Bear calls rise around Lake Tahoe as California, Nevada take different approaches

Bear-related calls are on the rise around the Lake Tahoe region, with South Lake Tahoe police reporting 174 calls so far this year, compared with 97 during the same period last year.

But because Lake Tahoe spans California and Nevada, how officials respond to bears can look very different depending on which side of the lake you're on.

In Nevada, wildlife officials have a unique tool at their disposal: a four-legged bear chaser named Badger.

Badger is a Karelian Bear Dog trained to work alongside Nevada Department of Wildlife biologists. His job is to haze bears that have become too comfortable around people.

The goal isn't to hurt the bear. Instead, the dogs create a negative association with people and encourage the bear to retreat back into the wild.

"Using the dogs versus other tools makes a difference in the amount of time that they stay away from people, how quick they are to retreat from people when they're encountered again," said Becca Carniello, a Nevada Department of Wildlife game biologist.

Nevada has used Karelian Bear Dogs since 2001, and officials say the dogs can help change how a bear responds the next time it encounters people.

California uses a different toolbox.

California Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Cort Klopping says officers can use a range of hazing techniques, including yelling, making themselves appear larger, using air horns and other loud noisemakers. In some cases, wildlife officials also use bean-bag guns or paintball guns.

With bear activity increasing around Tahoe, that raises the question: Why not add a dog like Badger to California's toolbox?

Klopping says California has considered the approach but doesn't see enough added benefit to justify it.

"It's something that has been successful for a lot of different departments in the past. It doesn't seem like it's really worth it necessarily for us. It doesn't give us any more effectiveness than the other hazing techniques that we use to move the bears along," Klopping said.

The states may use different tools, but wildlife officials on both sides agree that hazing is only a temporary solution.

"Anything we do with the bear, hazing the bear, it's only a temporary behavior change. The permanent solution has to come from people securing their trash," Carniello said.

That puts human behavior at the center of the issue.

Unsecured garbage cans, pet food left outside and even a dirty barbecue grill can attract bears — and once a bear learns that people mean an easy meal, it can become increasingly comfortable coming back.

"The attractants, you know, that goes for unsecured garbage cans, pet food left outside, even something as simple as not cleaning your grill after you use it," Klopping said.

So while Nevada's Badger can chase a bear away and people can haze one when it gets too close, wildlife officials say the best defense is preventing bears from finding a reason to stick around in the first place.

For now, the message from wildlife officials remains the same: Different states may have different tools, but keeping bears wild starts with keeping human food and trash out of reach.