Bear Family Barges Into Simsbury Home

SIMSBURY, CT — Folks living on Old Farms Road in Simsbury might want to be "bear aware" as local authorities like to say in these parts.

That's because on Tuesday, not one, not two, not three, but four furry black bears made their way inside a Simsbury home on Old Farms Road, according to town and state officials.

According to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, wildlife biologists and environmental/conservation police with DEEP were called to Simsbury for a report of a mother bear and three cubs inside a home.

The Simsbury Police Department Tuesday morning confirmed the home invasion happened on Old Farms Road.

DEEP spokesman Will Healey said when state officials arrived, the bears had not left the site.

The good news, Healey said, was authorities determined the bears could be spared and they were not euthanized, as can happen sometimes when bears inhabit a human habitat.

On May 24, a single bear barged into a home on Old Canal Way in Simsbury, frightening the homeowner and prompting a similar response.

Unfortunately for the bear, authorities opted to euthanize that bear because it had spent too much time in the house and was likely to be a future threat.

That wasn't the case Tuesday morning, however, Healey said.

"Based on field conditions and cub location, biologists decided to tranquilize the sow and cubs for relocation," Healey said in a statement.

"The bears were aversively conditioned and released to a large block of suitable, wooded habitat."

Last week, a Canton business owner shot and killed a bear in self-defense after it charged the individual while it was raiding a dumpster on Cheryl Drive.

Such encounters in recent years have been more and more common as the bear population's growth locally combines with development in its habitat areas.

For more information on black bears in Connecticut and best practices to reduce conflicts with bears, click on this link.

From June 3: 'Man Shoots Bear In Self-Defense In Canton'

From May 24: 'Bear Invades Simsbury Home Friday Afternoon: Police'