WATCH: Bear In West Hartford Makes Itself At Home

WEST HARTFORD, CT — For a man who just saw a black bear in his house, the person yelling for the creature to "Go home" and "Get out" seemed relatively calm.

Whether that really was the case is anybody's guess, however, as a television station broadcast shocking footage of a lumbering black bear calmly strolling through a West Hartford home in broad daylight.

According to WTNH Channel 8, the bear was spotted Sunday in a Walker Lane residence on Sunday.

WTNH posted what appeared to be video footage of the animal inside the house, with a man calmly, but firmly, urging the bear to exit via the front door — which it did.

WTNH also posted photos of the uninvited guest's aftermath, which showed it has rummaged through garbage and food stored in the garage and kitchen.

WFSB Channel 3 identified the woman who sent out the video and, according to her Facebook page, the man "convincing" the bear to leave is her husband.

State Department of Energy and Environmental Protection spokesman Will Healey said Monday afternoon this wasn't the first time the bear was spotted indoors at that location, with the creature making an appearance July 25 last week.

Healey said DEEP officials were called to the scene Sunday for the animal's return engagement.

"The bear pushed through a screen door to gain entry and the homeowner chased it out," Healey said in a statement to Patch.

After the July 25 incident, Healey said the town's "animal control officer told them to contact DEEP and to keep main doors closed for the next week."

Healey said DEEP hopes to capture the bear in the next week and "aversively condition the bear" to stay out of homes.

He said bears visit homes for one reason and one reason only — they're hungry.

"The primary contributing factor to bear problems is the presence of easily-accessible food sources near homes and businesses," Healey wrote.

"Black bears that consume human-associated food (birdseed, trash, pet food) on a regular basis become habituated (comfortable near people) and food-conditioned (associate humans, houses, and neighborhoods with food). "

This, he explained, is not a good thing given the size of bears and how strong they can get.

Encounters between humans and bears can, sometimes, go badly for the person and the bear.

"Food-conditioned bears pose a greater risk to public safety and often cause more property damage to houses, cars, pets and livestock," Healey said.

DEEP offered up the following tips regarding these dark-haired, furry creatures. They include:

• Never feed bears, intentionally or accidentally.

• Remove birdfeeders and bird food from late March through November. Clean up spilled seed from the ground.

Store any unused bird seed and suet in a location not accessible to bears, such as a closed garage.

Do not store bird seed in screened porches or sheds where bears will be able to rip screens or break through windows to access the seed.

• Store garbage in secure, airtight containers inside a garage or other enclosed storage area. Adding ammonia to trash cans and bags will reduce odors that attract bears.

Periodically clean garbage cans with ammonia to reduce residual odor.

Do not store recyclables in a porch or screened sunroom as bears can smell these items and will rip screens to get at them.

Garbage for pickup should be put outside the morning of collection and not the night before. Ask your garbage removal company if they provide bear-proof garbage cans.

• Keep barbecue grills clean. Store grills inside a garage or shed.

• Do not leave pet food outdoors or feed pets outside.

• Supervise pets at all times when outside.

• Avoid placing meat scraps or sweet foods, such as fruit and fruit peels, in compost piles.

"If you see a bear in your yard, do not approach it. Go into your house, garage, or other structure. If the bear persistently approaches, go on the offensive — shout, wave your arms and throw sticks or rocks," wrote Healey.

Tuesday morning, the Town of West Hartford's police department re-posted the state's bear guidelines on social media, which West Hartford Animal Control posted Monday.

"This is a friendly reminder about living with black bears in CT," wrote West Hartford Animal Control.

Ultimately, no one was injured in this case, not even the bear.

Though, perhaps, its feelings may have been a bit hurt given the tone of the man telling it to leave.

Then again, who could blame him?

Anyone with questions about bears, can contact DEEP's Wildlife Division at 860-424-3011.

• For the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection bear fact page on its website, click on this link.
• For the WFSB Channel 3 report, click on this link.
• For the full, WTNH Channel 8 report, click on this link.
• For the West Hartford Police Department's Facebook page, click on this link.