A California family is currently dealing with a bear that’s claiming squatter’s rights.
Jaimey Tate, a homeowner in the “Golden State,” is trying to figure out what to do with a big ol’ bear that’s living underneath he and his wife’s home. The bear wondered into their crawlspace through an opening in the house’s foundation and has made itself very much at home for more than a week.
The good news is that the bear, which is tagged by the state’s fish and wildlife department, hasn’t done anything malicious during its time at the Tate residence. It’s been so well behaved actually that the police won’t do anything removal wise because they don’t deem the wild animal to be a threat.
Jaimey told ABC 7 that though the bear isn’t bothering anyone necessarily, they still notice that they are sharing a home with a sizable animal (that doesn’t pay rent):
“I feel like I’ve heard him a couple of times. We’ve definitely heard him going through the trash, and then last night, he got into the trash and was dragging it under the house. You could definitely hear him in that bedroom.”
And that bedroom that the bear is staying underneath just so happens to be a nursery for the couple’s kid that they are expecting to welcome into the world sometime soon. The thought of a bear and a newborn technically being in close quarters isn’t ideal, as Tate described:
“It’s a little weird knowing that we’re about to have a baby and there’s a bear under the bedroom where you’re going to be putting the child. Other than trash, it’s basically just a nuisance. He’s never messed with anybody.”
That’s true. As a neighbor of the Tates, Kay Thurman, explained, the bear (who has apparently been nicknamed “Sampson”) has lived in the neighborhood for years. It has never been the cause of any violent incidents, though Thurman did say the animal has an acquired taste for garbage:
“He’s a pet. He comes around, sleeps in the front yard. He’ll get in my trash. If I have any chicken bones, he’ll get him. He’s harmless.
A lot of these people might be afraid of him, but he’s harmless.”
Yeah, he’s a pet… until his innate, apex predator instincts kick in and the “lovable” bear turns into the most wanted bear in California. For now, I’ll take the neighborhood’s word for it and assume the bear isn’t a threat. But I can’t blame the homeowner (that will soon need to safely house a baby) for wanting to the bear to move on to the next person’s crawlspace.
You can view the local news story about the squatting bear below:
