Scene that reminded horror movie witnessed a breeder in Pelion, when he saw the door of the unit broken and his rabbits dead inside. The first indications were that a large animal had invaded the area, while a few meters away footprints, attributed to a bear, were discovered

The incident happened about a month ago in Damoucharis of Pelion and it has really shocked the livestock, and not only, world of Magnesia who never expected to see a bear and, in fact, next to the sea.

The unlucky one breeder he could not believe what had happened. “At first I didn’t realize it was a bear. From the broken door I could tell it was a large animal, but I couldn’t believe it was a bear. The animal’s movements showed incredible ferocity. He broke down the door, ate the tires, broke the lids off the feeders and even bent the cages off the rabbits so he could take them out and eat them. Everywhere in the corral there are large claws and bites,” Mr. Manolis Vassiliou told TAHYDROME.

Mr. Vassiliou points out that the bear ate the little rabbits which were a few days old, while only three escaped her “claws”. He describes with great anger the damage to both his livestock and equipment.

For his part, the president of the Hunting Association of Nea Ionia, Yannis Tirhas, points out that this is not the first time that a bear has been spotted in Magnesia.

“About a year and a half ago we had a similar incident in Ano Kerasia and Veneto, where a bear had devoured beehives. Since then we haven’t had an incident, until recently when this happened in Damouhari,” he said, adding that the bear has the ability to travel long distances in order to find food.

“Bears are animals that adapt very easily to the habitat. Their characteristic is that they can travel long kilometers in search of food. In other words, the fact that her footprints were found even on a beach should not surprise us,” explains Mr. Tirhas, although as he points out, Pelion is not suitable for bears to live, because it is densely populated and there are many tree plantations.

Asked about the possibility that it is not a bear, but another large animal, Mr. Tirhas states that the photos with the footprint of the animal on the beach refer only to this assessment.

However, he clarifies that so far the animal has not been located and the fact carries risks, as as the weather clears and the excursionists increase it is very likely to attack cars. “Now that the excursionists will slowly increase and the holiday homes will open for the summer or that other attacks on animals will be confirmed, it is very likely that even cars will be attacked. The bear can survive for a long time either on animals or even on the fruits of trees, something that is abundant in Pelion. It is certain that he will not be hungry”, he said.

Regarding the origin of the bear and how it ended up in Magnesia, since the area is not suitable for permanent living, Mr. Tirchas refers to the case with the white tabby.

“Just as someone left the white tiger in a garbage bin in Spata Attica, it is very likely that the bear has also reached Pelion with human intervention. The other possibility is that he has traveled through the rest of the prefectures and passed through Olympos and Kissavos to get here,” he emphasizes. However, what he notes is that the animal is a protected species, calling on hunters and residents to be very careful as killing it will result in criminal charges.