A report that two bear cubs were spotted early this morning on the playground of a Columbia County apartment complex turned out to be false.
Columbia County Emergency and Operations Director Pam Tucker said this afternoon that officials believe the suspected cubs were actually dogs.
A resident of Blue Ridge Commons, on Commons Drive in Evans, had reported seeing what were described as bear cubs about 2 a.m.
“I truly believe they really thought it was bear cubs, but no,” Mrs. Tucker said in an e-mail.
The manager of the apartment complex provided photos of paw prints that state Department of Natural Resources officials identified as belonging to dogs.
“Bears have five toes,” Mrs. Tucker said of the four-toed pictures.
Last month, a black bear officials dubbed Columbo created a community stir as it trekked through Columbia County.
Several sightings of the bear were reported to authorities, but it was last seen on June 19 near Old Washington and Clanton roads.
Those spotting a bear should refrain from chasing it on foot or in a vehicle and give it plenty of space, Mrs. Tucker said.
DNR officials advise that residents should remove dogs from the areas of bear sightings, remove all dog and cat foods from outside porches or yards, and put trash out on the day of pick-up by garbage collectors.
Anyone who spots a bear should immediately notify the Department of Natural Resources’ Thomson office at (706) 667-4672; or dial the county’s 311 help line and a county official will notify DNR.
Comments
Oh boy! If kids see them, they are going to think they are cute and adorable, but if the cubs mamma is around, which normally they aren't separated by far from their cubs, it could get ugly... I hope parents will warn their children not to approach any animals they don't know, and especially these.
run bear run Pam T will beat you too death in the news again and again and again..Leave the bears alone!
Running bares....here we go again....lol
What the article didn't say was that sow bears with cubs are extremely unpredictable and can be deadly. Anyone sighting cubs should remove themselves to a safe area immediately. 100 yards away can be too close at times for a mother bear. Bears can run 100 yards in about 10 seconds so keep your distance and never turn your back on a sow with cubs, they are 100% unpredictable and will not hesitate to kill any threat when it comes to their cubs, wether the threat is real or just percieved.
Bears are all over north of here and south of here. What's the big deal? We have snakes here too and we all know how to NOT handle them.
You notice the time it was reported? 2:00am. First two questions should have been: 1. Have you been drinking? 2. Are you on drugs?
sike!!!!!!!!!!!
Good points, G-dog!
Shows you that some people today don't spend much time in the outdoors, or they just drink too much.
The person that reported seeing the bears was probably still shaken up after being swindled out of $10,000 in the Walgreen's parking lot...I dread getting old!
Great PAM you had to run to the media AGAIN and cry wolf. I noticed the GREAT SHERIFF can do his job with running to the media. Why don't you run for office so we can get rid of you?
RUN SPOT RUN, before Pam catches you and has you put down.......
Good points Tujeez!
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