Contributors to this thread:
Living in bear country, over the years I have had 3-D targets nocked over numerous times and have also upon ocassion have had my 18 in one targets rolled across the yard. This is the first time I have had chunks bit out of a target. One in the belly one in the neck and one at the base of the head. The target is only 3 days old, bummer!!
I got pics. of the culprit heading into my back yard at 4 am. It looked to be an average size adult bear. Oh well, just part of living in the north woods.
Our local archery club has had numerous attacks like this on innocent, unnarmed, defenseless targets. This kind of senseless violence needs to stop.
It's rogue bears that give the majority of cuddly bears a bad name?
Exactly. I think they smell us.the smells frim us on the targets. It seems like they always bite where we touch them to put them together, carry them, and hold them to pull arrows.
Do they tear up bear targets more or less than the other critters? I once had a bear that would not come to bait in shooting hours so I got desperate. I put a 3D bear target setup as it was eating the bait. That bait site went cold after that. It was funny watching squirrels walk on the target, stand on the bears snout looking down at the bait.
I know they chewed up bear targets as well as deer and others, but I don't remember them having a favorite.
FRD567..... Had the same target as yours and a bear target tore up a few years back by a bear.
Bears tear up my ground blinds. Been several years now - but I've lost several blinds to broken struts and cubs that have bitten up my decoys.
Frustrating to come into the blind early morning dark to find it in a pile!
If someone wants to use a portable ground blind for bear hunting it is a tough call whether to leave it out so the bear gets used to it or take it out with you so it won't get destroyed. Over the years I have come to the conclusion you are far better off just sitting on the ground or on a chair even if it means nothing to conceal you. I have shot a couple that way. But obviously a few branches in front of you will certainly help.
That is how my dad shot his first and only bear at 70 years old. We started out in tree stands but the bear was seeing him and would not go where he could see it but I could see his feet. So after 3 days of that we walked in with chairs and sat side by side with no cover at all. Checkmate, bear came right to the bait looking up at the empty tree stands.
Jeff - I forgot to mention I was turkey hunting when I had those incidents!
I'm too big of a baby to sit on the ground bear hunting! LOL
Bloodtrail, I got broke in quick with bear. I hunted a private land ATV trail and off that was a 20 yard lane with the bait at the end of that lane. I was sitting on the ground in a little brush on the other side of the ATV trail from the bait. My first day of bear hunting. Looking at the bait and I 'feel' like I am being watched. I rolled my eyes to the left and here is a bear looking right at me from about 5 feet away. I froze as he did. He took a small step toward me and stopped. He is looking at me and I am squinting my eyes to avoid eye contact. After a long time (probably a minute) he had enough fun with me and he boogied.
I thought about my options and decided to walk to and sit another bait along that trail figuring he would not come back while I was in that same spot. Not long before quitting time I stalked over to that first bait, took my shoes off as I got close for stealth mode. He was on the bait and I shot him. He did not go far.
^^^That would have had me changing my pants!
Still waiting on my first bear tag but I've witnessed some bears while hunting from trees. Sometimes I could hear them huffing and stomping from 100yrds away. Sometimes not until 10yrds
