Many bears that enter homes do so through an unlocked or open window or door. Close and lock all bear-accessible windows and doors when you leave the house and at night before you go to bed.

If you must leave downstairs windows open, install sturdy grates or bars. Screens don’t keep out bears.

Keep garage doors and windows closed and locked at night and when you’re not home. Don’t leave your garage door standing open when you’re not outside. Install extra-sturdy doors if you have a freezer, refrigerator, pet food, bird seed, or other attractants in your garage.

Keep car doors and windows closed and locked if you park outside. Make sure there’s nothing with an odor in your vehicle, including candy, gum, air fresheners, trash, lotions, and lip balms.

Bears are great climbers - remove any tree limbs that might provide access to upper level docks and windows.

Replace exterior lever-style door handles with good quality round door knobs that bears can't push or pull open.

Put on talk radio (not music) when you leave home; the human voice startles most bears.

Bears follow their super-sensitive noses to anything that smells like food and can follow scents from up to five miles away.

Don’t leave trash out overnight unless it’s in a bear-proof enclosure of container. Obey all local regulations.

We recommend feeding birds only when bears are hibernating. If you want to feed birds when bears are active, please review the Bears & Birdfeeders section on our website.

Don’t store food of any kind in an unlocked garage, flimsy shed, or on or under your deck.

Don’t leave anything with an odor outside, near open windows, or in your vehicle, even if you’re home. That includes scented candles, air fresheners, soaps, and lotions.

If a bear comes into your yard or close to your home, do yourself and the bear a big favor and scare it away. A confident attitude plus loud noises like a firm yell, clapping your hands, banging on pots or pans or blowing an air horn sends most bears running.

If a bear enters your home, open doors and windows and make sure it can get out the same way it got in. Don’t approach the bear or block escape routes.

Never approach a bear. If a bear won’t leave, call your local Fish and Game office. If a bear presents an immediate threat to human safety, call 911.