Huron County's Animal Control Officer says finding bear tracks near Balvina Dr. in Goderich this week wasn't really too surprising.
Bob Trick explains a young bear can lose close to half its weight during hibernation so when they come out of hibernation they're very hungry and anxious to gain that weight back.
Trick says the tracks were fresh and were definitely made by a bear because a bear has five pads and claws on each foot while a dog or a coyote only has four.
He estimates it was a fairly young bear; either a yearling or last year's cub and the tracks indicate it was heading west towards the lake.
Trick says bears have a very good sense of smell so he advises people not to leave either food or garbage out because a bear will smell it and find it.
Trick adds last year there were no bear sightings for tracks found in Huron County, but the year before that there were several.
Again, he advises people to not leave pet food outside or anything else that could be considered food by a bear, because this time of year they're particularly hungry and they'll go wherever they're likely to find food.
