Another Bear Gun Thread

[jkc]

My buddy's been hanging out at his mountainside National Forest inholding, while construction progresses on a permanent cabin on his Ponderosa pine clad site. He called from his cell phone the other night, to report that while he was plinking his way around his new banjo (he's not a musician, but likes monkeying around with stringed instruments...) he noticed his dogs alerting to something downslope, and on inspection, noticed a juvenile black bear, apparently oblivious to the sounds and scents of dogs and banjo playing humans. We spend a lot of time there, in very high quality, high density bear habitat, but have not, over many years, seen any bears, or even bear spoor, on this site, so he observed with interest the young bear's exploration of the premises.

He called last night to say that the young bear had returned several times, and that concerned that it was becoming too familiar and complacent about humans and their stuff, he decided to discourage it, and commenced firing at it, with a Daisy Red Ryder BB gun... He said that after figuring out the Kentucky holdover, about six feet, he reported, that the bear would arch around and snap at the impact site, as if at a yellow jacket sting. After a few episodes, the bear has not since reappeared. The Forest fire closure for the area has been rescinded this morning, so I'm now legally permitted to enter, and will camp there tomorrow night. I'll of course have something more potent than a Red Ryder to dissuade a bear, if need be...

 

[David LaPell]

I am not sure if I would be willing to pop a couple of BB's at a black bear. Those BB's don't travel very far and I know when my nephew had his Red Ryder you could actually see them in flight they were going so slow. Did you ask him what would he have done if that bear had decided to come towards him and not leave? I would use something that made alot of loud noise (of course I would have had a minimum of my .357 on my hip) but there must be something keeping the bear around. He might come back, he might not. Here in NY some of the cities like Albany and Schenectady have been dealing with bears all summer long, they had to kill one, and that was a relocated bear, twice. Many have been relocated 50-60 miles and they go right back. A couple of those bears have been whacked with bean bag rounds, alot more potent than a BB gun, and they return until they get doped and sent elsewhere's.

 

[DGNY]

Perhaps specially tempered, LNFP BBs would be the ammo of choice, with a 'special' spring powering the projectile? As always, with low powered arms and bears about - rounding the front sight could be a useful step.

Regards,

Dyson

 

[mc5aw]

they had to kill one, and that was a relocated bear, twice ...

That must have been one tough bear if they had to kill him twice. No doubt the first kill was accomplished with a standard factory load, while the second kill required the special Hornady Zombie round once the bear reanimated itself.

 

[jspick]

This is a small immature black bear. He may have been drawn to the "music" being played by your friend. Just being courious. But they are afraid of most everything.

One way to deal with this bear is for you to hide down wind of where this bear comes in from while your friend is playing the banjo. When the bear gets between you and your friend both of you charge the bear and hopefully chase the bear up a tree. Then throw rocks and hit it with sticks. Shoot your gun into the ground. Yell a lot and hit the tree with limbs, etc. The thing is to scare the **** out of the bear. Be very aggressive acting towards the bear.

That should do it. Then walk away. But while you are leaving act like a mature bear that has had his territory invaded. Run back and yell and "attack" the tree and thrown more rocks and tear up the ground around the tree. Do that a couple of times. Then finally leave. If that bear is normal it will not be back.

Back when my boys were home and we had a dog we did this several times over the years. Once a small bear was "attacked" by us we never saw them again. This will make a bear encounter with the bear as a mature bear very unlikely.

If there is no tree just chase the bear yelling and throwing rocks and shooting your gun into the ground until you are quite a ways from the cabin. Not quite as dun or effective, but it works.

We now have a small brown colored black bear that is hanging around. It tore the big screen off our dining room window, has been getting into things. I don't have a dog to warn me and I am slower than I use to be so I haven't done this in a few years. It was a great sport with us and it kept the bears from causing problems. No harm will have been done to the bear and you have kept it wild. Human accalamted bears are the problem bears 95% of the time.

