In an unexpected turn of events, a family in Oakland, New Jersey, found themselves sharing their home with a bear and her four cubs. These uninvited guests took up residence in an alcove beneath the family’s porch, transforming it into their temporary den.
Initially, the family, led by homeowner Veronica O’Brien-Lim, found the presence of the bear family somewhat charming. The sight of the cubs, with their playful antics, added a dash of cuteness to the unusual situation. However, the close proximity of the protective mother bear was a cause for concern.
O’Brien-Lim reached out to the New Jersey Department of Fish and Wildlife, seeking guidance on how to handle their unusual predicament. The department assured her that the bears were likely to leave soon, although there was no guarantee they wouldn’t return.
As winter transitioned into spring, the bear family began to emerge, bringing the novelty of having them around to a close. The cubs, in their quest for adventure, started exploring the neighborhood, rummaging through trash cans, and even taking a bite out of the family’s central air unit.
What began as a quaint tale of wildlife cohabitation quickly turned into a pressing concern for the family, as they sought humane methods to encourage their furry tenants to relocate. The bears’ initial charm was wearing thin, and the family hoped for a peaceful resolution to their wildlife dilemma.
As the cubs started to explore their stomping grounds, they rifled through the neighbors’ trash and even gnawed on the family’s central air unit.
Now, as the community slowly reaches its wits’ end, O’Brien-Lim is looking for a reprieve, but told the outlet that “any intervention is really a last course of action.”
“If [the NJDFW] haze the mother out, she would possibly run and abandon the cubs, and then they would have to find another sow to basically put them with. Or if they tranquilize her and caught the cubs, they would have to create a new den for them nearby,” she explained.
Other neighbors are also perturbed by the influx of sightseers, who have caused traffic jams on the block while trying to spy on the bears.
“The first week after [O’Brien-Lim] posted that they were under [her porch] before they started coming out really, it was like paparazzi here, cars driving by, people walking by, where are the bears? It’s not a zoo,” neighbor Donna VanRy told the outlet.
The sleuth left their den for the first time since hibernating on Tuesday morning. At some point during their short outing, one of the cubs was snared while trying to scale a fence.
It was freed by a Fish and Wildlife team and reunited with its mother. The pack continued its journey, though the rescuers warned they could return later Tuesday, or in the fall for hibernation again.
O’Brien-Lim told the outlet that they’ve been advised to board up the crawl space underneath the porch, effectively shutting out the bears.
