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Game and Fish officers kill bear, upset AJ neighbors
Associated Press
Nov. 22, 2006 08:51 AM
A black bear that was rummaging through garbage in a community outside Apache Junction was captured and then euthanized by state wildlife officers, triggering howls of protest from residents.
State Game and Fish Department officers said they had no choice but to kill the 2-year-old bear. It had already been relocated once, showed no fear of people and was "a threat to public safety."
"With the advent of all the problems over human encroachment in recent years, we've made a consistent policy," said Marty Fabritz, Arizona Game and Fish Department field supervisor. "The first and foremost is public safety. Period."
Residents of the Gold Canyon neighborhood called officials Friday night, after the bear was spotted digging in garbage cans and climbing in trees. Wildlife officers found the bear in a tree and used tranquilizer darts to get it down.
When neighbors learned the bear would be euthanized, they reacted emphatically.
"The whole neighborhood was saying, Please, please relocate him,' " said resident Susan Van Trojen. "Find a zoo or anything for him. We've got so much open space."
That just wasn't an option, wildlife officials said. The bear had already been removed from Sierra Vista for similar behavior and brought to the eastern Superstition wilderness. And zoos just don't have room for all the large animals that become problems across the state.
"It's unfortunate," said Tom Cadden, a Game and Fish Department spokesman. "But when it is deemed to be a public threat to safety, it becomes necessary to take this action."
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Associated Press
Nov. 22, 2006 08:51 AM
A black bear that was rummaging through garbage in a community outside Apache Junction was captured and then euthanized by state wildlife officers, triggering howls of protest from residents.
State Game and Fish Department officers said they had no choice but to kill the 2-year-old bear. It had already been relocated once, showed no fear of people and was "a threat to public safety."
"With the advent of all the problems over human encroachment in recent years, we've made a consistent policy," said Marty Fabritz, Arizona Game and Fish Department field supervisor. "The first and foremost is public safety. Period."
Residents of the Gold Canyon neighborhood called officials Friday night, after the bear was spotted digging in garbage cans and climbing in trees. Wildlife officers found the bear in a tree and used tranquilizer darts to get it down.
When neighbors learned the bear would be euthanized, they reacted emphatically.
"The whole neighborhood was saying, Please, please relocate him,' " said resident Susan Van Trojen. "Find a zoo or anything for him. We've got so much open space."
That just wasn't an option, wildlife officials said. The bear had already been removed from Sierra Vista for similar behavior and brought to the eastern Superstition wilderness. And zoos just don't have room for all the large animals that become problems across the state.
"It's unfortunate," said Tom Cadden, a Game and Fish Department spokesman. "But when it is deemed to be a public threat to safety, it becomes necessary to take this action."
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