Sweet roll plan to trap 500-pound bear under Altadena home spoiled by second bruin
Massive bear squats under Altadena, California man’s home. NBCLA
A California man’s attempt to lure a 500-pound bear out from under his Altadena home took a wild turn when a second, unexpected bear showed up.
Ken Johnson, a product photographer, had been dealing with the first bear hiding in his crawl space when another massive visitor appeared on his driveway around 2 a.m. Tuesday, Eyewitness News reported. The unusual activity started with tipped-over trash cans and loose bricks around Johnson’s property. Motion-activated cameras revealed a large, yellow-tagged bear rummaging under his floorboards. The animal made brief appearances Saturday and Sunday night, each time for about 20 minutes.
“It’s scary when I don’t know where it is,” Johnson told The Post. Concerned for safety, he reported the situation online to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) on Monday. Spokesman Cort Klopping confirmed that the agency “made contact with the homeowner based on the report he gave our biologist” and has been advising him ever since.
The bear, estimated at 550 pounds, is not considered a public threat. “There’s no reason to believe additional response is needed,” Klopping said. “It doesn’t appear the bear is posing a threat to the public.”
CDFW has instructed Johnson to maintain his distance, monitor the bear remotely, and wait for it to leave on its own. Once the bear exits, biologists advised him to secure the access point, set up motion-detecting wildlife sprinklers to discourage return visits, and place ammonia-soaked rags near the entrance as a deterrent.
Klopping explained that this behavior is common in the San Gabriel Valley, where mild weather means black bears rarely hibernate. “The bear likely found a den, a warm place where it’s comfortable,” he said. Records show the bear had been tagged about 10 miles away. Agency data indicates its recent activity is consistent with past patterns, with no confirmed link to nearby wildfires.
He also reminded neighbors to secure crawl spaces to prevent unwelcome wildlife guests.
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