DEALING WITH BEARS IN THE WILDLIFE INTERFACE AREA

News Release from Ashland Police Dept.
Posted: April 10th, 2020 11:24 AM

With spring upon us, the City of Ashland is seeing an increase in reported bear activity, especially in the areas above Siskiyou Boulevard and North Main Street. The City, and the APD would like to remind everyone to follow well-established protocols in dealing with all wildlife.
 
Residents should not leave food accessible to any wildlife and at no times should anyone deliberately feed wildlife. Residents who live above Siskiyou Boulevard and North Main Street are encouraged to contact Recology and get a bear-proof trash can. Allowing animals free or easy access to food encourages them to stay in town or close to town. This leads to them getting accustomed to being around people and houses, which increases the chance that they will have to be lethally removed. For more well-established protocols, go to ashland.or.us/deer&wildlife. 
 
Residents are also encouraged to report wildlife encounters via the city's mapping tool, which can be found at ashland.or.us/wildlifemap. Residents can also use this tool to monitor where bear and cougar sightings have occurred to be better informed about taking walks or hikes in the area. Any emergency situations should still be reported directly to the police department by calling 541-770-4784 or 911 as appropriate.
 
Contact Info:
Chief Tighe O'Meara, APD, 541-552-2142
Wildlife Conflict Specialist Mathew Vargas, ODFW, 541-826-8774 x227