Bear visits the same neighbourhood every year and uses locals’ trampolines

A friendly black bear who visits the same neighborhood year after year has been spotted using locals’ pools and trampolines since being welcomed into the community.

Locals in the area have found the large back female bear and her cubs sitting on their porches with their pets since they began visiting the neighbourhood six years ago.

As the most common species in North America, black bears frequently wander out of the forest during the summer in search of food.

Reports suggest locals who live near Blueberry Lane in Farmington, Connecticut, US, are now going to the extent of leaving food out for the bear and her cubs.

Though many Farmington residents have become accustomed to having the animals roam freely in the neighbourhood, some believe the human-bear interactions have become too relaxed.

Michael Costello, 24, who lives near Blueberry Lane in Farmington, said: “She comes down every year. One mama bear and her cubs.

“I know it’s the same bear because she’s double-tagged. It’s one mama bear who’s raised several generations of cubs. She has four cubs this year.”

He added: “I’m of the opinion that a lot of the neighbors aren’t as scared of the bear as they should be.

“There are rumors that someone is feeding it dog food. I don’t think that the bear will attack anyone – but they shouldn’t feed it.

“Everyone has a different relationship with the bear. She comes to my garage to take food, with my neighbors she just sits on their porch with their cat.”

Michael has experienced several break-ins so far, having spotted the bear in his garage four times to date. He added: “She’s definitely part of the neighborhood.”

Experts have previously warned that the practice of feeding animals can be dangerous, as this encourages proximity of the animals, and leads to break-ins.

A flurry of incidents has been reported in California in recent years, involving visits from bears destroying private properties.

A South Carolina resident aged 75 recently said she is too scared to walk up her drive to check her mail since black bears started showing up at her property.

Video footage captured from Linda Chambers’ security camera, shows the animals leave a trail of destruction after every visit, by upturning her chairs and tipping over garbage cans.

Hence, the wildlife agency Colorado Parks and Wildlife advises keeping “all bear-accessible windows and doors closed and locked, including home, garage and vehicle doors”.