Enormous bear raids Florida fridge, snacks on fish sticks and strawberry sauce
Andrew Raymond Scheirer II, a resident of Sanford, was gardening in his backyard on Sept. 30 when his neighbor informed him about a bear that had entered his garage and was rummaging through his refrigerator.
Enormous bear 'raids' garage fridge, scoffs fish sticks and strawberry sauce
Footage captured by Andrew Raymond Scheirer II shows a large bear in a garage pawing at a bottle as it licks up the spilled contents.
SANFORD, Fla. – A large bear was discovered drinking strawberry syrup from a garage refrigerator, unfazed by a Florida homeowner's attempts to scare it away.
Andrew Raymond Scheirer II, a resident of Sanford, was gardening in his backyard on Sept. 30 when his neighbor told him a bear had entered his garage and was rummaging through his refrigerator.
Scheirer said he quickly grabbed his phone and captured a video of the bear playing with a bottle it had knocked down from the fridge and licking its contents.
Footage captured by Andrew Raymond Scheirer II shows a large bear in a garage pawing at a bottle as it licks up the spilled contents.
(Andrew Raymond Scheirer II via Storyful)
With the help from his wife, Scheirer attempted to scare away the bear with loud noise. However, their efforts only led the bear to relocate to a different part of the garage, where it devoured the looted goods.
"The bear went behind my Jeep in the garage with strawberry syrup and fish sticks from the fridge and just plopped down to eat," he said. "I started to yell at it to leave until he looked me dead in the eyes, and I decided to lower my voice."
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What to do if you encounter a bear
Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom's Peter Gros told FOX Weather how to be safe when hiking and camping in bear country.
Bear safety
The National Park Service warns people should keep their distance and stay calm if they encounter a bear. The agency suggests knowing several tips if you ever come face-to-face with a bear:
- Make yourself look as large as possible: Slowly wave your arms to let the bear know that you are not prey
- Stay Calm: Talk to the bear in only low tones. A scream or sudden movement might trigger an attack
- Move slowly away: Don't run. Make sideways movements away from the bear
- Be cautious around cubs: Don't approach or get between a mother and her cubs. Bears will attack to fend off any perceived dangers to the cubs
National park officials said bear attacks are rare, and most bears are only interested in protecting food, cubs or their space.
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"However, being mentally prepared can help you have the most effective reaction," the NPS said.
Brown/Grizzly bears: If you're attacked by a brown/grizzly bear, leave your pack on and play dead. Lay flat on your stomach with your hands clasped behind your neck and spread your legs to make it harder for the bear to flip you over, the NPS said.
Remain still and wait for the bear to leave the area.
Black bears: If you're attacked by a black bear, do not play dead. Try to escape to a secure place like a building or car. If you can't escape, try to fight back using any available object. The NPS says to concentrate your kicks and blows to the bear's face and muzzle.