Bear Dogs to the Rescue
November 11, 2020 8:10 AM Subscribe
Japan’s Karelian Bear Dogs help save lives, reduce injuries and educate both people and bears. Thousands of black bears roam Japan’s forests, sometimes causing problems for humans and for themselves. That’s where a group of highly trained Karelian Bear Dogs comes in. Part of the Picchio Wildlife Research Center’s bear conservation team, they’re responsible for the safe relocation and redirection of dozens of burly bruins each year. Plus, they’re super-charming! (SLtheBark)
Wow this is fascinating! I was watching a video compilation of "crazy animal videos", one shows a brown bear breaking the glass in a screen door to steal dog or cat food out of a laundry room in a house while the person filming stands not 4 feet away. My immediate reaction was "oh no, they're going to have to put that bear down". This is a way cooler alternative to teach bears the houses are dangerous for them and the people inside.
posted by FirstMateKate at 9:52 AM on November 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by FirstMateKate at 9:52 AM on November 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
Great article.
posted by terrapin at 9:58 AM on November 11, 2020 [7 favorites]
Due to the success of the WRBI in training KBD to reduce conflicts and deaths, conservation organizations are now using KBD in California, Nevada, Alaska, Montana, Canada and Japan.Too bad Grafton, NH didn't know about these wonder canines. Or maybe it's better they didn't.
posted by terrapin at 9:58 AM on November 11, 2020 [7 favorites]
Sure, dogs are great, but don't forget the work of the monster robot wolves to deter bears in Japan. (Yes, this is real)
posted by ShooBoo at 10:01 AM on November 11, 2020 [8 favorites]
posted by ShooBoo at 10:01 AM on November 11, 2020 [8 favorites]
I love them.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 10:10 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 10:10 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
Metafilter: don't forget the work of the monster robot wolves.
posted by Ashwagandha at 10:20 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Ashwagandha at 10:20 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
My wife and I have trained our livestock guardian dog at the Wind River Bear Institute in Montana, which specializes in Karelian bear dog training. Watching the bear dogs is pretty amazing; they'll chase a bear for fifty yards at full speed and, when the command is given, stop on a dime and return just as quickly. If you've ever tried to recall a dog (even a very well trained one) who's got his blood up and is on the trail of something fun, you'll appreciate how miraculous that is.
posted by riotnrrd at 10:20 AM on November 11, 2020 [9 favorites]
posted by riotnrrd at 10:20 AM on November 11, 2020 [9 favorites]
I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that they look like huge Border Collies.
posted by jamjam at 10:32 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by jamjam at 10:32 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
My parents live in a currently bear-plagued neighborhood in Asheville, North Carolina.
Friends of ours on the outskirts of Asheville have bear visitors in their yard all the time too! They've basically just learned to live with them. But the potential for something going wrong is obviously very real. These dogs could be great in such a situation.
posted by Artifice_Eternity at 11:02 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
Friends of ours on the outskirts of Asheville have bear visitors in their yard all the time too! They've basically just learned to live with them. But the potential for something going wrong is obviously very real. These dogs could be great in such a situation.
posted by Artifice_Eternity at 11:02 AM on November 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that they look like huge Border Collies.
Coincidence, I'm afraid--KBDs are a fairly textbook laika breed. (Laikas are a subset of spitz breeds, usually used more for hunting than for pulling work, across northeastern Eurasia.) In fact, dogs from the same general landrace but hailing from the Russian side of the border are referred to as Russo-European Laikas. A closer analogue to more familiar breeds in the Anglo world might be a Norwegian Elkhound, a Finnish Spitz, or--appropriately enough for the handler profiled here--an Akita. Very different temperament from a border collie, too--laikas hunt much more independently than a gundog or a herd dog would, although they check in more than Western scenthounds might.
