COMMENTARY: When a bear shows up, show respect

By Olivia Lawrence

It seems like just about everyone in Connecticut has a story about the time they saw a bear. Bears show up in all kinds of places. Backyard trampolines and cupcake shops are two unusual recent sightings.

A few years back, Southington had a bear roaming its downtown and a few weeks ago one wandered into downtown Hartford. Apparently, even busy commercial areas are not off limits. Another instance was that time a bear wandered through the automatic doors at Crazy Bruce’s liquor Store in Bristol.

Home break-ins involving bears are another example of bear-human interactions. A bear was euthanized after it broke into a Bloomfield home recently.

A bear biting or otherwise attacking a pet or even a human are the kind of incidents that, although quite See Bear, A8