John

 

[feralmerril]

Maybe you can make friends with the bear and then check its sense of humor with a hand buzzer.

 

[MrAmbassador]

Triple S and be done.

 

[RightArm]

Put out a plate a food covered in exlax. That'll teach 'em. On second thought, that's a remmedy for frat boys. It might work on rich, city bears.

 

[BearBio]

Triple S and be done.

Be aware that is poaching! I deal with the effects of their deeds every day. We just sent one to jail last week=deservedly, he lost all his gun rights for life!

I would recommend the noise factor. Get a disposable foghorn, get your dogs to chase him (maybe a buddy has some hunting dogs or a local guide could use the practice for his dogs). Bean bags or a paint gun. Be sure to have some bear spray (I know another thread will start from that).

By the way, while researching bears in Calin we had a couple come back over 200 miles.

 

[Rule3]

+P BB's are very effective!

Heck we had a Black Bear on Sanibel Island(there are no bears on the Island, he swam in from somewhere or on a raft from Cuba) Been trying to catch it for a year. He liked to hang out at the Lighthouse and entertain the foreign tourists.

Finally caught it and relocated North of Tampa. Guess he did not like it there and traveled back South to U of S Florida and then Busch Gardens!

Black bear caught on Sanibel Island captured again near Busch Gardens | The News-Press | news-press.com

 

[Kanewpadle]

When I was a kid, my parents obtained land from the State of Alaska to build a cabin out in the middle of nowhere.

Right on a game trail!

We cleared the brush back about a 100 yards. And when we saw one, we yelled at it to go away. Which worked more often than not. But sometimes we shot them in the rear with birdshot. Didn't hurt him much at 50-70 yards and they went away.

We only had to kill one. A brown near got between my mother and the cabin and would not go away. So I put him to sleep with a 12ga slug.

These days cracker shells work good too.

 

[DeadAye]

+P BB's are very effective!

Can you shoot +Ps in a Red Ryder?

 

[David LaPell]

This is a small immature black bear. He may have been drawn to the "music" being played by your friend. Just being courious. But they are afraid of most everything.

John

What was he playing Dueling Banjos?

 

[crofoot629]

My family just did a Lower Rogue rafting trip.
We saw 7 bears in 3 days.

The density of black bears is very high. I've been running the Rogue and putting up with black bears there for 30 years.

Dogs have always worked for me to keep bears out of camp.

I carry bear spray and a 12 GA loaded with OO, and slugs on the butt cuff. The OO will in my opinion take care of what I see as small bears on the Rogue. And would work well on something like a rabid skunk or coon too, better than slugs or my 45-70. My 870 has a white light and Tritium bead as well.

I'd hate to shoot a bear down there, as it would be a trauma to my kids, and I'd have some "Splaining to do". Though it really helps the USFS and BLM have signs posted about repeated and frequent problem bears in camps.

When I river guided in Alaska I carried either a .338 or 12 GA, and 44 Mag.
There were plenty of Brownies. I've never shot a bear.

At the end of the day? For you? Bigger is always better.

45-70
12 GA
Hi-cap 45 acp Ball (I shoot my 629 for poo with magnum loads).

Heck an AR with M855 would work.

Emory

 

[COL Jagdog]

This is a small immature black bear. He may have been drawn to the "music" being played by your friend. Just being courious. But they are afraid of most everything.

One way to deal with this bear is for you to hide down wind of where this bear comes in from while your friend is playing the banjo. When the bear gets between you and your friend both of you charge the bear and hopefully chase the bear up a tree. Then throw rocks and hit it with sticks. Shoot your gun into the ground. Yell a lot and hit the tree with limbs, etc. The thing is to scare the **** out of the bear. Be very aggressive acting towards the bear.

That should do it. Then walk away. But while you are leaving act like a mature bear that has had his territory invaded. Run back and yell and "attack" the tree and thrown more rocks and tear up the ground around the tree. Do that a couple of times. Then finally leave. If that bear is normal it will not be back.

