Chickens are 'like crack' for wild bears

For years now, bear managers have been preaching the same sermon — residents in bear country need to secure their garbage, take in their bird feeders each spring, clean up fruit trees in the fall and feed their pets indoors.

But now there’s a growing new problem — chickens.

“Chickens are the new garbage,” Chris Servheen, grizzly bear recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said last week during a meeting of bear managers from across the state.

More and more people are now raising chickens as the move to small agricultural operations in both rural areas and in towns continues to grow.

There’s just one problem — bears not only love to eat chickens, they love to eat chicken feed.

“The bears want chickens badly,” said Stacy Courville, a biologist with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. “It’s like crack.”

To keep bears out, residents need to use electric fencing, which is an effective barrier to bears when properly installed. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has even created bear fencing guidelines and held clinics on electric fencing.

Electric fences for bears should have multi-strands of electrified metal wire with a minimum of 6,000 volts, according to FWP.

Chickens aside, bear managers agreed that public awareness about food storage and securing garbage in bear country and the use of bear spray is growing.

More hunters carry bear spray now that its use is being taught in hunters education classes. Outfitters are also using and promoting the use of bear spray in the wilderness. Bear spray has been proven to be a more effective and safe deterrent in bear encounters over the use of a firearm.

Backcountry users are also becoming well-versed in securing foods at camps, and more and more residents are using bear-resistant garbage cans, bear managers noted.

But there are still some problems. Some hunters still don’t properly secure carcasses after kills, Rocky Mountain Ranger District Ranger Mike Munoz said. Perhaps more education is needed that area, he suggested.

Another hurdle is cost and availability. Bear-resistant garbage containers are expensive, as is electric fencing and bear spray. In some cases, bear managers give products away or at least loan them out until people can buy their own, but more than a few loaners are never returned, some managers noted.

For plans on electric fencing for chickens and other livestock and other information, visit online at http://fwp.mt.gov/fishAndWildlife/livingWithWildlife/beBearAware/bearAwareTools.html.