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Vail Daily letter: Angry at bear killing

Ellen Mitchell
Vail, CO, Colorado

Shame on you. You killed an innocent young bear in cold blood. Shot him dead when there wasn’t any immediate threat to you or your family. Yes, there was a small bear exiting your house as you drove up in the late evening and it wasn’t the first time he was there that day.

But you had alternative actions you could have taken to secure yourself and call 91. Instead you grabbed a pistol and shot him as he hung from the gutter– not once, or twice but three times.

This 70 pound yearling wasn’t aggressive. He wasn’t even the size of a large dog. He was doing what comes naturally, looking for food to survive.



You taught him where to find it. In spite of multiple requests over several years, you refused to take down the bird feeders which are prohibited in Cordillera in summer months.

Only that same morning, when the bear intruded, you had been asked to secure your doors and windows. Your roofline virtually touches the ground and gives easy access to upper windows. Yet you left for the evening, didn’t secure your home and provided the window of opportunity for trouble.

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We don’t need vigilantes killing animals. The Division of Wildlife and Cordillera Public Safety have all the necessary training and tools to make the right decisions for both the bear and the community.

Cordillera has an outstanding “Living in Harmony with Nature” program. All the animals are treasured by most of us who live here. It is a joy to watch them in their natural habitat. You deprived each and every one of us from watching that yearling grow up over the years.

Every homeowner gets educational information at least once a year so we can prevent any unwanted incidents. Most of us read it. Very few adamantly refuse to be in compliance with it.

There is an interesting old folklore held by the aboriginal tribes of Taiwan. They consider black bears to be almost human in their behaviors. The unjust killing of bears is equated with murder and will cause terrible misfortunes. I think a new folklore is better. The unjust killing of a bear unites a community in a howling protest and justice is rendered. Shame on you.

Ellen Mitchell

Cordillera


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