Fall is coming, and wherever bears live, they’re getting ready by indulging in eating sprees. Bears need to pack on a lot of body fat to get through their sleepy winters, and this time of year, they may be eating 20 hours a day. What’s more, they are looking for high-fat, high-protein foods.
One California bear has it figured out. He went after human food, namely, ice cream. Now that’s a paws that refreshes.
The bear in question is apparently known to locals, who not only don’t seem to find his presence unbearable but have even given him a name: Fuzzy. Personally, I would have gone with “Fuzzy-Wuzzy,” as it seems an ideal name for a bear, but they didn’t ask me. Now, law enforcement was called to deal with Fuzzy’s ice cream adventure. Fuzzy, of course, prefers strawbeary. But when the law arrived, Fuzzy obligingly left the premises.
The El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office said on social media that deputies were summoned early Sunday morning to the Ice Cream Shop at Camp Richardson in South Lake Tahoe.
“The deputies could barely believe their eyes as they saw a large bear behind the counter of the shop,” the post said.
The sheriff’s office said the bear, which only showed interest in the strawberry ice cream, left the shop “with some encouragement” from deputies.
“Thankfully, Fuzzy the bear caused barely any property damage and there was barely any cleanup,” the post said.
Fuzzy looks to be a good-sized black bear of the brown color phase.
He must have been bear-y hungry. pic.twitter.com/AuooiMOy0T
— Ward Clark (@TheGreatLander) August 23, 2025
The American Black Bear (Ursus americanus) comes in a variety of colors besides the expected black; their fur color ranges from blond to cinnamon to brown, and even a pale, almost blue in the case of Alaska’s glacier bear. But the one thing they have in common this time of year is that they are hungry.
Read More: Strange Kentucky Home Intruder Bear-ly Got Away With It
Dental Troubles Are a’Bruin, but This Big Patient Can Bear It
This story is amusing indeed, and we should all take a paws to smile at the happy outcome. But there could have been a very different end to the tale. When a big apex predator like a bear starts associating humans with food, it rarely ends well. What’s more, Fuzzy looks like a big, mature male, and now that he’s found a high-fat, high-calorie food source he likes, it’s very likely he’ll be back. And we shouldn’t count on him being chased away by the store’s employees pelting him with marshmallows or empty cones.
Black bears are amazing animals. They are adaptable, can eat almost anything, and do very well near human habitations. Around here in Alaska, it’s not at all uncommon to see blacks waiting to cross the highway or just feeding on grass and forbs along the road. We have them here in our Susitna Valley homestead as well, although they usually just pass through spring and fall, going between their winter dens in the hills and the rivers and streams where they feed in summer. In fact, a couple of years ago, I woke in the middle of the night to take care of some “necessary” as we older guys sometimes have to do, and there was a black bear comfortably seated on our deck. He didn’t try to enter the house, and he left before I could prep him for the freezer; properly handled, a black bear makes some fine eating.
Where Fuzzy is concerned, for now, it’s all is well that ends well. Let’s hope it stays that way.
Editor’s Note: Do you enjoy RedState’s conservative reporting that takes on the radical left and woke media? Bear with us, paws to support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.
Join RedState VIP and use the promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your VIP membership!
