KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A woman said Wednesday she lost around 25 chickens after a bear went onto her Strawberry Plains property and destroyed her chicken coop. So far, she said she has only found two surviving chickens and does not plan to get any more.
"Night before last, we came out to unlock the chickens out of the coop, and the coop was scattered everywhere, torn apart, all the chickens were gone, or most of the chickens were gone," said Kim Scheller. "They're just pets. We eat the eggs, we give the eggs away to friends."
She said it happened at around 2 a.m. or 3 a.m. and she did not hear anything, and neither did her dog. She also said she does not plan to have chickens anymore.
Scheller said she has lived in the East Tennessee area for around 20 years and has not had issues with bears in the past. She also said she hoped the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency would set a bear trap after reporting the incident.
She said the TWRA told her it would call her back after she reported the incident Wednesday morning.
"I'm just surprised that a bear would come to this area now," she said. "Just watch your livestock, watch your animals if they go out. I just hope they catch the bear and move it to the mountains or something."
The TWRA said to be safe in areas with bears, people should avoid leaving trash or food in their cars and people should never approach a bear if they see one. While in the wilderness, the TWRA also said people should carry bear spray and know how to use it.