Bears found at B.C. grow-op safe for now, will be weaned off dog food
Posted August 31, 2010 7:57 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
KAMLOOPS (NEWS1130) – Nearly 20 tame black bears that were found roaming fields of pot plants in southern B.C.will be weaned off their diet of dog food as wildlife officials try to avoid destroying the animals.
Conservation officers have now identified 17 bears on a 28-hectare wooded property in the community of Christina Lake, where the RCMP discovered marijuana plants in late July.
Fears that the animals could be euthanized sparked an Internet campaign urging the province to spare the bears as the story attracted headlines around the world.
B.C.’s environment minister, Barry Penner, says the couple who fed the bears has been ordered to keep doing so, reducing the amount of food leading up to winter hibernation.
Penner says the bears could have become more dangerous if they were forced to cut the dog food “cold turkey.”
He says the Christina Lake couple will have to pay for the food and will face charges under the Wildlife Act, as well as criminal charges related to the pot plants.
