Nov. 17 (UPI) — Wildlife officials in Florida said a bear seen wandering for nearly a month with a plastic container stuck over its head was safely tranquilized and rescued from its predicament.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said the bear had been seen wandering in the Golden Gate Estates area with a clear plastic container, believed to be a pet food feeder that had been left outside, on its head.
Commission officers searched for the bear, but it managed to elude them for 28 days before a biologist was able to tranquilize the animal.
“Our biologist down there had to actually use bolt cutters to cut that plastic and pull it off its head,” commission bear biologist Mike Orlando told WESH-TV.
The bear was treated for injuries caused by the container digging into its skin and released into a secure area of Picayune Strand State Forest.