Fear mounts Pedals has been killed, but he’s just another bear

Andy Warhol once said everyone will be famous for 15 minutes. He thought he was only talking about human beings.

Remember the bear that suffered an injury to one of its front legs that caused it to teach itself to walk upright for longer distances? It is missing part of its front right leg and has an injury to the front left. The one that eventually was given the nickname Pedals? There were occasional Pedals sightings and video clips. A Facebook page was created that dedicated itself to tracking "Pedals the Injured Bipedal Bear."

That very bear is now feared by some to be dead. Something went up on social media the other day that Pedals was killed in NJ's extended bear hunt this week and brought to a weigh station. Outrage all around. It set off a firestorm of criticism and whining. Only problem is no one even knows if it is true. The Department of Environmental Protection felt it necessary to respond to this public outcry. After all, once you have decided to nickname a bear and put a video of it on YouTube, you must be answered.

In an official release by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection,

During the October segment of the black bear season, the NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife has received multiple requests for information regarding the status of an upright bear, based on hearsay accounts recently posted on social media. While the Division appreciates the concerns for the bear, it has no way of verifying the identity of any bear that has not been previously tagged or had a DNA sample previously taken."

A local group advocating for the protection of Pedals posted an update on Facebook and sent out a press release. We cannot confirm their claim that Pedals is dead, but they are almost certain that is the case.

The hunter who has wanted him dead for nearly 3 years had the satisfaction of putting an arrow through him, bragging at the station.

If Pedals was killed in the bear hunt, how is it any different than any other bear being killed in the bear hunt? It was given a nickname and learned to walk upright for long distances due to its injuries. Does that somehow make this bear not a bear? If anything, I would think a hunter taking him down is almost merciful. It could not have been an easy life since whatever accident, experts believe it was probably a car accident, occurred to maim it. By recording the bear's bipedalism, by giving the bear a cutesy nickname, we did not magically change the bear into a human being. It is, or now possibly was, just an injured bear. I take no pleasure in seeing any animal suffer. But the bear population in the Garden State must be controlled. Giving a cute nickname or making a Facebook page or putting a tutu on a bear or giving it its own reality show and publicist will never change the fact that this is only a bear.

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