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Tens of thousands of black bears roam Wisconsin, and yet, to see one up close is rare.
Jeff
I was like, "Wow!" It actually ran by me 20 yards away, and I was so excited, I jumped from my tree stand to the next tree, and I shimmied down, and I ran after it. And most people, I guess, do the exact opposite, ya know.
Angela
From that chance encounter, Jeff Traska went from chasing bears to chasing a dream. I had to make a decision. If I was going to be hunting and harvest one of these animals, or if I was going to learn more. And I decided I'm gonna put my bow down, and I'm just gonna do my own research. More than 35 years later, the research continues, just steps from Jeff's front door.
Jeff
None of this was ever planned.
Angela
"This" is the Wisconsin Black Bear Education Center, a not-for-profit private sanctuary.
Jeff
They have approximately seven acres they can roam. There's ponds, there's meadows, there's trees.
Angela
With a kind heart for bears, Jeff converted his land into one of the largest, most natural bear facilities in the United States. We want to replicate as much of nature as possible. Look over here. See this kinda hole? I want people to come and see the animal in the most natural atmosphere that they can.
Woman
But you never actually go in the--
Jeff
Yeah, I go in there every day with them.
Woman
Oh, you do?
Jeff
Yeah, yeah. I've been bitten, scratched by all these guys. When I analyzed the situation, it's always been what I did.
Angela
Each of his four bears comes with a personality and a past. Vince was rescued from a breeding facility. From day one, he was always kinda shy, from when he was five pounds, and I bottle-fed him. Sunny and Moon, because they were brother and sister, created a kinda different atmosphere because they both had one another to look upon. And Sky, our latest bear, he came to us when he was only a year-and-a-half. You know this is Sky, because he's up in the tree. His mother was killed somehow, and we got him from a rehabbing place up in Rhinelander. Part of Jeff's mission is taking the fear out of a bear encounter. People have the impression that bears are walking around through the woods with blood dripping out of their mouth, waiting for the next hiker to come along. When somebody comes here, hopefully, they get to encounter a bear, but it's in a good situation. He was swimming in the pond just before you guys got here. And when they come across the bear, it's not so much, "Oh my God, there's a bear! "Let's run out of here!" A black bear is nothing more than a couple-hundred-pound gray squirrel. That's really all it is. It's just looking to find food to survive and make it through the winter; that's all it's doing....Bed and breakfast, and all that kind of stuff. Through the years, Jeff has learned to communicate with his guests and his bears.
high-pitched grunting
Woman
Wow. When they hear the vocalization of the bears, and when I can replicate those sounds, the mother will go
woofing
Woman
, or even call the bears, that's a big thing for the people. Instantly, the cubs will go up the trees. People think when they hear a bear go,
rapid grunting
Woman
they're going, "Oh my God, I'm gonna die right now." But, all the bear is basically saying is that there's a danger in the area, and they're uncomfortable with the atmosphere.
bear roaring
Angela
Tempers can flare this time of year when food is most important, especially when packing on the pounds to survive a long winter.
bears woofing
Jeff
If it's real, they'll stand their grounds, and normally, they kinda face off.
scratching
Angela
Jeff has had his own close encounters with hungry bears.
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high-pitched grunting
Angela
The bears come up to me; it ain't no big deal. They see me taking nuts out of a pail, especially Vince. I didn't see him over there, and I was throwing some stuff, and he grabbed the bucket with my leg... and he had his head in the bucket, and I'm going, "Vince, come on, now."
rapid grunting
Angela
And the harder I tried to pull, it just got tighter, tighter and tighter. I'm like, "Well, okay, finish them." Their sense of smell is 2,000 times better than ours, seven to eight times greater than a bloodhound, and they could smell a dead carcass up to 20 miles away. It's satisfying for me to have the people ask questions. Those are called smelling receptors. That's what makes me tick. Despite all he's doing for his bears and for the public, Jeff's not done, yet. I made this commitment to take care of these animals for the rest of their life. We have 40 acres, about six or eight miles from here. I'd like to create a rehab facility to where I can take care of injured and orphaned bears and then be able to release them into the wild. I've learned a lot so far, but just think how smart I'll be when I'm 100, 'ya know.
laughing
wistful music
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