ORO VALLEY, Ariz. (13 News) – 13 News viewer Olivia Szaraz had a surprising guest stop by her house in Oro Valley.
A bear walked by her front door late last night, and her doorbell camera caught it all on video, which you can watch below.
“I was really shocked, I couldn’t believe it,” Szaraz said. “It really was a bear!”
Luckily, it was just passing through, and there have been no incidents reported.
While it was a shocking sight to see, it’s not uncommon for wildlife to come down into urban areas during this time of year.
“I really wasn’t expecting the bear,” Szaraz said. “We’ve been there for five years and never seen anything like that. Plenty of bobcats, javelina, coyotes.”
Szaraz said she immediately called the non-emergency line for Oro Valley Police Department to notify them of the sighting.
She was told they only get involved if the bear is a danger to the public at that moment and directed her to call the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
Game and Fish told 13 News this isn’t the first bear sighting it has received in the Oro Valley area. In fact, 13 News received a video from Mark Erwin showing what appears to be the same bear in the same general area last week. You can see that video below.
CHECK IT OUT: Mark Erwin shared this video of a bear spotted in his neighborhood near El Conquistador in Oro Valley early this morning. Arizona Game and Fish has been notified.
Posted by
KOLD News 13
on Monday, June 16, 2025
Because the bear hasn’t caused any disturbances, they’re not actively tracking it down, but they are keeping a watchful eye on the situation.
Jeffery Carver, co-partner at
Arizona Animal Experts,
said that with the area being next to the mountain, the community is bound to get a few visits from wildlife. He said the animals are likely looking for water, especially with the dry conditions.
“This is right at that time of year when I start getting the sightings of them,” Carver said. “Because it’s just before monsoon hits. Once the monsoon hits, you don’t seem to get the bear sightings anymore.”
Carver added that 99.9% of the time, bears will not attack. He advises everyone to just leave them be and try not to startle them. If you do, they could charge at you.
That is why he said to stand your ground, make loud noises to scare it off, and do not run away.
“Number one thing is do not run from them,” Carver said. “Because, yeah, you will, lots of times you kick in the prey drive.”
Szaraz said she plans to be extra cautious moving forward.
“I’m just going to look out the door, make sure there’s no bear out there,” Szaraz said. “Probably put our garbage out the day of garbage pickup, but that’s probably about it.”
While it is okay to leave water out for animals, both Carver and Game and Fish stress that it is illegal to feed the wildlife.
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