RINGWOOD, N.J.– A baby black bear just couldn’t resist the neighbor’s animal crackers.
The cub found the family-sized box of cookies and satisfied his sweet tooth, but when he finished the box the situation got sticky.
“He was trying to eat what remained in the jar and pulled the jar over his head,” Said Larry Ragonese, spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Protection told NorthJersey.com, “He got spooked and went up into the tree.”
The 28lb bear got his head stuck in the box of crackers, a scene police couldn’t believe. The bear was wedged 40-feet up in a tree with the box of cookies stuck on his head when the rescue team arrived. The fire department came brought their bucket truck that was used to climb up to get the bear.
On the ground local police set up a net to catch the bear if he were to fall. The rescue team spent two hours saving the troubled cub. When they got to the cub and tried to cut the box off of the bears head they were forced to tranquillize him because of his distressed state.
But after the rescue the baby bear was cared for and was just a little thirsty from the stressful evening. Once the bear was safe and secure on the ground the team gave him a nice ice-cold bath to rehydrate and cool him down.
Now the little guy is in the care of a local rehabilitator where he is doing just fine.
State wildlife officials say people need to be more cautious about leaving their trash out, especially when you have curious creatures all around. Trash can be fatal to animals that get into more than they can handle.
By: Charyssa Parent
