A resident of Stagecoach Road in Avon, Connecticut, received an unexpected visitor last week.
A black bear showed up on the woman's back deck Wednesday morning while the homeowner was making brownies.
The woman said the bear spent about half an hour on the deck, standing up and putting its paws up on the glass sliding door leading to the kitchen.
[NATL-CT] Bear Visits Back Deck in Avon
She told NBC Connecticut the bear had visited the backyard before, adding that she had previously taken steps to prevent bears from being attracted to the yard.
The bear eventually left, but the incident has neighbors spooked.
“Sometimes I let my dogs out in the back and do their thing," Charlie Whitney said. "But now that seemed pretty aggressive and I may have to rethink letting my dogs out unsupervised."
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The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said it was aware of the incident but did not respond. A neighbor came to assist the homeowner in shooing off the animal.
The department noted that the tags on the bear's ears don't mean the animal has a history of bad behavior. Many bears are tagged in each ear for research purposes during hibernation season.
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Officials said they are looking into the bear's behavior to see if any action needs to be taken. However, they stressed that it's common for bears to come onto decks or porches and that it's becoming more frequent as the bear population grows.
