Date:         Sun, 27 Jun 2010 13:36:07 -0700
Reply-To:     Alistair Bell <albell@SHAW.CA>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Alistair Bell <albell@SHAW.CA>
Subject:      Re: Westy Configurations and Bear-proofing
In-Reply-To:  <20100627153436.3YNGF.891569.imail@eastrmwml46>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed

2 years ago, westy camped at Scot lake in the caribou region of bc,
we (wife, son, myself) rode our mountain bikes along trail, with dogs
with us... 2 dogs, 76 and 100 lb mutts. We came right upon a sow
black bear with 2 cubs. I mean right upon. The cubs went up the a
tree (beetle killed pine), our dogs went after the sow and chased her
off. We got out of there quickly, back towards the lake.

I honestly thought the dogs would be toast, but they came back,
without the bear :)

They did not function as an early warning device that time, but they
ran interference.

There are pros and cons camping with dogs. They can be a royal PITA,
but then again they are fun. I won't take them with me fishing (Vn.
island, west coast draining rivers) in sept/oct. The number of bears
on the rivers eating salmon is incredible. And the dogs would just
roll in the salmon carcasses and stink up the van. BTW at those times
the bears seem to take very little notice of us camping, so much
other food around.

cheers

alistair





On 27-Jun-10, at 12:34 PM, Dave Mcneely wrote:

May be that big dogs are bear deterrents.  'Cordin to USNPS, pets may
be bear attractants.  At any rate, about 2 people per year are killed
by bears in the U.S., compared to about 90 people per year killed by
dogs.  Just sayin ......... .  DMc