A bear was euthanized after “roaming” through a neighborhood near Nordic Valley and attempting to enter multiple homes.Officials with the Division of Wildlife R
A bear was euthanized after “roaming” through a neighborhood near Nordic Valley and attempting to enter multiple homes on Saturday, June 7, 2025. A bear was euthanized after “roaming” through a neighborhood near Nordic Valley and attempting to enter multiple homes.
Officials with the Division of Wildlife Resources said they euthanized the bear over the weekend after it became clear that it “had lost its fear of people.” The bear was first noticed on Friday, June 6, rummaging through trash cans and a bird feeder at several homes in Nordic Valley, located just a few miles from Eden.Bear found in Salt Lake neighborhood safely released into Utah wilderness The following day, officials said they received nine reports of a bear “roaming through a neighborhood” in a different area of Nordic Valley, north of where it was spotted the day before. On that Saturday, the bear attempted to enter three homes through the doorways and stared at a family through the window of a fourth home. “Despite people moving around inside and looking back at the bear through the window, the bear didn’t move and didn’t exhibit any fear. It was clear to us that the bear had lost its fear of people,” said Mark Hadley, DWR’s northern region outreach manager. Once a bear loses its fear of people, DWR policy requires that it be euthanized as they can then “become aggressive and dangerous.” In this case, officials were concerned about residents in the area and also several girls' camps located nearby. Hadley said that due to the increase of development in Utah's backcountry, it is "impossible to find a place we can release a problem bear." “Euthanizing wildlife is the worst part of our jobs. Our staff got into the wildlife profession because they love wildlife and want to help it and see it thrive. Euthanizing wildlife is not something they want to do,” Hadley said. To prevent this from happening in the future, Hadley is asking Utahns to take several precautions to avoid attracting bears to residential areas. He said Utahns should not leave garbage cans outside for extended periods of time. Instead, he suggested keeping it in a garage until it’s time for it to be picked up."Bears have no problem eating the same types of food people eat, and they have an incredible sense of smell. If you keep those things in mind – and lessen the chance that a bear smells and finds food – you can greatly reduce the chance you put a bear in this situation,” Hadley said.
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