In Oliver, British Columbia, Curtis Pirie had a surprising encounter when he spotted a bear with a stove pipe stuck on its head while dealing with his bike chain issue. Just an hour earlier, his wife had shown him a picture of the same bear on social media. Pirie and a neighbor tried to remove the pipe from the bear’s head but failed, leading the bear to climb up a tree.
After Pirie’s wife contacted the B.C. Conservation Officer Service, officers from Kelowna arrived and tranquilized the bear. Despite taking a few minutes for the sedative to work, the bear ended up stuck in the tree. Eventually, with the help of a large pole, the bear was coaxed down and the pipe was safely removed by the officers.
The conservation service had received reports about the bear over the previous 10 days due to its erratic behavior near the golf course in Oliver. Sgt. James Zucchelli mentioned that the bear seemed undernourished, raising concerns about its food intake during the time it had the pipe on its head.
Despite its ordeal, the bear was deemed healthy and was relocated back to the wilderness near Oliver by the conservation officers. Zucchelli advised the public to secure attractants to prevent such incidents and to promptly report any animal in distress to the authorities.