Back when my boys were home and we had a dog we did this several times over the years. Once a small bear was "attacked" by us we never saw them again. This will make a bear encounter with the bear as a mature bear very unlikely.

If there is no tree just chase the bear yelling and throwing rocks and shooting your gun into the ground until you are quite a ways from the cabin. Not quite as dun or effective, but it works.

We now have a small brown colored black bear that is hanging around. It tore the big screen off our dining room window, has been getting into things. I don't have a dog to warn me and I am slower than I use to be so I haven't done this in a few years. It was a great sport with us and it kept the bears from causing problems. No harm will have been done to the bear and you have kept it wild. Human accalamted bears are the problem bears 95% of the time.

John

Using Jspick's "bear drill" is also effective at getting rid of unwanted neighbors, hobo's, and door-to-door salespersons.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Make sure you pee around the tree too. Don't know how it works for bears, but the neighbors get the point!

Nothing like the look on the next door neighbor when she goes out to get her paper and sees you marking the front lawn

 

[jspick]

CAJUNLAWYER Make sure you pee around the tree too. Don't know how it works for bears, but the neighbors get the point!

Nothing like the look on the next door neighbor when she goes out to get her paper and sees you marking the front lawn

Using Jspick's "bear drill" is also effective at getting rid of unwanted neighbors, hobo's, and door-to-door salespersons.

What was he playing Dueling Banjos?

This is why I like this forum so much!!!-----It is all the thought provoking posts that reflects the intellect of the people here! LOL LOL LOL

JOhn

 

[jkc]

Well, I'm back safe and sound (of body if not mind) and there's more to tell about the BB'd bear. It showed up yesterday afternoon about 3:00, meandered around, ignoring the wildly barking and snarling dogs, human conversation, etc., then wandered off into the thick brush and disappeared. The cabin site has been "fireproofed" by the removal of low brush, limbs, etc., but outside the barbed wire fence delineating the property boundaries, the north slope chaparral is thick enough to conceal a battalion of mechanized armor, and a small bear... It reappeared again at mid-morning and was chased off by more loud noise and BB gun fire. It came back several times during the day, and was shot, harmlessly again, running off, then sneaking back until being run off again. It was evidently lured by the smell of human food, dog food, and bird food and chicken feed stored on site.

Late this afternoon, with dark thunderclouds rolling by and not too distant thunder echoing between mountain ranges, the lady of the house and I were sitting at the picnic table, under the temporary cabin eaves, engaged in a tightly contested game of Scrabble, wherein I had just scored a personal best score of 78 points with a 3-letter play (JINX vertically in the upper right corner ---double letter score on the X, triple word score on the J...), when she looked up and casually remarked, "We have a very close visitor." Which we did. Too close. Unnoticed by us, and the sleeping dogs, the young bear had closed to about 15 yards, apparently headed to the stock water tank about ten yards below us, the only nearby water source. Ignoring the Ruger .44 Mag carbine at hand, I instead grabbed the Red Ryder, shouted at the bear, and advanced, firing... This commotion of course caused the dogs (chained to prevent them engaging the bear...) to commence a furious cacophony of barking and growling. The bear darted away, while I continued firing at it, hitting it apparently, once or twice, at the aimed-for rear end.

By the time we left, it had not reappeared. There had been a massive nearby forest fire a few weeks before, and we suppose that this young bear (about three years old, by my estimate), has been displaced from its former, now burned up, mostly Wilderness habitat, and has not previously encountered humans, and dogs, and BB guns, and nor had its mother, and so it knows nothing about the danger presented by these strange
quadrupeds and bipeds. With luck, it has learned a valuable lesson today. If not, and it persists in close human approach, it will eventually be killed by some trigger happy camper, or doomed by the intervention of "authorities".

 

[jspick]

Awwwwwww............I was hoping for my plan of attack!

John

P.S. let us know if he comes back and what damage he did.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

So according to jkc-the Red Ryder BB gun is an effective bear gun

Who knew????

How about a Beer Gun thread for a change ?????