Officials: Freeing bear too hazardous

EMO, Ontario, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources said agents were unable to remove a snare from around the neck of a bear.

The ministry said the bear was reported near the town of Emo and agents attempted to tranquilize the animal, but the bear's weight and the large number of bears in the area made the job hazardous, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported Friday.

"It was a really hazardous thing for our conservation officers and technicians to be attempting to try to trap or chemically immobilize a bear when there are, you know, another 40 bears wandering around," MNR spokeswoman Jolanta Kowalski said.

"We do know that the bear can still open its mouth, and it can eat," she said. "But, we are not going to put the safety of our staff at risk in a situation like that again."

The spokeswoman said Michael Scheibler, the resident who reported the bear had a snare digging into the flesh of its neck, has a habit of feeding the local bears, contributing to the ensnared bear's weight.