"Our black bears"

I used to religiously write but lately my thoughts have been scattered with several different elements in our life. In fact surprisingly enough our life is positively mellow tone. We do have a resident black bear. We've seen him lurking around but he mainly hangs out at our neighbors house. When speaking with our neighbor they've had nothing but problems, constant garbage eating, the bear destroyed their compost area and has been on their porch peering in. We told her that we don't have these issues probably because our home is full of loud children and barking dogs! She then asked to borrow some children! Since we started this new garbage collection, one week food waste only, we've had an increase in wild animals. This black bear has found it easy to access food in our area and is becoming a nuisance. The conservation officer has been called but this black bear seems extremely intelligent dodging the officers attempts to find him. After all if I was the bear, I would know exactly when it's safe to come out too! As much as I write that wild animals can be a nuisance and a worry for our safety, I feel for their confusion. We have taken over their forest with building construction. Who's to say this isn't the black bears home? Correct me if I'm wrong but generally speaking I think that the animals aren't interested in us nor trying to frustrate us with the endless spreading of our garbage. Really, if I was a bear I would be thinking "Thank you for the food" Being that we're in their forest putting out samples. I really hope when the bear is found that he's brought further into his territory rather then ending his life. It saddens me to hear another animal has been deceased simply because he's lost, confused and only eating what's been put out for him. Of course we're not feeding the bear - like written above, he's enjoying the food waste and composts. A regular smorgasbord! I've read that black bears roam large territories, the males might wander a 15 to 80 square mile home range while the females usually give birth this time of year. Did you know that their cubs will stay with their mother for two protective years? The mother bears will nurse their cubs during the winter season until spring, then they will emerge searching for food. We always hear that bears hibernate this time of year but I read a fact that they are not true hibernators. During the winter period they won't eat, drink, urinate or defecate but will awake if disturbed. I think if anyone has a fear of a new lurking visitor (like anything) education is the key. Years and years ago we had a wolf family on our property. Another story that reminds me of a scene off of the "Little house on the Prairie" where the wolves would surround the home, pace back and forth on the front deck. I would have reoccurring dreams of wolves but after facing my fear and educating myself on the animal, I was cured of my endless worry. The dreams stopped. Sometimes we have to learn to live with them and with caution. Kind of reminds me of teenagers. (Smile) Come to think of it black bears and teenagers have common traits, they usually surface at night, sneak into the food leaving evidence they were there, sleep until odd hours of the day, roam again when hungry and grunt when somethings not just right. Huh - we're more closer to the wild then we think!