Christmas is bruined: Bear breaks into freezer, gobbles up holiday baking

Sharla Marr was on top of all her Christmas baking this year — until a bear broke into her freezer and munched its way through her holiday supplies. 

The Campbell River, B.C., woman noticed the destruction early Friday, as she was heading out for a walk. The freezer with all her extra baked goods is in her carport, near where she parks her vehicle in the winter. 

It's stocked with all sorts of goodies, she said, but this bear seems to have an especially sweet tooth. 

The list of stolen treats included a kilogram of peanut brittle, a large pan of mint Nanaimo bars and dozens of chocolate truffles. More regular bear fare like meats, fish and berries were left strewn on the ground. 

"I couldn't even tell what he had eaten until I looked in the freezer to take inventory of what was left because he had just licked clean everything," Marr told Liz McArthur, guest host of CBC's All Points West. 

"The containers were just empty.

"I've heard of bears doing weird things but I just never thought it would happen," she added.

Marr said she cleaned out her freezer and got rid of all the ruined food.

But a day later, the bear was back. 

"There was dirt inside the freezer, like he was sticking his head in there," she said. 

This time, there was nothing left for the animal to nick. 

Marr, whose home is near a wooded area, said she knows there are bears around — she says she sometimes sees evidence of them in the woods — but hasn't had any animals approach her property before. 

The B.C. Conservation Officer Service frequently advises British Columbians to secure their garbage bins and compost bins to avoid attracting bears, but freezers aren't usually on the list of precautions.  

"Residents are reminded to lock fridges, freezers, use bear-proof containers and secure all attractants around their home to avoid creating conflicts — this is the best way to keep people safe and bears from being destroyed," said a spokesperson for the service. 

Anyone found to be negligently attracting dangerous wildlife, like bears, by not doing so can face charges under the Wildlife Act. 

Marr is now busy re-baking all her holiday goodies — and knows where not to keep them.