Black bears are North America's most numerous bear species, yet they increasingly come into conflict with humans as expanding development intersects with bear habitat. These conflicts create significant welfare costs for individual bears.
Human-bear conflict creates welfare costs borne almost entirely by bears. Food-conditioned bears shot by wildlife managers as 'dangerous' have had their natural wariness trained out of them by previous human food rewards - a process initiated by human failure to secure food sources. Relocation of conflict bears to unfamiliar territory exposes them to territorial resident bears, unfamiliar food resources, and continued human contact in a new area. Cubs lose their mothers to conflict resolution kills and face starvation. Bears trapped for relocation experience acute capture stress from trap injuries, anesthesia complications, and transport. The welfare solutions - bear-proof garbage cans, electric fence protection of food sources, public education - cost far less than conflict management and eliminate the welfare harm.