Conservation officers are warning people to be on the look out for an injured grizzly bear that has been spotted in Cokato Road and near the ski hill road in Fernie.
The bear appears to have an injured left front leg that it can’t seem to put any weight on. Conservation officer Frank de Boon said he wants people to call them if they spot the bear.
“It is an average sized grizzly, and could have been injured in a fight with another bear, or maybe hit by the train. Hopefully the injury is not too bad and the bear will recover on it’s own but we would like to monitor it.”
De Boon said he wants people to be especially cautious if they have small animals.
“I would suggest locking animals up overnight,” he said. “Often injured bears are more timid than normal, so I don’t think the bear would be overly aggressive.”
The bear was spotted in Cokato Road, near where the pavement ends, at 10 a.m. Tuesday, then again around 11:30 a.m. the same day heading north along the Elk River near the ski hill road.
“It was able to get up and down the riverbank so hopefully it will recover. We certainly want to monitor it and give it a chance.”
If you spot the bear, please call the conservation officers at 1-877-952-7277.