Officers found the bear beating the heat by splashing around in the backyard hot tub of one of the neighborhood homes. Shortly after they arrived on scene, the bear scaled a wall and climbed a tree near the back of the same residence.
The beeping sound was coming from local police using a bear tracker to locate the furry guest. As officers arrived, the bear decided it was time to end his refreshing soak.
“The bear left,” Lewis said. “He went over the fence and all around the yard and went down that backside across the lower yard and up the tree.”
The bear remained in the tree for several hours and was being closely monitored by the Burbank Police Department, California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Burbank Animal Shelter. It later came down from the tree and went off into the Verdugo Mountain area without further incident.
It’s the second time this week some black bears were seen splashing around in a backyard hot tub. On Wednesday, a female bear and her cub were seen playing in a jacuzzi in La Cañada Flintridge.
“We’re all used to a lot of wildlife out here,” Lewis said. “We have deer, really, we have a lot of wildlife and people enjoy seeing it.”
Officials are warning the public that bears, however cute they may appear, should never be fed or approached.
As temperatures continue to soar, wildlife officials say bear en
counters are more likely to occur.
To reduce the likelihood of having a bad encounter with a bear, the National Park Service has a list of tips and tricks to avoid encounters, as well as what to do if you come face-to-face with one of the apex predators.
Some of those tips include talking calmly to the bear so it knows you’re human and not prey, getting as big as possible and remaining calm. You should never run from a bear, climb a tree to escape the bear or allow the bear to eat your food.
