David Strege| For The Win<\/p>\n
A bear stepped on and popped a beach ball outside the tent of a family camping in Colorado, leading to an unfortunate set of circumstances that prompted wildlife officials to search for the bear with the intention of euthanizing it.<\/p>\n
A husband and wife and their 2-year-old daughter were sleeping at Monument Lake Resort, about 37 miles west of Trinidad, when around 2 a.m. Friday the woman heard a bear sniffing around the campground, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.<\/p>\n
When the bear popped the beach ball, the daughter woke up and began crying. When the woman went to comfort the child, she \"likely\" brushed the side of the tent.<\/p>\n
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\"The bear reacted by swatting at the movement, tearing the tent fabric and scratching the victim on the head,\" the CPW stated. \"Then the bear wandered off.\"<\/p>\n
District Wildlife Manager Bob Holder responded to the scene Friday morning and interviewed the victim.<\/p>\n
The woman sustained scratches to the head but was not seriously injured, and she didn't seek medical attention.<\/p>\n
Holder inspected the tent and found four tears in the fabric, along with mud and dirt at the base of the tent fabric.<\/p>\n
\"Because the bear made contact with a human, it is classified under CPW policy as an attack,\" CPW stated. \"If found, the bear will be euthanized.\"<\/p>\n
Also on FTW Outdoors: Bear follows hiker for nearly 4 minutes after sniffing her leg<\/p>\n
Wildlife officials began searching for the bear with a team of dogs, and the local District Wildlife Manager set a trap in the campground in hopes of catching it. As of Saturday morning, it hadn't been found.<\/p>\n
\"This is an unfortunate incident because the bear was not aggressively pursuing the victim,\" said Mike Brown, CPW's Area Wildlife Manager for the region.<\/p>\n
\"If the bear intended to harm the woman, the outcome would have been much worse. The evidence of the investigation illustrates that bears react to the environment they live in.\"<\/p>\n
Also on FTW Outdoors: Dead grizzly bear found on a Washington beach is a mystery<\/p>\n
Because bears sometimes respond to movement in an occupied tent, Holder recommends that campers sleep away from the walls of the tent to avoid such tent movements.<\/p>\n
The CPW recommends that people who recreate in wildlife areas be bear aware, and offers tips on how to do so.<\/p>\n
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Bear in Colorado pops beach ball, leading to 'attack' on woman in tent - USA TODAY<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" David Strege| For The Win A bear stepped on and popped a beach ball outside the tent of a family camping in Colorado, leading to an unfortunate set of circumstances that prompted wildlife officials to search for the bear with the intention of euthanizing it. A husband and wife and their 2-year-old daughter were sleeping at Monument Lake Resort, about 37 miles west of Trinidad, when around 2 a.m. Friday the woman heard a bear sniffing around the campground, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife Continue reading