Quebec confirms a young bear captured near Montreal has been euthanized

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It’s unclear how the animal, which was estimated to be about a year and a half old, got to the city. The Wildlife Department said it was the first time it had been called about a bear on the Island of Montreal. 

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Sauvetage Animal Rescue, the group that spent several hours helping police and wildlife agents corral the wayward bear, said it was “shocked” to learn of the animal’s death.

The group said in a statement late Monday it had been assured the bear would be put back into the wild, adding that it would have helped place the animal in a refuge if release wasn’t possible.

“At the end of (Sunday’s) operation, we were informed that the bear was going to be released away from the city,” the group wrote in a statement published on Facebook. “We were not contacted by the Ministry of Forests, Wildlife and Parks to tell us that another decision had been taken.”

Wildlife officials said the agency considers refuges temporary solutions to rehabilitate animals that can be returned to the wild. “However, the stay of a wild animal in such an environment presents a risk of habituating the animal to humans,” the email read.

The statement said officials did not consider sending the bear to live in a zoo or other facility long term, stating that a life in captivity is “not optimal” for bears, which need a large territory to roam.

Montrealers took to social media to express anger over the bear’s death, and an online petition calling for the resignation of province’s wildlife minister had gathered over 4,500 signatures as of midday Wednesday.

The petition also accused the department of deciding to “euthanize deer in several sectors when refuges wanted to take care of them,” and failing to properly fund organizations that help wildlife.

Sauvetage Animal Rescue posted the link to the complaints page of the Wildlife Department website, suggesting citizens could write to the minister directly to express their displeasure.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 26, 2021.

Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press