A Whistler man faces a bylaw infraction of having his dog off leash, and possibly a charge of endangering wildlife, after RCMP officers responding to a situation were forced to shoot and kill south of Function Junction last week.
On Friday (May 21) at around 5 p.m., officers responded to complaints that several people had stopped along Highway 99 about two kilometres south of Function Junction to take pictures of a bear grazing in the ditch on the west side of the highway, RCMP Sgt. Shawn LeMay said. In addition to causing traffic congestion, witnesses said one woman was getting dangerously close to the animal, he said.
When officers arrived, some of the vehicles continued on their way, but one man was outside his parked truck trying to take photos of the bear. The man's dog then jumped out out a rolled-down window of the truck and ran aggressively toward the bear, LeMay said.
The bear attacked, injuring the dog, and would not break off its attack even when officers fired two warning shots into the air. The dog's owner was still "just feet" away from the altercation when officers decided to shoot and kill the bear to protect public safety, LeMay said.
The matter is under investigation. The man, who gave police his contact information before rushing his dog for treatment, will be ticketed for having his dog off leash and could face a charge of endangering wildlife under the Wildlife Act, LeMay said.
"We're talking with the Ministry of Transportation (MOT) about additional protective measures, perhaps including warning signs" about not stopping for wildlife along the highway," he said.
Sylvia Dolson, executive director of the Get Bear Smart Society, urged people not to stop along the highway to look at bears, and to report dangerous situations to police or conservation officers immediately.
"This is a predictable outcome to all the changes along the highway," Dolson said, referring to the fact that her group cautioned the MOT not to hydroseed the shoulders of the highway with sweet clover, which bears love and is rich in nutrients. The society also asked for fencing and animal underpasses, of which only a couple were installed.
At least two other bears were killed in collisions with vehicles along Highway 99 in the past week. On Thursday (May 20), a bear was found dead after an apparent collision with a vehicle on the four-lane section north of Brandywine Falls; on Saturday (May 22), officers called to the scene of another reported collision found a bear dead. It wasn't clear whether the vehicles involved were damaged.
On Friday, a collision with a bear was reported but conservation officers weren't able to attend and couldn't confirm whether the bear was killed, Sgt. Chris Doyle of the B.C. Conservation Officer Service said.
Conservation officers also responded to a cougar that has attacked a miniature horse, a goat, a duck and a house cat in the D'Arcy area, Doyle said. The cougar remains at large.
To report bear incidents, call (604) 905-BEAR. To report wildlife or fisheries-related incidents, phone the Report All Poachers and Polluters (RAPP) hotline at 1-877-952-7277.
