LETTER

Co-existing with bears

 

So we all moved to Aylmer for its beauty, charm and to be closer to nature. We have beautiful parks, trails, lots of wooded areas, beautiful waterfront and, Oh my God,  Bears. Every once in a while the pungent odour of a skunk permeates our clean air, no one complains, every so often our garbage gets knocked over by a raccoon, we learn to secure our garbage cans. But now like many years in the past, we have bears and people are freaking out. We also have deer but that’s ok because they are so cute, but a bear is big and scary -- and what are they doing in my yard!

Bears are not out to get you.  They need to eat to store enough fat to get through the winter and with the dry summer we’ve had, their food is limited. They just want to eat and be on their merry way. We  need to learn how to co-exist with them for a few months a year and let’s not forget, they were here first.

Denys Lord, Aylmer