. Panther population. They have breed so well that the cat population has soared. Now we have trapped the Cougars and shipped them back to the great state of Texas and still have enough cats to keep the deer and hog populations in check.

It's interesting that the bear population has increased dramatically simply because of the abundant food supply (read human trash).

[Dougger]

There was a local joke re. the bear that attacked a woman a week or so back. They set out three traps and baited it with donuts. The joke was; if they caught a few cops were they going to relocate them or just set them free.  

Personally, I've met a few that need to be put down.  

John is it the bears or cops that need to be put down

[FloridaValkRyder]

There was a local joke re. the bear that attacked a woman a week or so back. They set out three traps and baited it with donuts. The joke was; if they caught a few cops were they going to relocate them or just set them free.  

Personally, I've met a few that need to be put down.  

John is it the bears or cops that need to be put down

Don't answer that John...could be a trick question..Dougger could be working for either the _{EPA or Homeland Security} Shhhhh... Either way, you will be in big trouble!!