Authorities capture bear in Minden

Minden - A 4- to 5-year-old, 140-pound female bear was found in a tree in the front yard of a Minden home Monday evening.

Nevada Department of Wildlife biologists Carl Lackey and Thad Heater arrived at the house at the intersection of Mono Avenue and 10th Street around 4:30 p.m. and were able to tranquilize the bear before nightfall.

Douglas County Sheriff's Sgt. Jim Halsey diverted traffic away from the yard as Lackey and Heater approached the bear with a dart rifle.

Daisy, a young Karelian bear dog, kept the animal treed by barking and whining at the base of the tree while Lackey got a shot with a tranquilizer gun.

When shot, the bear scrambled to the top of the tree, rapidly came back down, then lumbered out of the tree into an adjacent yard.

Officials followed the bear, warning bystanders to stay back until the tranquilizer took effect.

A few minutes later, the bear was asleep in the front yard of a neighboring house, and Lackey, Heater and Halsey carried the bear to the sidewalk and examined it before loading it into the biologists' truck.

"It was the first time we've seen the bear," Lackey said.

On Tuesday, Lackey said the bear was doing well, and they were planning on releasing her into the Mount Rose Wilderness.