A man who’s being called “the bear whisperer” is raising eyebrows in New Brunswick, thanks to his up-close interactions with wild black bears.
“Somebody asked me the question one day, ‘How come you are on the ground with all those bears around you, and you are still alive?’ and I told him, ‘Can you hold a secret?'” Richard Goguen said.
“I told him ‘I am a bear in a human suit.'”
Goguen runs the Little Big Bear Safari in Acadieville, N.B. For the past 22 years, he’s been feeding wild black bears that roam out of the woods to get handfuls of peanuts and treats he sets out for them on a wooded property several kilometers from his home.
Goguen walks along, feeding the wild animals while visitors watch from an observing platform he built about 20 feet off the ground.
“It’s the first time I can see bear so close, it is incredible,” said Erica Matila, a visitor from France.
Goguen says people should know this is an active time for black bears in the province — at least a dozen are gathering at his safari site every night.
“They don’t depend on the food that I give them at all,” he said, adding the animals seem to be sticking around longer this year due to the mild weather.
Manitoba’s Laura Lee Tully visited the site twice this past week, and says her first time watching Goguen feed the bears was a little unsettling.
“The first time that I came, there was a bear that had never been here before and it was aggressive,” Tully said.
“[Goguen] just said ‘Whatever, you are fine,’ and he just walked away and the [bear] just just turned around and walked away. He’s like the bear whisperer.”
According to bear encounter information posted online by New Brunswick’s Department of Natural Resources, people should avoid feeding the animals.
Bear attacks are rare in the province, but a central N.B. man was reportedly attacked by a mother bear earlier this month. He was treated for bites at a clinic and later released.
The department says it’s aware of only one medically serious incident of a bear attacking a human in New Brunswick in the past 60 years.
Department spokesperson Marc-Andre Chiasson says Goguen is not breaking any laws by feeding the bears, but the activity isn’t recommended.
“The Department of Energy and Resource Development is aware of this operation. The operator is not breaking any laws, but our department continues to monitor this operation to ensure that it remains in compliance,” Chiasson said.
Goguen says he hasn’t been attacked in his more than two decades of running the safari. However, he does carry pepper spray just in case an unfamiliar bear decides to attack. He says he’s never had to use it.
Goguen says there is one safety reminder to keep in mind at this time of year — the bears are very active as they fatten up for the winter, and mother bears who are protecting their cubs and can become a treat.
“They will think twice before they jump on you and get you. But if for some reason you turn around and go and run away, they are going to go after you,” Goguen said.
He says instead of running, if you encounter a bear that you think may be a threat, stand your ground and never play dead, wave your arms and make loud noises and usually — or at least hopefully — the bear will run away.
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