It's kind of like how a blond Hovawart (pictured) looks just like a big Golden Retriever, but is actually specialized and bred for a very different (guardy! independent!) niche with a very different breeding tradition and a different behavioral phenotype.
posted by sciatrix at 11:14 AM on November 11, 2020 [12 favorites]
Coincidence, I'm afraid--KBDs are a fairly textbook laika breed. (Laikas are a subset of spitz breeds, usually used more for hunting than for pulling work, across northeastern Eurasia.) In fact, dogs from the same general landrace but hailing from the Russian side of the border are referred to as Russo-European Laikas. A closer analogue to more familiar breeds in the Anglo world might be a Norwegian Elkhound, a Finnish Spitz, or--appropriately enough for the handler profiled here--an Akita. Very different temperament from a border collie, too--laikas hunt much more independently than a gundog or a herd dog would, although they check in more than Western scenthounds might.
It's kind of like how a blond Hovawart (pictured) looks just like a big Golden Retriever, but is actually specialized and bred for a very different (guardy! independent!) niche with a very different breeding tradition and a different behavioral phenotype.
posted by sciatrix at 11:14 AM on November 11, 2020 [12 favorites]
I was hoping that comment might draw you, sciatrix!
posted by jamjam at 11:23 AM on November 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by jamjam at 11:23 AM on November 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
Just yesterday, Japanese Twitter was abuzz with comments on both sides arguing over an article about angry (and ill-informed) people calling local hunters associations protesting the killing of bears whenever they're mentioned in the news, and that more and more licensed hunters are becoming reluctant to respond to bear sightings. Stuff like this, link in Japanese.
I'm a Japanese person living in Tokyo and have never had to worry about running into bears in everyday life, so I honestly didn't know what to think about this topic. I did not know about these dogs and the work these teams do! Thanks for the article, fascinating stuff.
posted by misozaki at 1:55 PM on November 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
I'm a Japanese person living in Tokyo and have never had to worry about running into bears in everyday life, so I honestly didn't know what to think about this topic. I did not know about these dogs and the work these teams do! Thanks for the article, fascinating stuff.
posted by misozaki at 1:55 PM on November 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
"My parents live in a currently bear-plagued neighborhood in Asheville, North Carolina. This is the best idea I've seen yet for bear management."
The state dog of North Carolina is, in fact, the Plott Hound, which was bred in that area for bear hunting all the troublesome Appalachian bears who like to wander into town! (They tree the bear.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 2:48 PM on November 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
The state dog of North Carolina is, in fact, the Plott Hound, which was bred in that area for bear hunting all the troublesome Appalachian bears who like to wander into town! (They tree the bear.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 2:48 PM on November 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
Some angrily opposed the presence of bear dogs in their neighborhoods. Why are they opposed? Do the people think the dogs and handlers will hurt or kill the bears? Or?
posted by RuvaBlue at 4:06 PM on November 11, 2020
posted by RuvaBlue at 4:06 PM on November 11, 2020
Oshima gripped a rifle loaded with rubber bullets (in case of trouble).Wow. Doesn't seem like that would be enough to deter a pissed of bear.
posted by Mitheral at 4:40 PM on November 11, 2020
Wow. Doesn't seem like that would be enough to deter a pissed of bear.
It says the local bears are 90-260 pounds, which is tiny compared to the bears around here. I'd still think you'd want more than rubber bullets, but it at least isn't totally ridiculous.
posted by Dip Flash at 4:48 PM on November 11, 2020
It says the local bears are 90-260 pounds, which is tiny compared to the bears around here. I'd still think you'd want more than rubber bullets, but it at least isn't totally ridiculous.
posted by Dip Flash at 4:48 PM on November 11, 2020
"The human and the black-and-white, thick-furred KBD staff work hard, play hard, love each other and take naps whenever possible."
That sentence makes me so happy. Thanks for sharing this article.
posted by Zumbador at 1:38 AM on November 12, 2020
That sentence makes me so happy. Thanks for sharing this article.
posted by Zumbador at 1:38 AM on November 12, 2020
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Also, as stated, those dogs are absolutely adorable
posted by thivaia at 9:14 AM on November 11, 2020 [4 favorites]