This large male bear was live trapped near Rosseau,Ontario by Bear With Us August 8,1997. The bear was a nuisance complaint. We understand why. He was sick looking and for good reason. A hunters arrow had entered rear of the jawbone and lodged in his neck. The arrow shaft had been broken off. The injury would have happened during the Ontario spring bear hunt which was still in effect in 1997. The wound was badly infected. My brother in law was visiting at the time. Bud and I removed the arrowhead, attached an ear tag, injected the large bear with penicillin and released him Aug 10th .
He lived on for many years. He was shot to his death October 2013, 16 years after the arrow was removed from his neck, now a very old bear. His teeth were worn.
Bears rarely live to old age and die of a natural cause.
According to research in Minnesota, 95% are shot by hunters, another 3% are killed by people as nuisances or on the roadways. The remaining 2% we do not know. Maybe a few die of old age. One old female, a bear that had been tracked by the MN DNR died of old age this July 2013 at the age of 39.5 years. – Mike.www.bearwithus.org
