Bear Attacks Goat in Ellington Near Tolland Line

ELLINGTON/TOLLAND, CT - State environmental officials are setting up a trap Tuesday for a bear that attacked a goat in Ellington on Monday night.

At about 9:30 p.m., the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection received a report from the state police Troop C barracks that a bear went into a pen at 28 Buff Cap Road in Ellington near the Tolland line and attacked a goat, DEEP spokesman Dennis Schain said.

DEEP Officials initially reported the attack was at a Tolland home. No. 28 is in close proximity to the town line, but in Ellington.

The goat sustained wounds to the neck, Schain said. The owner of the goat intervened during the attack and drove the bear away. The goat had to be put down, though, he said.

When an environmental police officer arrived, the bear was gone, Schain said.

Deep wildlife officials plan on setting up a trap for the bear Tuesday, Schain said.

There have been more than 4,000 bear sightings in the state over the past year, according to statistics released by the DEEP. Fifteen communities in the state have had more than 100 sightings in the past year., according to the chart.

See the chart here.

Schain said there about 700 black bears that live in Connecticut.

Photo Credit: Paul Fusco/CT DEEP-Wildlife