Get Bear Smart at Home

Although watching a bear feed in your yard can be an exhilarating experience, it almost always leads to trouble in the future. Making sure your home and yard are bear safe is an essential part of making your community safe for both bears and people. Here are the main things you can do:

Keep your home bear-attractant free. Don’t attract bears to your property with garbage, bird feeders, fruit trees and berry bushes, gardens, compost, dirty barbecues (grease cans or drip trays) or pet food.
Don’t stockpile garbage and recycling in large quantities. Store it indoors; or outdoors in bear-resistant containers. If your community has curb-side pick-up, don’t place it outside until just before pick-up.
Bears can and will climb through open windows and doors. Consider keeping them closed and locked during bear season, especially if you know there is a bear in the area.
Use specially designed bear deterrents—remotely triggered noisemakers and sprinklers or unwelcome electric door mats—to discourage bears from entering your property, especially while you are away for extended periods.
If you encounter a bear in an urban area, remain calm. Give the bear plenty of space and an easy escape route. Call your local conservation/wildlife officer and report your bear sighting.
Keep the whole neighbourhood safe by encouraging your neighbours to follow Bear Smart practices, too. Better yet, consider starting a Bear Smart effort in your community.

Explore the rest of this section to learn more about how you can prevent human-bear conflicts at your home.