Black bear is shot and killed after burglary in Montana home in the middle of the night: ‘It was quite a wake-up call at 3am’
Black bear is shot and killed after burglary in Montana home in the middle of the night: ‘It was quite a wake-up call at 3am’
- Thomas Bolkcom, 27, had to shoot the ten-year-old black bear after finding him in his living room in the early hours of Thursday morning
- Bolkcom was awakened by his dog barking furiously at the beast at his home in Luther, Montana
- His fiancé, Seeley Oblander, said the episode had been “quite a wake-up call.”
A black bear was shot and killed after breaking into a Montana home through a screened window in the middle of the night.
Thomas Bolkcom, 27, had to shoot the wild animal after it broke into his home in the rural community of Luther, Montana, Thursday night.
After staying up late the night before with his fiancé Seeley Oblander, the two were awakened at around 3am by their dog Maizey barking furiously.
Bolkcom, who works as a commercial painter and moose hunter, went to investigate and discovered a black bear standing in his living room.
After quickly grabbing his gun, Bolkcom managed to shoot the bear before entering another room, where he killed it.
Bolkcom had to shoot the animal after it broke into his Montana home in the early hours of Thursday morning
Bolkcom, left, his fiancé Seeley Oblander, the two had been awakened around 3am when their dog Maizey barked furiously at the bear
The couple had been up late the night before preparing to travel to Arizona, where Oblander had planned a bachelorette party with her friends.
They later discovered that the bear had entered their home through a screened window.
She said: ‘I never thought there would be a bear in our house, so that was quite a wake up call at 3am.
“I just stayed downstairs with the dogs, trying to keep them out of the way and let Tom do it. He did great.’
The couple and Bolkcom’s brother dragged the bear outside and then called both their fathers, who came to the house to meet a game warden so the others could catch their morning flight.
Oblander told the Billings Gazette: ‘We wanted him out of the house, the bear smelled awful, and he made a real mess of it.’
The warden told them the bear was about ten years old and weighed about 250-300 pounds.
Chrissy Webb, spokesperson for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, said the shooting was justified in self-defense.
The warden told them the bear was about ten years old and weighed about 250-300 pounds
The bear had managed to gain access to their home through a screened window, pictured here
Black bears are said to frequent the area and have been prowling the local neighborhood for the past few weeks
Black bears have frequented the area, Webb says, and one has been prowling the area for the past few weeks, trying to get food from garbage cans.
Although the house that was broken into had no unsecured food or trash, Webb said the bear likely got used to associating humans with food, creating a dangerous situation for local residents and the animal.
Webb continued, “This is pretty abnormal behavior for a bear to enter a house.
“This large male black bear eventually died from improperly stored attractants in the community.”
DailyMail.com has reached out to the couple for comment, but didn’t immediately hear back.