Black Bear Euthanized After Attack on 2 Children in Their Pennsylvania Home

A black bear that attacked two kids while they were near their Pennsylvania house was euthanized by officials.

The bear that assaulted two young children in Luzerne County was captured and put to death, according to a Friday announcement from the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Black Bear Attacks Two Children

According to the Game Commission, the attack in Wright Township on Monday left two kids with non-life-threatening wounds.

The kids, who were 5 years old and 14 months old, had bites and/or scrapes treated.

Few facts were available about the attack, including when it took place when the kids were playing in the driveway of their Pennsylvania home near Mountain Top, but are unsure what might have prompted it, according to officials on May 22.

After receiving medical attention for their wounds, the kids were discharged from Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, but the Pennsylvania Game Commission was still looking for the bear who had injured them.

The occurrence was tragic, and Game Commission Executive Director Bryan Burhans expressed relief that the victims' wounds weren't more serious.

The Game Commission has placed two bear traps nearby, and if a bear is caught, it may be possible to determine whether it was the same bear that was engaged in the attack through DNA testing.

It then claimed to have captured a male and a female bear in live traps overnight on Thursday.

The Dr. Jane Huffman Wildlife Genetics Institute at East Stroudsburg University was where the bears were tested, according to the committee.

The outcomes of that experiment demonstrated that the female bear was the one who attacked the kids.

Euthanized Wildlife

To "prevent future attacks," the commission had that bear put to death, as reported by Pennsylvania Pressroom.

It was also highlighted that this was the sole method for testing the bear for rabies.

Burhans stated that although the agency places focus on preserving public safety, it also takes seriously its job to follow protocol to euthanize a bear implicated in an attack.

In this situation, they have fulfilled their commitment by their actions.

According to Burhans, Pennsylvania's bears typically avoid interacting with humans, and attacks are seldom.

When attacks do happen, he continued, they frequently involve a bear being surrounded and denied the chance to escape or are started by a dog approaching a bear and the dog's owner becoming involved.

The bear that was engaged in the incident on Monday probably won't attack you.

The attack was more likely brought on by an unidentified event. However, if the bear responsible for the incident is found, it will be put to death out of caution.

The commission reported that the male bear had been moved to a different location, Pennlive reported.

Also Read: 500-Lb Grizzly Bear Slaughtered in Yellowstone National Park 

Black Bears in Pennsylvania

The number of bears in Pennsylvania has increased over time, and as more people live in bear-inhabited areas, there are more encounters between humans and bears.

Bear encounters occur when they find readily available food close to populated areas.

People who live in bear country, which includes the majority of the state, should be familiar with bear behavior.

The state is home to more than 16,000 black bears of the Ursus americanus species, which are capable of running at 35 mph, climbing trees, and swimming well.

They could live up to 25 years in the wild, according to AZ Animals.

Although there are three different bear species in North America, Pennsylvania only has black bears, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

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