CROSS FORK, POTTER COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A bear cub in Potter County needed a hand after sticking its head in a plastic jug. Luckily, someone came to the cub’s rescue, and she’s reminding everyone across the Commonwealth to be “BearWise.”

Sarah Lindgren is a Park Manager at Kettle Creek at Ole Bull State Park in Potter County, and she loves animals and their environment.

On Sunday, after work, around 5:00 p.m., Lindgren was on her way to pick up a friend’s dog, when she saw a bear cub lying on the side of the road with a plastic jar stuck on its head.

“I don’t even know why I turned on the video at that moment, I just knew it wasn’t in the ideal spot and I thought it was either going to drown or get hit by a car,” Lindgren stated.

Lingren walked up to the cub and began to pull the plastic jug off of the bear’s head but she soon realized the cub’s ear was preventing the jug from coming off. (See Video below)

Luckily, Lindgren was able to help the cub by pulling the plastic jar off of its head. Now, the video of her coming to the bear’s aid has gone viral on TikTok with over 1.8M views and she wants to use this time to remind everyone of being “BearWise in Pennsylvania.”

BearWise is a black bear program with information and solutions to help homeowners, businesses, and communities coexist with bears. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is a BearWise partner.

The at-home basics of the program are:

  • Never feed or approach a bear.
  • Secure food, garbage, and recycling.
  • Remove bird feeders when bears are active.
  • Never leave pet food outdoors.
  • Clean and store grills and smokers properly.
  • Alert neighbors to bear activity.

Lindgren says being BearWise in PA is something she always enforces.

“Keeping distance from the bear, being smart with food like putting garbage in a bearproof canister or something like that. This probably happened to the bear because it got into unsecured garbage.

Lindgren added that securing trash to make sure animals can’t get in as well as cleaning out grease traps is wise.

“I’m thankful I ran up on it, I don’t know if most people would have, obviously I wouldn’t have done it on a full-size bear. Hopefully, it’s doing better. I was mostly worried about disorientation and dehydration so I came back to check on it the next day and he was up in a tree,” Lindgren added.

Courtesy: Sarah Lindgren

After she came to the cub’s rescue, she contacted the Game Commission to let them know what happened.

“I’m appreciative, and it’s a good opportunity to send a message about keeping home and camp free of stuff bears can get at,” Lindgren continued. “I saw a bear in trouble and I did my best, I did everything I could legally do.”

Lindgren wishes to remind everyone to be “BearWise,” how to live with bears, police food and garbage correctly, remember that a fed bear is a dead bear, and always call the Game Commission in an animal emergency.

For more information about “BearWise Basics” or information on black bears from the PA Game Commission, follow the links to their websites.