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The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has been leading the way in bear management through the use of Karelian bear dogs, a Northern European breed renowned for courage in the face of disgruntled bruins. Currently two dogs, Mishka and Cash, are on duty with a wildlife biologist and a wildlife officer. Using techniques pioneered by Montana wildlife biologist Carrie Hunt, these dogs are learning to teach problem bears when and where they're not welcome.

In terms of time and animals, it's a tremendous savings for everyone. The pilot project with Wildlife Enforcement in 2008 along with the success of biologist Rich Beausoleil the past three years has proven how valuable these dogs are for bears and people. The goal of the program is to reduce what biologists call "human-caused mortality"—bears getting killed by people. "It's human-caused mortality that's the main factor influencing whether or not bears can persist long-term in an area," said Beausoleil. "The number one reason why bears die is management removal of nuisance bears," explained Hunt.

Typically, nuisance bears are shot by wildlife officers after they lose their natural fear of humans and begin lurking near human settlements in search of an easy meal. Hunt began examining ways of using Karelian bear dogs to tackle the problem of bear-human interaction some 12 years ago because she "got tired of watching bears die." She put together the Wind River Bear Institute in 1996 to further her ideas on "bear shepherding." It was from WRBI that Washington DFW has obtained their dogs. Hunt uses aversive conditioning techniques to show bears that there really is no such thing as a free lunch. By associating people with discomfort and noise, bears are educated to avoid human contact, eliminating the need for relocation or extermination. The Karelian bear dogs are an essential part of this process, said Hunt.