Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers responded to a bear sighting at a home near Austin Bluffs and Barnes Road in Colorado Springs on September 2.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife said that the 175-pound black bear was attracted to the neighborhood bird feeders and a chicken coop. The bear reportedly visited five different backyards by climbing fences and trees.

The bear was found in a blue spruce tree and when officers arrived, neighbors were notified and the bear was immobilized. Wildlife and police officers carried the bear to a trailer where it was tagged and given the “wake-up” drug.

The bear was relocated to a better habitat in the state’s southeast region.

CPW took the incident as an opportunity to remind Colorado residents to stay “BearWise” by removing pet food, bird feeders, and other attractants from outside their homes, and only putting trash out on pick-up day.

According to CPW’s “Living with Bears” webpage, most conflicts between people and bears are traced to human food, garbage, pet food, bird seed, and other attractants. If people leave food out for bears to find their natural drive to eat can over their wariness of humans, and bears that get too comfortable around people can destroy property or threaten human safety, according to CPW. Bears that become habituated usually have to be killed as learned behaviors are difficult to break.

Learn more information about living with bears here.

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