A novel idea they hope will catch on

November 2, 2024 11:13 AM

Tired of having his fence ripped apart, a man builds a "doggie door" for bears.
posted by sardonyx (19 comments total)

I. LOVE. THIS.
posted by FallibleHuman at 11:29 AM on November 2 [4 favorites]

20,000 calories a day! sign me up :)

(this is really awesome and brilliant and its a really nicely done door. Bear Crossing!)
posted by supermedusa at 11:59 AM on November 2 [2 favorites]

Very nice. Also tempting to put some kind of in-out sensor so you have a good guess whether the bear is in the yard. If the yard is small and clear enough that it isn’t obvious!
posted by clew at 12:13 PM on November 2 [6 favorites]

Maybe bear can be friends?

Good for this dude and his bear friend to reach across the species divide and get things worked out.
posted by Windopaene at 12:13 PM on November 2 [3 favorites]

Ha, as soon as I saw the post title I wondered if it was in British Columbia. I enjoyed watching the Global reporter climbing through the bear door—that guy commits. To be fair, it’s a really nicely built swinging door!

I was glad that the bear society person was supportive. I know it’s important not to feed bears and reduce bear/human encounters in order to protect the bears from being destroyed, but honestly we are encroaching on their territory, and it’s nice to see that acknowledged. No one is going to be tearing down their multimillion dollar North Vancouver homes and giving the bears back their land, and the bears aren’t going to stop breaking through people’s fences, so I think this bear door is a really good solution.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 1:02 PM on November 2 [2 favorites]

If you put a bear door in your fence, will they come? Asking for a friend.
posted by maxwelton at 1:10 PM on November 2

Bears are friend shaped...

My parents live in far NW New Jersey and bears are a thing. They always scan the area before leaving the house and keep a noise maker on their keychains. They are not really really a threat to humans but they are big and far too comfy living next to us. (not their fault, of course, we hog up too much space)
posted by supermedusa at 1:22 PM on November 2 [3 favorites]

Read that as "face" for a moment.
posted by mhoye at 1:29 PM on November 2 [5 favorites]

mhoye, very same.
posted by Kitteh at 2:14 PM on November 2 [1 favorite]

I love this very much.

The weight idea: so is the door keeping out other, smaller critters beyond bears and reporters?
posted by doctornemo at 2:15 PM on November 2 [1 favorite]

Yep, also misread that as "Tired of having his face ripped apart, a man builds a 'doggie door' for bears."
posted by limeonaire at 3:10 PM on November 2 [6 favorites]

I have no real reason to fear bears. I live in a typical suburb, although woods are about two miles away. And yet they terrify me. The noises they make, the huge paws,etc. I should stop watching those YouTube videos of bear attacks. Wiki has an interesting page of the timeline of bear attacks.in USA.
posted by Czjewel at 3:29 PM on November 2 [1 favorite]

It took me a while to get used to how ubiquitous and relatively harmless the bears on the coast are. For those from away, north of the city is largely protected no humans allowed watershed lands, past that it's basically bush all the way to Alaska.
They built homes right up to the bush, and nature walks in pretty regularly.

I grew up in grizzly country and had more than my share of encounters, including getting charged on a high mountain pass, when they say they can outrun a horse they sure as heck weren't kidding. That said they generally prefer to leave you alone, but if you happened to upset them or make em feel threatened there would mostly definately be a response.

The bears around Vancouver though, super chill, generally avoid direct encounters and can be scared out of an area successfully by the average middle aged person in their underwear upset at the bear getting into the bear proof garbage can again. People will have their kids playing on a playground while a bear grazes contentedly on the grass on the other side of the field. It's a vibe.
posted by Pink Fuzzy Bunny at 6:30 PM on November 2 [2 favorites]

The North Shore Black Bear Society living with bears advice is a fascinating read, actually.

Particularly:

TEACHING BEARS

Bears are intelligent animals and they can be taught to avoid areas where they shouldn’t be. It is important to set clear and consistent boundaries with bears by ensuring there is no food inviting them and by moving them on from a safe place if they are on your property. Bears are becoming accustomed to loud noises such as air horns, barking dogs, pots and pans, and car alarms. While those noisemakers may be effective at encouraging some bears to leave, we see most success when using a firm tone, making eye contact and asserting our human dominance from the safety of a deck or window. Don’t expect a bear to run, they are not fearful. If a bear is eating it will be difficult to get their attention, try with a firm tone but be patient, you may have to wait until the bear has finished eating. Be persistent with using a firm tone, maintaining eye contact, and standing tall. When the bear starts to do as you have asked, keep encouraging them with your voice but soften your tone.

posted by lookoutbelow at 8:40 PM on November 2 [12 favorites]

It is important to set clear and consistent boundaries with bears

So those would be beariers, eh?
posted by thecincinnatikid at 4:56 AM on November 3 [8 favorites]

In a few months we're going to be taking over my in-laws' house and they are moving to a graduated living community. They get bears in the backyard on occasion - and I can't wait. They've sent us a few fuzzy videos of the bear being neighborly, and I'm here for it.

20,000 calories a day! sign me up :)

Right? I was clearly born the wrong species. "Store fat" and "nap a lot" are right up my alley—I'd have been a very successful bear, I think, instead of a human who has a lot of trouble finding jeans that fit right and a desire to overdo desserts. Berries, salmon, and honey sounds like a fine diet.
posted by jzb at 7:29 AM on November 3 [4 favorites]

Despite all the marketing hype, there is NO bear door that will also keep out reporters, i can guarantee that once these bear doors get more widespread use, TikTok is going to be full of videos of reporters sneaking in through the bear doors and interviewing a local historian, talking to the local theater troupe on their opening night, or reporting on overnight snowfall amounts.
posted by AzraelBrown at 7:43 AM on November 3 [5 favorites]

It is important to set clear and consistent boundaries with bears

So those would be beariers, eh?

Better to have barriers than buriers.
posted by Nerd of the North at 4:16 PM on November 3 [1 favorite]

I love this guy's door implementation and I hope it holds up and serves his needs and the needs of his neighborhood bears.

I, too, live on a bear thoroughfare and (now that we have finally managed to train some of the humans around us to behave sensibly about a few things) appreciate and enjoy living with ursine neighbors.
posted by Nerd of the North at 4:22 PM on November 3